The EU must meet its goal of fitting Electronic Stability Control (ESC) on all new cars by 2012 and until then fiscal incentives should be offered to encourage take-up of this life saving technology, FIA President Max Mosley has warned.

In a meeting with Members of the European Parliament today in Strasbourg the FIA President called for the European Commission to honour its earlier commitment to speed up the widest availability of ESC as a standard item of equipment on all cars sold in Europe.

Studies in Europe and the USA show that ESC can reduce passenger car single-vehicle crashes by as much as 35% and yet the system is available on less than 50% of vehicles sold in Europe.

ESC has been described by road safety experts as “the greatest life-saving technology since the seatbelt” but it is usually only available as a standard item on luxury car models. In many markets it is not available or available only as an option for smaller car classes. As a result the largest sector of the European vehicle fleet, which would benefit most significantly from ESC, is being denied this life saving technology.

FIA President Max Mosley said:

“ESC could save 4,000 lives in Europe every year. We cannot afford any further delay if the goal of fitting ESC on all new vehicles by 2012 is to be achieved. With regulations being prepared on a global level, Europe must not fall behind the rest of the world in the push for safer vehicles.”

“Fiscal incentives have already been used by governments to promote environmental technologies and there is no reason why a similar approach could not be used to promote a life saving technology like ESC.”

Note to editors:

ESC reduces the chances of being involved in an accident by helping drivers to maintain control of their vehicles. If a driver has misjudged a corner or suddenly swerves to avoid an obstacle, stability control can help avoid a skid and can turn an accident into a near miss. Along with additional sensors, ESC feeds information to a computerised control unit. The signals are continuously monitored to determine whether or not the vehicle is losing control. If a deviation from the intended course is detected, the control unit applies a small amount of braking to whichever wheel is needed to help stabilize the vehicle. Some systems also adjust the power output of the engine.

Cars at the top end of the market tend to have ESC fitted as standard but smaller cars, particularly those used by families, young drivers and vulnerable motorists often lack this key anti-skid technology.

The Choose ESC! Campaign was launched by Max Mosley and EU Commissioner Vivian Reading in Rome last spring. Since the start of the campaign, the EU has already come forward with legislation for mandatory ESC on large vehicles. The US is already committed to mandatory ESC by 2012, and the UNECE is expected to finalise a global technical regulation on the issue by the end of this year paving the way for global implementation by 2012.


For more information please contact:
 
Gus Glover
FIA Policy Coordination & Communications Manager
+33 1 43 12 58 29
 
Richard Woods
FIA Director of Communications
+33 1 43 12 58 14