As a result, the European Commission is putting its weight behind a campaign to highlight the necessity to fit vehicles with Electronic Stability Control (ESC) systems, launching a Europe-wide “Choose ESC!” campaign at the Bridgestone European Testing ground near Rome on May 8.
Commission vice president GÜnter Verheugen, commissioner for enterprise and industry policy, said: “The benefits of ESC are undisputed. In line with the CARS 21 programme, we are preparing the obligatory installation of ESC into new passenger cars via international harmonisation. Until it becomes mandatory, the voluntary choice of ESC is more than welcome.” The CARS 21 group, established in 2005 and comprised of experts from industry, government and other leading groups, has adopted a 10-year “roadmap” to make the EU’s car industry cleaner, safer and more competitive through the adoption of applicable legislation.
European Commissioner Viviane Reding, responsible for Information Society, added, “It’s proven: ESC saves lives! Over 80 per cent of drivers who know about ESC say they will choose it for their next car. The Commission sees ‘Choose ESC!’ as the first step towards all new cars fitted with ESC by 2012.”
ESC senses when the driver loses control and automatically applies breaking pressure to individual wheels to help stabilise the vehicle and avoid skidding. This technology could reportedly reduce the risk of accidents by as much as 20 per cent, especially in wet or icy road conditions. However the up-take rate of this beneficial technology has been relatively low throughout Europe, and consumer awareness of the product is limited.
According to FIA president Max Mosley, “There is no doubt that ESC could contribute significantly to the European Union’s goal to halve the number of road traffic fatalities by 2010. But to achieve this, much more needs to be done to inform the consumer about why they must choose ESC when buying a new car.”
The Rome launch, organised in cooperation with EuroNCAP and the European Commission, featured the release by the European New Car Assessment Programme (EuroNCAP) of a European Union-wide ESC availability survey – a survey that revealed UK motorists are offered less safety features as standard than their counterparts in the rest of Europe and the US. Using the example of ESC, the survey showed the technology was fitted standard to only 55 per cent of UK market new cars, compared with 65 per cent in Latvia and Lithuania and 76 per cent in Denmark. It has been estimated that in the UK alone the use of ESC could lead to 400 lives saved and 3,000 serious injuries prevented each year.
The event also included live demonstrations comparing the performance of a car with and without the system engaged. Participants from all the major stakeholders in intelligent vehicle safety systems such as motoring organisations, consumer groups, motor industry and related service suppliers were present at the launch, as were authorities from EU member states and media representatives.
