The I_HeERO promotional tour across Europe started on 10 October, presenting the road safety benefits of eCall automated emergency calls in incidents involving trucks and buses.

Throughout October 2017 the eCall for Heavy Goods Vehicles Demo Tour will stop in four European cities to demonstrate the potential of eCall to save lives following traffic incidents involving heavy goods vehicles, buses and coaches.

Kicking off in Turin, Italy on 10 October 2017, the Demo Tour will continue its travel to Ljubljana, Slovenia on 16 October; Athens, Greece on 24 October; and reach its final destination in Ostrava, Czech Republic on 30 October 2017.

As a part of the Demo Tour, a specially equipped truck will activate its emergency eCall module to simulate collision scenarios. A standardized minimum set of data (MSD) will be sent by the truck’s In-Vehicle System to a 112 Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP), where first responders can remotely access e-CMR [1] electronic consignment notes displaying information about the shipment and notify emergency crews. This is of particular importance, especially if dangerous goods are being carried.

Different test scenarios will feature multiple vehicles and different hazardous product shipments, mobilizing emergency responders, including fire brigades and emergency medical teams, as well as road maintenance crews.

The Demo Tour is organised under the auspices of the European project I_HeERO – “Infrastructure Harmonised eCall European pilot”. Demonstrations will also highlight the road safety benefits of eCall for trucks, buses, motorcycles and passenger cars, as well as e-Call-enabled Public Safety Answering Points across the European Union where automated emergency calls can be processed.

eCall technology will be mandatory for all new types of passenger cars and light commercial vehicles sold in the EU after 1st April 2018. It is expected to allow emergency services to respond quicker, saving hundreds of lives every year. The I_HeERO project seeks to ensure that the EU Member States Public Safety Answering Points (PSAP) are ready to handle automated emergency calls placed to the 112 number by eCall-equipped vehicles.

Click here for more information on the demo tour.


[1] Rules for transporting goods internationally are covered by the United Nations Convention for the carriage of goods, known as the CMR (Convention relative au contrat de transport international de Marchandises par Route), e-CMR is the advancement to the digital environment