Mass remedial action is required on the trans-European road network to stem the massive toll of death and serious injuries, according to the European Road Assessment Programme.
EuroRAP is calling on the European Commission to legislate, forcing member states to raise TERN (Trans-European Road Network) routes – serving cities such as Plymouth, Norwich, Leeds, Hull, Inverness, and, it is proposed, Aberdeen – to its four-star safety standard. Road-users will soon become as intolerant of higher-risk stretches on these vital trade routes as they are of cars with just a two or three-star rating, it claims, in response to an EC consultation on road infrastructure safety.
The group, composed of motoring organisations, car manufacturers and roads authorities, argues that new EC guidelines must address existing roads rather than merely set safety standards for new infrastructure. Making TERN four-star would ‘set good practice for all European roads’. On the main road network, the typical death and serious injury rate exceeds five per kilometre per decade, reports EuroRAP. In all, half-a-million people have been killed and 5M seriously injured in the last 10 years, prompting John Dawson, EuroRAP chair, to demand ‘the same commitment to road infrastructure safety as that given to rail and air’.
Register now for full access
Register just once to get unrestricted, real-time coverage of the issues and challenges facing UK transport and highways engineers.
Full website content includes the latest news, exclusive commentary from leading industry figures and detailed topical analysis of the highways, transportation, environment and place-shaping sectors.
Use the link below to register your details for full, free access.
Already a registered? Login
