Thursday 26 September is the Europe-wide road safety day themed ‘a day without fatalities on Europe’s roads’.
“The theme is well founded, as some 70 people die in road traffic in Europe every day, while hundreds are severely injured. In Finland, an average of 240 people loses their lives on the roads every year. Every single one of these cases is too much,” says Maria Hoikkala , Chief Superintendent of the National Police Board.
Every road user can contribute to traffic safety with their choices. These include the use of safety equipment, driving speed adjusted to driving conditions, concentrating on driving, and sobriety on the road.
“In densely populated areas the risk of dying on the road is almost negligible when you are driving sober in accordance with the speed limit, wearing a seat belt and observing the other traffic,” Hoikkala points out.
Although these issues seem self-evident, many people still tend to forget them. That is why the police have such a crucial role to play, both now and in the future, in terms of supervision and as an educator.
The European Day Without a Road Death is now organised for the fourth time by the European Traffic Police Network (TISPOL) across 30 member countries, in cooperation with the European Commission and the European Transport Safety Council (ETSC).
In Finland, several traffic safety stakeholders have been invited to participate. The name of the theme day, Project EDWARD (#ProjectEDWARD), derives from the words ‘European Day Without A Road Death’.
Last year EDWARD was successful in Finland: there were no road deaths. Unfortunately, 12 accidents resulting in personal injury did occur that day, with 14 people injured.
“Even though the day without fatalities is held only once a year, the theme of the day − nobody dies on the roads − is important and worth aiming for every single day of the year,” Maria Hoikkala says.
During the week, people will be reminded about EDWARD in the form of social media posts and a video, which will be published on the European Day Without A Road Death on 26 September 2019.
Further information on the TISPOL website at https://projectedward.eu/
