Road safety – Remy Heitz, new interministerial delegate for road safety –

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Remy Heitz, new interministerial delegate for road safety

Road safety - Remy Heitz, new interministerial delegate for road safety -

Remy Heitz took up his new duties on Monday as interministerial delegate for road safety and director of road safety and traffic at the French Ministry of Transport, replacing Isabelle Massin. Exclusive interview.

At 40, Remy Heitz, magistrate by profession, successively served as deputy at the Pontoise tribunal de grande instance, head of the criminal justice and individual freedoms office at the Ministry of Justice, then prosecutor at the tribunal de grande instance from Saint-Malo. Deputy prosecutor at the Paris tribunal de grande instance since September 2001, he joined the Prime Minister’s office in 2002 thanks to the change of majority, then was appointed interministerial delegate for road safety and director of road safety and traffic (DSCR) replacing Isabelle Massin. Exclusive interview, 5 days after taking office.

Moto-Net: Remy Heitz, you are a magistrate, you were adviser to Jean-Pierre Raffarin at Matignon, what are the motivations that led you to accept this position of interministerial delegate for road safety ?
Remy Heitz: Road safety has always interested me. I was able to approach it in my various positions in the field and at the Chancellery, then in Matignon where I worked on the preparation of the interministerial committee of December 18. The mission offered to me by the Prime Minister is fascinating and I did not hesitate to accept it, especially at a time when we see a real collective awareness on this subject..

Moto-Net: The National Assembly is preparing to examine the government bill which provides in particular for the multiplication of controls and the automation of sanctions. Why such a repressive text ?
Remy Heitz: You know, this bill is much broader than what has been said about it so far. It is true that we have placed emphasis on the repression of dangerous behavior, because our aim is to protect human life as much as possible. This involves in particular the increase in penalties in the event of homicide or unintentional injuries. The driver must know that he must absolutely respect the speed and that he has no excuse to exempt himself from this obligation. This text gives us the legal means to put in place a technical device that will facilitate and increase the number of checks. The idea is to reduce impunity on the road. Behavior really needs to change and the goal of automating controls and sanctions is to ensure that when you take a road, you are responsible. It is, as the Prime Minister said, the end of "no seen, no taken". Some criticize this text for being too repressive, but it also includes several innovations in training and prevention. The introduction of the probationary license, for example, will allow a gradual learning of driving because young drivers will not be awarded their capital of 12 points until after 3 years without infringement. We are also putting in place additional penalties, such as the possibility of doing a road safety training course which is now provided for in black and white in the penal code. Judges can therefore order someone to take a road safety training course. It’s an interesting device that we haven’t talked about very much !

Moto-Net: To stigmatize too much speed, don’t you risk ignoring other danger factors on the road ?
Remy Heitz: There are indeed other causes than speed. In particular, there is a very important provision in the bill on the treatment of side obstacles: trees, poles, installations, etc. The text provides that the manager of the public domain can ask the owner of these obstacles, a private operator for example, to move them. The terms of this text will have to be specified by decree in the Council of State, but there is a very strong desire to fight against these lateral obstacles. And really, I tell you sincerely, these are not words: the three components of road safety will be taken into account equally by this government: the behavior of the driver, the condition of the vehicle (technical control) and the ” road conditions (dangerous infrastructure).

Moto-Net: Including crash barriers ?
Remy Heitz: I know this is an important subject for bikers and we are working on it. Because if the State asks the bikers to make efforts, in particular on the respect of the speed, it is normal that in exchange it also makes some on its side. In any case what I can tell you is that the DSCR will not be affected by the budget restrictions !

Moto-Net: How do you apprehend the biker demonstrations that will take place on March 15 and 16 across France ?
Remy Heitz: Before answering the FFMC, I should know their demands better. It is in my objectives but it is not yet the case today. I remind you that I took office only five days ago and that you are the first journalist that I receive !

Moto-Net: The automation of controls and sanctions and the impossibility of having recourse to a judge before paying are they not contrary to the European Convention on Human Rights ?
Remy Heitz: No, in the device access to the judge is still provided. Simply, it is conditional on the payment of a deposit. The principle is that when you own a vehicle, that you hold a vehicle registration document, that you have the means to insure this vehicle, that you take a lane open to traffic and that you commit a offense, well yes, you take the risk, if you are fined, of having to discharge the payment of a deposit before being able to contest. The aim is not to pave the way for abusive remedies. We put in place an automated system. However, it is certain that if all the offenders have the possibility, by a simple letter, to contest before the judge, our legal system – which already suffers from a serious lack of means – will be asphyxiated and our objective would not be achieved. We have therefore established this principle of compulsory consignment, which cannot be avoided, even under the pretext of a lack of financial means. It is for this reason that some have said that it is contrary to the European Convention on Human Rights. The question of whether it is truly abnormal and shocking to require this deposit will have to be debated in the National Assembly and the Senate. But the government’s choice is clear and we consider that it was necessary to provide for this device.

Moto-Net: If you had a magic wand, what would your road safety choices be? ?
Remy Heitz: You know, road safety is an action that is carried out on a daily basis and over the long term and it cannot be solved with a magic wand … The figures are difficult to analyze and we should not tempt the devil by taking commitments that would be difficult to keep. Really, if I had a magic wand, I would like to make sure that in a reasonable number of years our country is better positioned in terms of road safety compared to its European neighbors..

Moto-Net: About figures, what do you think of the Miquel report which denounces a very great inaccuracy of statistics ?
Remy Heitz: I have not yet read this report, but there are still 1001 reasons to consider that the figures are not exact or to denounce a cause other than the one which primarily concerns us individually: if I ‘ have an accident it’s because the road is not good, or if the road is good it is because the vehicle is unreliable, etc. But to tackle a fever, it is not enough to break the thermometer! The answer is actually much more complex. In the "road, vehicle, driver" triangle, there are always many complicated interactions but the role of the driver is predominant. For its part, the State will not be exempt from its responsibility for statistics, equipment or vehicle control. Manufacturers and manufacturers also have an important role to play. It is truly a collective affair, in which everyone must play their part and not shirk their responsibility. Because otherwise, you do nothing! Of course, we can compare the number of road deaths with those linked to domestic accidents. We can also do nothing and give up, but that’s not my state of mind !

Moto-Net: The CNSR set up in 2001 by Jean-Claude Gayssot, which was to be a key institution in terms of road safety, is he dead and buried ?
Remy Heitz: No, it is just a little dormant at the moment, but the government‘s objective is to revive it very soon. The National Road Safety Council has a fundamental role to play in terms of strategic guidance and stimulating government policy..

Moto-Net: Are you a biker ?
Remy Heitz: No, but I really appreciate the passenger seat, especially when traveling in Paris.

Moto-Net: If we consider that motorized two-wheelers are a good way to facilitate traffic flow in large cities, shouldn’t they make life easier rather than repress them when they use the bus lanes? or park on the sidewalks ?
Remy Heitz: I intend to meet the mayor of Paris, Bertrand Delanoë, very soon to discuss this. Finally, would you allow me to ask you a question? I would like to know if the sign of the foot that bikers make when they pass a car is indeed a sign of thanks. ?

Moto-Net: yes…
Remy Heitz: That’s what seemed to me! But the other day in the National Assembly, a deputy challenged the Minister of Transport, explaining to him that bikers spent their time making arms of honor with their feet. !

Eric MICHEL

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