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On the move for safer surface transport in Europe

Transport safety is a major societal challenge for Europe, with still alarmingly high figures for deaths and serious injuries. Since the early 2000, the number of annual fatalities on the European roads was cut by 54 % but statistics for 2015 show stagnation of this downward trend. Consequently, safety and security in all modes of transportation are a top priority for the European Commission. A coherent portfolio of research and innovation activities funded through FP7 and Horizon 2020 are crucial elements in the drive for ensuring safety in all transport modes.

Safety and security are a primary concern for any transport system, with travellers expecting transportation to not only be efficient, environmentally-friendly and cost-effective but also safe. Transport systems also need to be flexible to respond to socio-economic challenges, evolving mobility needs, major technological developments such as digitisation and automation, and the subsequent need to adapt the legislative and regulatory frameworks. The European Commission’s Transport White Paper fixed in 2011 clear and ambitious targets for safety: halving casualties on Europe’s roads by 2020 and achieving the ‘vision zero’ goal of no fatalities or serious injuries in road traffic by 2050. Europe is now implementing concrete actions to achieve these objectives and cutting-edge research and innovation funded through EU programmes is vital for this purpose. The portfolio of transport R&I funded projects included in this CORDIS Results Pack address a broad spectrum of safety related issues, notably: safer vehicles and vessels, including the connected and automated vehicles and their interactions with the people piloting them, smart and resilient infrastructure, human centred design and analysis, as well as vulnerable road users e.g. cyclists and pedestrians, categories currently most represented in deaths and injuries statistics. A set of cross-cutting issues complete the picture adding insights on cross-modal fertilisation, support for policy making, and international cooperation. This CORDIS Results Pack is shining a light on innovative EU-funded projects delivering concrete results, specifically in the area of surface transportation: road (covering vehicles and vulnerable road users), rail and waterborne. The CORDIS Results Pack on transport safety will continue highlighting major outcomes of currently on-going and future transport R&I funded projects.