INDIA in F1

Tag: FIA Road Safety

  • F1 stars come together for Road Safety Week

    Barcelona, 12 May 2013: They might be fierce rivals on track but Formula One’s stars today came together as one with the FIA to support United Nations’ Global Road Safety Week, which this week drew attention to the need to protect pedestrians the world over.

    According to the World Health Organisation more than 5,000 pedestrians are killed on the world’s roads every week and these fatalities make up a large percentage of the 1.3 million killed on the roads every year.

    However, despite the shocking toll, pedestrians as a group do not have a voice when traffic safety is discussed. To give them that voice, this year’s UN’s Global Road Safety Week took pedestrian safety as its theme.

    To highlight the need to protect this vulnerable segment of road users, the UN programme launched the Long, Short Walk, an initiative that encouraged people, groups and organisations from around the world to video or photograph their favourite walks. The footage will be edited together to raise awareness that those in motorised vehicles are not the globe’s only road users.

    And in support of the initiative, Formula One’s stars today joined forces with the FIA its Action for Road Safety campaign and Formula One Management (FOM) to take a Long, Short Walk of their own in the run-up to the Spanish Grand Prix.

    Prior to the traditional Drivers’ Parade, FIA President Jean Todt was joined by Formula One promoter Bernie Ecclestone, Global Road Safety Ambassador Michelle Yeoh, all 22 Formula One drivers, team principals and 200 school children to walk one of their favourite stretches of road – the grid at Barcelona’s world-famous Circuit de Catalunya.

    Commenting on F1’s Long, Short Walk, President Todt said: “It is fitting that the world’s finest drivers and the teams and organisations behind them have come together to demonstrate that all road users, no matter whether they are at the wheel or on foot, should be protected and that every driver must be vigilant at all times, no matter how skilled.

    “It is crucial that we protect pedestrians and the FIA is delighted that Formula One has embraced this initiative to help save lives in such a positive way. It once again demonstrated how motor sport can help draw attention to such a globally important issue. This fusion of sport and mobility to improve road safety is at the core of the FIA’s beliefs.”

    Global Road Safety Ambassador Michelle Yeoh added: “Around 270,000 pedestrians are killed every year and this equates to around a fifth of the 1.3 million people killed on the world’s roads annually. Tragically, many are children, often on their way to school. These statistics must be reduced. Safe walking should be a right for all.”

    About the FIA Action for Road Safety campaign: Launched in support of the UN Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011-2020, FIA Action for Road Safety aims to help save the lives of five million people on the world’s roads by the end of the decade. Since its launch, the campaign has been embraced by governments, stakeholder organisations and member clubs across the globe. It has also been endorsed by some of the world’s biggest sporting names.

    About the UN Decade of Action for Road Safety: Officially launched on 11 May 2011, the Decade of Action has the official goal of ‘stabilising and then reducing’ global road traffic fatalities by 2020. 

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  • FIA chief visits Africa to promote Road Safety

    Gabon, 25 April 2013: Jean Todt, the President of the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile, this month focused his attention on road safety in Africa, one of the continents most affected by unsafe roads.

    Africa holds the highest road traffic mortality rate in the world and almost one quarter of a million people die annually on the roads of sub-Saharan Africa. Todt used visits to Senegal, Gabon and Benin to discuss these terrible statistics with FIA member clubs and heads of state and highlight measures that must be taken to reduce the casualties. The number of road deaths in sub-Saharan Africa has already increased by over 40% over the past 15 years and if nothing is done, this figure is expected to rise again by at least 80% by 2020.

    “Since I was elected as president of the FIA three and half years ago, I have made road safety a priority of our Federation,” said Todt. “The FIA must become a major protagonist in this struggle at the global level, having not only the legitimacy but also the will to do so. And in this struggle, our primary partners, and our primary strength, are our clubs.”

    Young Africans are the main victims of the lack of road safety, with road accidents already the fourth cause of death for the 15-44 age group, and the second after Aids for young men. Todt believes that motor sport can be used to educate drivers and get the safety message across to young people, but that governments must also take action.

    “Road safety must be given the place it deserves on the international agenda: that of an absolute priority,” he said. “And if we want to achieve that, we must join forces. Road safety is a shared responsibility. And each person must shoulder his or her part, for it is together – and only together – that we shall win this battle. The first responsibility lies with national governments. Without them, without their commitment, nothing is possible.”

    In Senegal, Todt and Michelle Yeoh discussed ways in which road safety could be tackled at both national and region levels during meetings with the Senegalese Motor Sport Federation (FSAM) and Senegal President Macky Sall. They also visited the Dakar Baobab circuit and hosted a press conference with FSAM’s President, Dialo Kane ‘Zator’.

    From there Todt travelled to Benin, where he visited the Automobile Club of Benin (ACB), which is headed by former driver Patrick Lecompte and was affiliated to the FIA last year. The Club is involved in road safety activities via campaigns in schools and universities, and during a meeting at the club’s headquarters, young people were invited to share their feeling about road safety in the country. Benin has a National Centre for Road Safety, which is a key element to success, but a national strategy, including the obligation to wear a safety belt, would help to reduce fatalities.

    Lastly, the President travelled to Gabon for the inauguration of the new Automobile Club of Gabon (ACG), which was founded last year and is headed by Frédéric Bongo Ondimba. The occasion was used to launch a new hard-hitting road safety campaign which was praised by Todt, who said it would remind drivers of their responsibility.

    While there he had a long discussion with Gabonese President Ali Bongo Ondimba, whose commitment he highlighted after a new ‘100 Footbridges for the Future’ campaign was launched to try and protect pedestrians crossing dangerous roads. It is an important initiative, as pedestrian fatalities account for 38% of road deaths in sub-Saharan Africa.

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  • Endurance drivers, Karun, support FIA road safety campaign

    Road safety will be highlighted at the Circuit de la Sarthe, as drivers participating in the 3rd round of the FIA World Endurance Championship at the 24 Heures du Mans joined Michelin and the Automobile Club de l’Ouest (ACO) to show their support for the FIA’s Action for Road Safety campaign.

    Indian Formula One driver, Karun Chandhok, who is going to Le Mans after his WEC campaign will also be supporting the FIA Road Safety Campaign. Narain Karthikeyan, the only Indian currently on the F1 grid, is also a firm believer in Road Safety and the two have been at the fore-front in supporting Road Safety Campaigns.

    Michelin and the ACO reinforce their commitment to improving road safety within the framework of the FIA Action for Road Safety campaign via the distribution of 50,000 tyre tread depth gauges to the public. The gauges will be handed out over the course of the race weekend opposite the Michelin enclosure in the 24 Heures Village.

    Building on twelve months of activities to raise awareness of safer motoring, the FIA Action for Road Safety’s presence at the 24 Heures du Mans highlighted the importance of drivers ensuring that their tyres are in good condition, and called on race goers to support the campaign which aims to save 5 million lives on roads around the world.

    A special group photograph featuring the 168 drivers taking part in the 24 Heures du Mans, along with the FIA President and the President of the ACO will take place to mark the first year of the campaign and will be later distributed to racing fans along with the FIA’s Golden Rules for Safer Motoring.

    FIA Action for Road Safety

    Every year road traffic accidents are responsible for the deaths of 1.3 million people around the world and the injuries of nearly 50 million others. The World Health Organisation (WHO) reports that unless something is done to address this critical issue by 2030 traffic accidents will become the planet’s fifth most common cause of death, with a predicted 2.4 million fatalities per year.

    The FIA’s Action for Road Safety campaign aims to address this problem and to limit the number of deaths and injuries on the world’s roads by focusing the federation’s resources on helping its member organisations around the globe to educate and advocate for safer roads, vehicles and behaviours. Supported by the ACO and Michelin, the FIA Action for Road Safety initiative is part of the Decade of Action for Road Safety programme launched by the United Nations (UN), 2011-2020.

    For more information: www.actionforroadsafety.org