In its role of observer, representing the view of mobile consumers, the FIA participated in the 77th session of the UNECE Inland Transport Committee, held in Geneva from 24 to 26 Febraury 2015.

Among the different topics covered, delegates were informed about  the ongoing global negotiations on formulating the post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the main developments concerning the position of sustainable transport within the framework of the SDGs.

Ahead of the new round of negotiations, scheduled at the end of March in New York, the FIA believes it will be crucial for government to give support on the proposed target to halve road traffic fatalities in the post-2015 goals that will replace the Millennium Development Goals when they expire at the end of the year.   

“A 2030 target to road fatalities globally from the current 1.2 million per year to 600,000 worldwide it’s ambitious but achievable, if we can get political support and increase synergies and collaboration within the road safety community” - Andrew McKellar, FIA General Secretary of Automobile Mobility and Tourism.

On the regulatory side, the FIA welcomes the focus given within the WP29, the UNECE World Forum for Harmonization of Vehicle Regulations, to investigate semi-automated functions, which will ultimately create the condition for more highly-automated vehicles and driverless cars in the near future. The FIA strongly believes international cooperation is essential and will lead to common standards, for the benefit of the consumers.

The FIA will contribute to the work of the regulatory development, bringing the consumer requirements and expectations, while at the same time working with its network of automobile clubs globally to increase user’s acceptance, promote consumer awareness, increase deployment of new advanced technology.

About the Inland Transport Committee

The Inland Transport Committee (ITC) is the highest policy-making body of the UNECE, United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, in the field of transport. In the course of the last 60 years, together with its subsidiary bodies, the ITC has provided a pan-European intergovernmental forum, where UNECE member countries come together to forge tools for economic cooperation and negotiate and adopt international legal instruments on inland transport.