These systems aim to reduce the reporting time for vehicles involved in road accidents. (File photo for illustrative purposes only) Image Credit: Gulf News Archives

Abu Dhabi: All new vehicles coming to the UAE will be fitted with eCall system to automatically alert nearest police emergency centres in the country in case of road accidents from 2021, officials announced on Monday in Abu Dhabi.

“New models of all vehicles coming to the UAE will be equipped with eCall system as per the Emirates Authority For Standardization and Metrology (ESMA) standards from 2021,” Abdullah Salman, wireless network separations engineer from the from Telecommunications Regulatory Authority told Gulf News.

These systems aim to reduce the reporting time for vehicles involved in road accidents, which, in turn, contributes to lowering the number of deaths resulting from traffic accidents, as well as reducing cases of acute injury, officials said.

The vehicles will be equipped with IVS (In-Vehicle System) for eCall, so whenever an accident happens the inbuilt car system will automatically generate an alert to the nearest emergency centre of the police, he said.

“The system will be configured with certain parametres and developed in combination with different features of the cars, including the air bags and sensors. So in case of accident, it will warn nearest police operation centre in matter of seconds,” Salman said.

The eCall system will provide with exact location of the incident, time, number of passengers and also the status of the car whether it is turned over, he explained.

These features will be incorporated based on the standards of car manufacturers globally.

Existing vehicles

The eCall system will be fitted in all small and heavy vehicles of the country.

About the existing vehicles in the country, he said, the TRA has been assessing the possibility of implementing the system in the vehicles. However, cars will be equipped in general from 2021.”

But authorities like ESMA along with the car manufacturers are exploring the possibilities of fitting the eCall system in existing cars, Salman said. Mohamad Jadah, Director Wireless Networks and Services said: “It shortens response time to accidents and provides relevant authorities with the information necessary for rescue and ambulance operations, thereby playing a central role in reducing the number of deaths and serious injuries.”

Brig Gen Nasser Suleiman Al Maskari, Head of Abu Dhabi Police Central Operations, said that they have made great strides in introducing modern tools and technologies to the service to support readiness and provide services to the highest international quality standards, including the eCall system to enhance response time to report accidents.

“The system supports police’s efforts in the integrated response system, the first of its kind at police leaderships, which aims to increase effective empowerment and achieve record levels in this area,” he said.

He also noted that the police department through its centres is running an advanced database around the clock to receive all kinds of reports and address them according to the mechanisms in place, and swiftly provide services to the public.

However, the TRA had previously conducted all the necessary tests on the operators’ networks (Etisalat and du) to ensure networks were ready and able to activate and optimally operate the eCALL system. As such, the operators’ networks were internationally accredited in 2015.

The system will enable concerned entities in the UAE to access the accident scene in the shortest possible time. The project comes as an outgrowth of three years of study and research between government and private entities and vehicle agencies and manufacturers to determine specifications to be met in UAE vehicles in order to comply with this system.

What is eCall system?

The FAZAA initiative revolves around the automated emergency call system (or eCall), where cars are equipped with a feature to make automatic distress calls to the emergency centre in the event of an accident.

The car then automatically sends all the necessary information about the accident, such as location, vehicle type, fuel type, and number of passengers inside the vehicle. The TRA has developed the “FAZAA” (eCall) initiative in cooperation with Emirates Authority For Standardization and Metrology and police authorities in the UAE to activate the systems for receiving eCalls.

How does it work