ESC – Three letters to save lives

Publication date: 29 April 2008

 Electronic Stability Control – ESC – has been hailed the greatest road safety innovation since the seatbelt. 4,000 lives and 100,000 injuries could be avoided every year if all cars in the EU had ESC! However, the take-up rate is far too low with only 47% of all new cars in Europe sold with ESC in the first half of 2007. If the EU wants to reach its goal to half the number of road fatalities by 2010, more action is needed to bring ESC to the consumer. 

During a ChooseESC! Symposium held on Tuesday, 1 July 2008 in Brussels (Autoworld, Parc du Cinquantenaire) the final steps needed to reach the goal of a 100% penetration rate will be discussed , as well as the experiences of Europe, Australia, Canada, and the United States, and review options to advance the rollout of Electronic Stability Control.

The event will feature:
An overview on the activities organised in the scope of the public information campaign ‘ChooseESC!’

·         Best practise examples of national campaigns and showcases on how to promote ESC
·         Release of a new EU wide ESC availability survey by the European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP)
·         An international session on the latest global developments on ESC with experts from Australia, Canada, EU, and the USA
·         An exhibition of the latest eSafety technologies

Speakers include:
Viviane Reding, Commissioner, European Commission
David Ward, President of ChooseESC! and Director General of the FIA Foundation
Zita Gurmai MEP, rapporteur on the Commission’s Intelligent Car Communication
Sebastian Loeb, 4-times Rally World Champion
Nicole Nason (tbc), Administrator, US National Highway Safety Administration (NHTSA)
Ivan Hodac, Secretary General, European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA)
Hermann Meyer, CEO, ERTICO – ITS Europe
Michiel Van Ratingen, Secretary General, Euro NCAP

The major stakeholders within intelligent vehicle safety systems will participate in the event, including motoring organisations, consumer groups, automotive industry and related service suppliers, national authorities, research institutes, fleet managers, car dealers, and NGOs.

Online registration: http://www.chooseesc.eu/en/news/registration_02.htm
(seats are limited and will be given on a first come - first serve basis)

www.chooseESC.eu