20 winners from 14 different European countries
The winners of the Road Safety Charter Contest 2007 "Become A European Road Safety Charter Ambassador" were chosen at the end of December 2007. Following the closure of the call for submissions on 15 October 2007, the jury appointed by the European Commission administration selected the 20 most interesting proposals.

The winners come from 14 European Union Member States. Their initiatives are distinguished by their diversity, originality and specific nature. They provide simple, concrete answers to the challenge of road safety; at the same time, these answers are entertaining, close to the public and humanitarian.

Lieve Snoeckx, the Belgian winner, invited to take part in the contest by European Road Safety Charter signatory Vlaamse Stichting Verkeerskunde (Flemish Foundation for Trafficknowledge), launched a contest at his school. Children going to school on foot or by bicycle have to wear fluorescent vests. Those travelling by car have to wear seatbelts. The teachers ensure the respect of these measures and their classes accumulate points in order to win a cup.

Michel Peres, the French winner, invited to take part in the contest by signatory Eurovia, had the idea of displaying humorous drawings by young people and presenting scenes relating to road risk on walls near a school in the Mondelange en Moselle district. "They are an excellent and original educational tool and can easily be put into widespread use, even on professional websites", he stated.

María de la Paz Ortega García, a Spanish winner invited by QDQ, Madrid, set up a photo safari entitled "In search of the lost traffic light", for the Plan de Actuación Urbanística (PAU) [urban action plan] association in Vallecas (Madrid). "It involves taking photos of crossroads at which traffic lights should be installed. The photographs accumulated by all of the neighbours have been sent to the police headquarters and the district council, together with a report", explained María de la Paz Ortega García.

The 20 winners of the 2007 edition are:

Werner Berger (Austria)
Lieve Snoeckx (Belgium)
Savina Atanasova (Bulgaria)
Charalambos Charalambous (Cyprus)
Giorgoula Vassou (Cyprus)
Jana Bĕlská (Czech Republic)
Niko Leskelä (Finland)
Marja Renvall (Finland)
Michel Peres (France)
Martina Müller (Germany)

Vasiliki Kasapi (Greece)
Michele Serino (Italy)
Luciano Serravalle (Italy)
Maria Mackiewicz-Talarczyk (Poland)
Pavol Bandura (Slovakia)
Carlos Barba Gómez (Spain)
Maria Paz Ortega García (Spain)
Miguel Peral Fernández ( Spain )
John Fraser ( United Kingdom )
Terry & Ann Hannon ( United Kingdom )

Following the closure of the call for submissions on October 15th 2007, the jury appointed by the European Commission administration chose the 20 Ambassadors who win a weekend for two to one of the following cities of their choice: Barcelona, Berlin, Bologna, Brussels, Copenhagen, Helsinki, London, Prague, Vienna, Warsaw.

Testimonies of some of the actions taken by four of the winning Ambassadors in their everyday lives in favour of road safety

"'Take my hand' will be my initiative. Nowadays, mainly in big cities, old people, children and disabled people need our support, our hand to cross the road, to catch the bus, not to wait for the last car or last bus to pass, etc. We can start by preparing volunteer groups to be part of this initiative. In the future, we will strive to increase the number of participants and show them that we must help each other, because the road is like real life - one outstretched hand may guide you, but in some cases it will save your life." Savina Atanasova, Bulgaria, invited by European Road Safety Charter signatory Open Youth.

"I am a doctor, specialising in paediatrics. In the waiting room of my clinic I have constructed a road safety park for my smaller patients. While they wait for me to examine them, they have the opportunity to play and learn about road safety with their parents." Charalambos Charalambous, Cyprus invited by the Cyprus Telecommunication Authority.

"We tragically lost our son Matthew due to him speeding. We asked the Partnership for Road Safety to distribute a poster for Mother's Day this year entitled 'Missing Matthew'. It told a story, in his mum's words, of how much she misses him, and sent out a plea to all young drivers to slow down." Terry & Ann Hannon, UK, invited by Lancashire Partner for Road Safety.

"Since we moved to a suburban village, we go for walks wearing reflective safety vests, and our dog wears reflective elements. The neighbours tell us that our good visibility convinced them to wear reflective vests when they go for walks, ride bikes or drive cars. We have given several reflective vests to neighbours, cyclists and schools." Maria Maciewicz-Talarczyk, Poland, invited by Droga i Bezpieczenstwo.

Become A European Road Safety Charter Ambassador, an exciting and successful idea

The event recognised the best individual initiatives from the general public contributing to a reduction in the number of road fatalities by acting in a concrete manner as European Road Safety Charter Ambassadors.

The second edition of this new and exciting contest was a huge success: more than 615 participants from 19 different European countries responded last summer and sent in their contributions to build a safer European road network.