Explanatory Memorandum to COM(2013)195 - Amendment of the directive on maximum authorised dimensions in national and international traffic and the maximum authorised weights in international traffic - Main contents
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| dossier | COM(2013)195 - Amendment of the directive on maximum authorised dimensions in national and international traffic and the maximum authorised ... |
|---|---|
| source | COM(2013)195  |
| date | 15-04-2013 |
1. CONTEXT OFTHEPROPOSAL
For many years Council Directive 96/53/EC of 25 July 1996 laying down for certain road vehicles circulating within the Community the maximum authorized dimensions in national and international traffic and the maximum authorized weights in international traffic1 has satisfactorily contributed to the smooth operation of the internal market in road transport by setting the maximum dimensions and weight for vehicles for the national and international transport of goods and passengers. It also indicates the conditions under which derogations may be granted for the traffic of vehicles that exceeds these maximum dimensions.
In the light of the evolving market and the available technologies, the question today is whether the choices made when the Directive was adopted in 1996 are still relevant. In particular, it has become crucial to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the consumption of petroleum products in the field of transport, and even more crucial for road transport, which accounts for 82% of the energy consumption of the transport sector. The steady rise in the price of fuel is continuously increasing Europe's energy bill and prompt us to identify solutions to reduce vehicle fuel consumption. The White Paper on Transport Policy2 published in 2011 set a goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 60% by 2050 in comparison with 1990 levels.
In this context, the White Paper announced the revision of the Directive on the maximum dimensions and weight for road transport vehicles, with the aim of allowing more energy-efficient, aerodynamic vehicles to be put on the market. Indeed, the improvement of vehicles’ aerodynamic performances and the installation of alternative propulsion systems, hybrid or electric, is only possible, within the limits of the maximum dimensions and weights authorized by the current Directive, to the detriment of the vehicle’s commercial load. The hybrid engine or the batteries carry a considerable amount of excess weight. Tractor cabs which are rounded at the front to be more aerodynamic will be longer. The installation of streamlined flaps at the back of the vehicle will also increase its length. This reduction in the commercial load discourages transporters, shippers, and manufacturers from using and developing vehicles that are more energy-efficient.
The revision of the Directive also offers an opportunity to improve road safety by improving the streamlining of the cab, allowing a reduction of the driver’s blind spots, adding an energy-absorbing structure in case of shocks, as well as increasing the driver’s safety and comfort. This would help spare the lives of numerous vulnerable users, such as pedestrians and cyclists, who the driver does not necessarily see when making manoeuvres.
It is thus necessary to amend Directive 96/53/EC to improve the aerodynamics of vehicles and their energy efficiency, while continuing to improve road safety, and within the limits imposed by the geometry of road infrastructures.
For example, some studies3 show that adding flaps of 1 m to 2 m in length at the rear of the vehicle would allow savings of between 5 and 10 % in fuel consumption at an average speed of 80 to 90 km/h.
Furthermore, since the adoption of Directive 96/53/EC, the average weight of a bus passenger has increased. Moreover, EU legislation has made onboard safety devices mandatory, the
OJ L 235, 17.09.1996, p. 59.
White Paper on Transport: Roadmap to a Single European Transport Area – Towards a competitive and
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weight of which must be offset by a corresponding reduction in the vehicle’s payload and thus the number of passengers transported. This is counter to the aim of reducing fuel consumption per person transported and also counter to the objective aimed at shifting from individual vehicles to public transport, which is clearly better for the environment.
Fuel savings and reducing polluting emissions are not the only motives for proposing to revise Directive 96/53/EC.
Indeed, Directive 96/53/EC does not take the recent developments in containerisation and intermodal transport into account. Some containers used on rail, waterways, intercontinental maritime transport and maritime cabotage can thus currently only end their journeys by road, necessitating special permits which increase the administrative costs for transporters and administrations. Yet for the most common of these containers, which are 45 feet (13.72 m) long, the length of a truck would only need to be increased by 15 cm to avoid the need for these special permits, which would not pose any problems in terms of road safety or the geometry of infrastructures.
Finally, because the current Directive has no provisions on vehicle checks and the applicable penalties, many infringements go unpunished, which undermines the Directive’s requirements. The main infringement committed is overloading the vehicle. On average, one in three vehicles checked is overloaded. These excess loads often exceed the maximum authorized weight by 10 or even 20%. This causes premature wear and tear of surfaces and increases the risk of accidents on the road. It also distorts competition between transport companies, because the fraudsters can illegally gain undue competitive advantages. Yet, there are technical filtering solutions available that make it possible to conduct more and faster and more effective checks, without needing to stop all the vehicles that are to be checked. Onboard weighing systems also exist which allow the driver him- or herself to ensure the standards imposed are respected. It is therefore necessary to add provisions on controls and penalties to Directive 96/53/EC to re-establish compliance with the rules of competition between transporters, to ensure a good level of road safety and the durability of the infrastructure.
Some stakeholders raised questions about the interpretation of Article 4 of Directive 96/53/EC. In the light of these questions, Vice-President Kallas sent a letter on 13 June 2012 to the Chairman of the Committee on Transport of the European Parliament. This letter offered guidance on this subject and considered that the cross-border use of longer vehicles is lawful for journeys that only cross one border, if the two Member States concerned already allow it, and if the conditions for derogations under Article 4(3), i or (5) of Directive 96/53/EC are met. This use should not have any significant impact on international competition. To reflect the guidelines given in that letter, this revision includes the provisions regarding Article 4 i in the text of the Directive.
2.
Contents
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IMPACTASSESSMENTS
The Commission organised public and sectoral consultations in 2011 and 2012.
The public consultation organised from December 2011 to February 2012 yielded over a thousand contributions from citizens, Member States and different professional and nongovernmental organisations. The consultation allowed the following opinions to be identified:
(i) the improved aerodynamic performance of heavy goods vehicles is unanimously welcomed as progress and most of the contributions believed that Directive 96/53/EC should be amended to allow this improvement.
(ii) The idea of facilitating the introduction of hybrid or electric engine types, and the development of containerisation and intermodality by amending Directive 96/53/EC, are largely approved.
(iii) The establishment of measures to check overloading is welcomed by the profession since it restores fair competition between transporters, and it appears essential to give the Member States the means to conduct such checks without increasing their financial burden or disrupting or delaying traffic.
Based on the results of this public consultation, the Commission held working seminars bringing together vehicle manufacturers, transporters and shippers, combined transport stakeholders, road control bodies and road safety stakeholders. Those consultations produced a consensus on targets for reducing pollution and fuel consumption and for improving road safety, and an agreement for opening up to new possibilities of intermodal transport. A consensus was also reached on the need to step up checks, particularly on possible overloading of vehicles. In the area of aerodynamic performance, more streamlined cabs and the installation at the back of vehicles of equipment to reduce the drag effect are desirable. A limited adaptation of the maximum weights and dimensions, accompanied by appropriate signposting for the dimensions, does not seem to present any risk to road safety.
The measures presented in this revision are the result of these consultations.
They were examined in an impact assessment, which allowed the best options in terms of economic and environmental efficiency to be selected. The option selected, described in detail in paragraph 4 below, combines technical harmonisation work conducted with a group of experts with a view to adopting delegated acts and a moderate regulatory approach, to avoid imposing disproportionate or inapplicable obligations, which would penalise small and medium-sized enterprises in particular.
The consultation also concerned Article 4 of Directive 96/53/EC, which determines the conditions to meet to benefit from derogations from the limits imposed by the Directive, which can be determined by the Member States in certain well-defined cases. Differences emerged concerning international traffic for vehicles which exceed the dimensions laid down in the Directive. The Commission has therefore decided to make its own orientations on the current Directive public (letter dated 13 June 2012 to the President of the Committee on Transport of the European Parliament). The guidance relative to Article 4 i is reflected in Article 1(2) of this proposal.
3. LEGALELEMENTSOFTHEPROPOSAL
The proposal for amending Directive 96/53/EC is based on Article 91 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). Improving the efficiency and environmental performance of road transport is indeed an essential goal of the common transport policy. The harmonisation of rules at European level is also a continuing demand of the profession.
This proposal is in keeping with the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality. Given the importance of transport for the functioning of the internal market, its increasing cross-border dimension and the increasing fuel costs and greenhouse gas emissions, provisions are essential to increase the fuel-efficiency of road transport, reduce its environmental impact, and ensure compliance with the rules.
The proposal leaves the Member States free to decide on derogations from the rules contained therein as far as national transport is concerned. It establishes a Committee to assist the Commission in drawing up the requirements in relation to aerodynamics, along with
guidelines on checking policy procedures and penalties adapted to the infringements committed. The proposal therefore does not exceed what is required to achieve its objective.
As the amendment of an existing directive is proposed, the instrument proposed is a directive. The proposal concerns a matter relevant to the European Economic Area and should therefore be extended to the EEA.
Finally, this proposal has no implications for the Union budget.
4. DETAILEDEXPLANATIONOFTHEPROPOSAL
The Commission proposal intends first of all to grant derogations from the maximum dimensions of vehicles for the addition of aerodynamic devices to the rear of vehicles or to redefine the geometry of the cabs for tractors. These derogations open up new prospects for manufacturers of tractors, lorries and trailers but must meet certain requirements, one of which is not to increase the load capacity of vehicles. The Commission will, with the assistance of a Committee, specify these requirements at a later stage. The requirements will ensure compliance with road safety rules and the constraints imposed by infrastructure and traffic flow. In addition to the reduction of fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, streamlining of cabs must also improve the drivers’ field of vision, and thus save around 400 lives each year in Europe. The drivers’ comfort and safety will also be increased.
The Commission will amend Commission Regulation (EU) 1230/2012 of 12 December 2012 implementing Regulation 661/2009 with regard to the requirements for the type-approval of motor vehicles, in order to make them compatible with this proposal for a Directive.
The proposed Directive plans to authorise a weight increase of one tonne for vehicles with an electric or hybrid propulsion, to take account of the weight of batteries or the dual motorisation, without prejudice to the load capacity of the vehicle. Furthermore, the maximum weight of buses will be increased by a tonne to take account of various developments such as the increase in the average weight of passengers and their baggage, of new equipment imposed by the safety regulations, and the new Euro VI class.
The amendment of Directive 96/53/EC will facilitate the development of intermodal transport by allowing a derogation of 15 cm in the length of trucks carrying 45-foot containers, which are increasingly used in intercontinental and European transport.
The proposal also confirms that cross-border use of longer vehicles is lawful for journeys that only cross one border, if the two Member States concerned already allow it and if the conditions for derogations under Article 4(3), i or (5) of the Directive are met. Concerning Article 4 i, these operations do not have a significant impact on international competition if the cross-border use remains limited to two Member States and the existing infrastructure and the road safety situation allow it. Article 4 i is amended accordingly.
New provisions will be added to Directive 96/53/EC to enable the inspection authorities to better detect infringements and harmonise administrative penalties that apply to them. The Commission will publish guidelines on inspection procedures to ensure harmonisation of inspection methods between all Member States. Member States must carry out a minimum number of vehicle checks, using either weighing systems built into the road or by means of onboard sensors in vehicles which communicate remotely with roadside inspectors. These measurements will allow the inspection authorities to filter the vehicles, so that only vehicles strongly suspected of infringement are stopped for manual inspection. The Commission will define the technical standards for onboard weighing devices that can communicate with the inspection authorities, particularly the standards for the electromagnetic communication
interface. This will encourage the spread of such devices. They offer the additional advantage of enabling drivers to better control the weight of their vehicles.
Infringements of Directive 96/53/EC are classified by their degree of severity to harmonise at EU level the types of administrative penalties applicable.
In order to accelerate the introduction of vehicles that are more aerodynamic and have hybrid motorisation, the Commission will use the budgets at its disposal, in particular those allocated to trans-European networks and the EU programmes for research, development and innovation, to help industrial research, and equipping vehicle fleets.