Bucharest, 21-22 November 2013 – The Second HeERO International conference presents the results of the implementation of the pan-European in vehicle emergency service – eCall, deployed in the framework of the HeERO (Harmonised eCall European Pilot) project. The event takes place under the high auspices of the European Commission in cooperation with ERTICO (project coordinator), and the European Emergency Number Association (EENA).
In case of a car accident, eCall is an in-vehicle system able to automatically dial the European emergency number 112 and transmit relevant information regarding the location and technical data of the vehicles involved to the emergency services. This allows rapid intervention in the unlikely event that passengers are no longer able to speak. The system also allows manual dialing from the vehicle. eCall is free to the public and it will be compulsory in the European Union as from 1 October 2015.
ERTICO – ITS Europe’s Senior Project Manager and HeERO Project Coordinator Andy Rooke confirms: “Though all new types of passenger cars and light commercial vehicles (categories M1 and N1) will be equipped with eCall by 2015, its development must not stop at this level. eCall has to constantly adapt to new technologies and to the needs of the population in order to save lives, while preserving confidentiality and personal data protection. The implementation and operation of the harmonized EU-wide eCall will contribute each year to saving hundreds of lives, to reduce the severity of injuries and trauma caused by road accidents.”
The conference is attended by more than 200 delegates from emergency services, industry, mobile network operators, standardisation bodies etc. from over 40 countries in Europe, North America and Asia, officials of the European Parliament and of the European Commission as well as the Romanian institutions in charge.
The topics are focused on the eCall implementation in the pilot sites, the interoperability between the eCall equipment to be installed in the vehicles, the various emergency calls centers and on the European standards revision.
Live practical demonstrations will be performed by the Special Telecommunications Service (Romania) engineers, with calls generated in Bucharest and the whole country, and with several eCall-equipped cars to be present in traffic.
Note to editors:
About HeERO
HeERO addresses the pan-European in-vehicle emergency call service “eCall” based on 112, the common European Emergency number. For three years (January 2011 to December 2013), the nine European countries forming the HeERO 1 consortium (Croatia, Czech Republic, Finland, Germany, Greece, Italy, The Netherlands, Romania and Sweden) carried out the start-up of an interoperable and harmonised in-vehicle emergency call system. The second phase of the HeERO project – HeERO 2 – started on 1st January 2013 and will last 2 years. 6 new countries (namely Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Luxembourg, Spain and Turkey) have joined the other 9 pilot sites of HeERO 1. Furthermore, other countries became associate partners, a status allowing them to benefit from the expertise of HeERO 1 and 2 but not granting them access to EC funding.
The HeERO consortium is currently testing and validating in real conditions pilots the common European eCall standards defined and approved by the European Standardisation Bodies.
The project is partially funded by the European Commission under the ICT PSP programme.
About ERTICO – ITS Europe
ERTICO – ITS Europe is a multi-sector, public/private partnership pursuing the development and deployment of Intelligent Transport Systems and Services (ITS). We connect public authorities, industry players, infrastructure operators, users, national ITS associations and other organizations together and work to bring “Intelligence into Mobility”.
The ERTICO work programme focuses on initiatives to improve transport safety, security and network efficiency whilst taking into account measures to reduce environmental impact. Our vision is of a future transport system working towards zero accidents, zero delays and fully informed people, where services are affordable and seamless, the environment is protected, privacy is respected and security is provided.
About the European Emergency Number Association (EENA)
EENA, the European Emergency Number Association, is a Brussels-based NGO set up in 1999 dedicated to promoting high-quality emergency services reached by the number 112 throughout the EU. EENA serves as a discussion platform for emergency services, public authorities, decision makers, researchers, associations and solution providers with a view to improving the emergency response in accordance with citizens’ requirements. EENA is also promoting the establishment of an efficient system for alerting citizens about imminent or developing emergencies.
The EENA memberships include 900 emergency services representatives from 44 European countries, 65 solution providers, 9 international associations/organisations, 130 Members of the European Parliament and 50 researchers.
www.eena.org
For more information, please contact: Lavinia Cinca (lc@eena.org)
