Certified and safe parking
USRPLUS MEP Vlad Gheorghe has questioned the European Commission, the French authorities and the Romanian Consulate about the case of the Romanian driver who was killed with a sword in a car park in France.
With the adoption of the Mobility Package, the European Union committed itself to guarantee certified and safe parking.
”More precisely, EU promised places where lorry drivers can spend their rest time without fear. Such areas should offer a minimum level of services and security systems in case of emergency. But this happens in very few cases. That is why violent crimes are still widespread. Another issue is that they are disproportionately affecting Eastern European drivers.”, says the MEP, referring to the death of Romanian citizen M.S., a driver parked near Calais who unwittingly surprised a thief.
Vlad Gheorghe calls on the Commission to clarify the enforcement measures to prevent crime in parking areas. These should be in line with Regulation 885/2013 supplementing Directive 2010/40/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council on ITS with regard to the provision of information services relating to safe and secure parking places for trucks and commercial vehicles. The USRPLUS MEP asks the Commission to make public the steps taken to create safe parking places in the Member States, including with European funds, and the concrete measures to protect victims of crime committed in unprotected parking areas.
Details of the intervention
The MEP also asked local French authorities for more information. These concerned the ambulance response time after the emergency call, details of this response and the state of the investigation, as well as the assistance given to the victim’s family. The Romanian Consulate in Pas-de-Calais was also contacted by the MEP. Information was requested on the support given to the family of the murdered driver and the steps taken by the French authorities.
“We have received several messages from citizens and even the public testimonies. These all point to the fact that this case is not isolated. On the contrary, the area is known for a high level of crime against trucks and drivers. Many of them are Romanian. We have asked the French ministry for an analysis of the number of similar offences in the last three years. It is important to know how many of these have been solved. I am trying to find out whether the French authorities have a strategy to prevent and combat crimes against lorry drivers in the Calais area. In addition, I also want to know what are the causes and what measures are needed”, said the USRPLUS MEP.
Road safety
“Elected Members of the European Parliament have duties and their constituency is the whole Union. It is our duty to intervene, to try to support local authorities. We have to solve situations that endanger European citizens in any way. These lorry drivers are just doing their job in order to provide a decent living for their families. They cross the whole of the EU every day and transport the goods we all use”, explained Vlad Gheorghe.
The USRPLUS MEP recently introduced a series of amendments to increase road safety in all EU Member States. He is the RENEW EUROPE Group’s shadow rapporteur for the roadworthiness dossier in the Transport and Tourism Committee. The proposed measures were voted in plenary on 26 April by 654 votes to 30 with 9 abstentions.
