Held on Wednesday 21 September 2016, the initiative was run to draw attention to the average of 70 deaths occurring every day on the roads of Europe, and to demonstrate the value of ambitious road safety targets.

Newly released figures show that on this day, there were 43 road deaths across 31 countries – compared with 70 fatalities on the same day in 2015 this show a like-for-like reduction of almost 39%.

In total 19 countries recorded zero fatalities on 21 September, compared with 11 countries in 2015.

Seven other countries recorded a reduction in fatalities, compared with the same day in 2015 while three countries saw an increase.

European Commissioner Violeta Bulc said: “Education and awareness make important contributions to road safety, and Project EDWARD sets an extremely ambitious target: to achieve a day without a single death on Europe’s roads. This year, we recorded a significant improvement compared with 2015, which shows that when all stakeholders come together we really make an impact and save lives. We are on the right path to make the aspirational goal of zero fatality a reality.”

TISPOL President Paolo Cestra said: “We understand that many factors impact on fatality figures on any particular day, so we cannot state what direct impact Project EDWARD had. But we believe Project EDWARD has delivered fantastic results in terms of revitalising Europe-wide collaboration and participation, as well as sharing simple road safety messages far and wide.

“There is an ambitious European Commission target to reduce death on Europe’s roads by the year 2020. That target has in recent times seemed out of reach. But we believe that Project EDWARD has shown that, with the right commitment and motivation, we still have time to achieve it, and I urge everyone to work towards that goal.”