Transport MEPs confirm deal to make lorries safer and greener
The rules agreed informally by Council Italian presidency and Parliament negotiators last December and approved unanimously on Tuesday in the Transport and Tourism committee would allow manufacturers to increase the length of lorry cabs, if these changes improve road safety and environmental performance. The agreement now needs to be approved by the parliament as a whole.
Results of the vote: 42 in favour, 0 against, 0 abstentions.
Draft changes to the Weight and Dimensions directive (1996) would allow manufacturers to introduce newly designed lorries, which may exceed current weight and length limits to improve the truck's overall environmental and safety performance.
Improving road safety and fuel efficiency
• more rounded lorry cabs would increase the driver's field of vision to spot vulnerable road users, such as cyclists, and reduce drag
• a deflective shape would reduce impact of collisions
• additional weight allowance (up to 1 tonne) for alternative fuel powertrains/engines
• aerodynamic flaps added at the rear of the lorry would help cut fuel consumption and emissions
Other improvements
• more efficient freight transport: additional length allowance (15cm) for intermodal transport of 45-foot standard containers to ease delivery of goods using several modes of transport
• improved enforcement of weight limits and better information to the driver: member states should take specific measures to identify vehicles that are likely to have exceeded the relevant weight limits; data in on-board weight sensors should be made available also to the driver
Member states have to put in place relevant national rules within two years from entry into force of the revised directive. Rules for cab design enter into force 3 years after relevant safety rules for putting newly designed lorries on the market are adopted. The Commission intends to propose the latter “type-approval” rules in 2016.
In negotiations on the rules for longer lorry cabs, member states had pushed for the new rules to enter into force 5 years after the adoption of relevant type-approval rules, whereas Parliament negotiators wanted the rules to take effect as soon as possible.
Further review to react to market changes
It was also agreed that the Commission should review the directive 3 years after national rules are in place, taking into consideration certain market segments such as car transporters.
Larger lorries
Current rules on larger lorries do not change.
Next steps
The draft rules now need to be approved by a majority of all MEPs (376 out of 751) in second reading in the Parliament and then the Council of Ministers.
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