Copenhagen 4 June 2009

The eSafety truck was present on 4 June 2009 in Copenhagen for the launch of the eSafety On Board campaign for car dealers in Denmark. The event took place in the centre of Copenhagen in the presence of automobile club Presidents from around the globe who had gathered in Copenhagen for the FIA Summer Meeting. The Danish eSafety On Board campaign is done in cooperation with FIA Foundation, the Danish Automobile Dealers Association (DAF), The Danish Automobile Club (FDM) as well as the Danish Road Safety Council. 8 times 24 Hour Le Mans winner, Tom Kristensen as the Campaign Ambassador was also present at the launch.

The event in Copenhagen was opened by FDM Director General, Mr. Thomas Møller Thomsen who stressed the importance of informing consumers about eSafety but at the same time expressed his concern of the fact that these technologies are sold in Denmark with a high price tag due to unreasonable high taxation.

Campaign Ambassador, Tom Kristensen called for actions to promote eSafety technologies throughout Europe and expressed his hope that the Danish campaign will help car buyers to make the right safety choice the next time they buy a car. He finalised his speech by stating that the best drivers “know that even they can experience emergency situations where driving skill just isn’t enough to avoid an accident”.

Also present at the event was European Commission Head of Unit, Ms. Isabelle Kardacz who reiterated DG TREN’s support for eSafety systems and praised the decision of the European Parliament to make ESC mandatory from 2011 in all new type-approved cars. Ms. Kardacz regards the campaigning efforts of eSafetyAware as a good example of how important road safety information can be spread internationally. She has also remarked that the eSafetyAware dummy is becoming a well known  symbol in eSafety promotion activities.

The key information distributed at the event was on systems like Electronic Stability Control, Lane Support Systems, Blind Spot Monitoring, Warning and Emergency Braking Systems, and Speed Alert. Some participants also took the opportunity to try the ESC simulator provided by eSafetyAware partner Bosch.