MEP Jens Gieseke (EPP, German) has adopted a “balanced and proportionate approach” in his draft report on the revision of the Directive on roadworthiness, published on Monday 15 December.
Presented in April by the European Commission (see EUROPE 13627/8), the aim of this revision is to modernise the Union’s framework in the light of technological progress, improve road safety and address growing concerns about pollution.
But for the rapporteur, “any reinforcement of testing obligations must therefore be justified by demonstrable safety or environmental benefits and calibrated in line with proportionality”.
He would therefore like to delete the proposal to shorten inspection intervals for vehicles over 10 years old. “While inspection standards vary among Member States, evidence linking more frequent inspections to a measurable reduction in accident causation remains inconclusive”, he stated in the explanatory memorandum.
The MEP felt that this measure would also “disproportionately affect vehicle owners from more vulnerable socio-economic backgrounds, for whom older vehicles are often a necessity”.
Similarly, he rejects the proposal to impose annual checks on N1 vehicles, i.e. light commercial vehicles weighing less than 3.5 tonnes. In his view, this would impose significant administrative and financial burdens on small and medium-sized enterprises, which rely heavily on these vehicles for their day-to-day activities.
He also refuses to allow ‘zero emission’ vehicles in categories N1 and M1, i.e. vehicles that can carry eight passengers in addition to the driver, to be subject to stricter regimes simply because of the extra weight of the battery.
In addition, given that the Commission recognises that reliable data on the prevalence of altered or defective emission control systems remains limited, he deemed the measure to be disproportionate and deleted it.
As far as remote sensing is concerned, he would like to make it optional for Member States, until such time as its feasibility, accuracy and cost-effectiveness have been demonstrated. “At the same time, Member States should be encouraged to conduct pilot projects to build experience and support the development of a harmonised approach at Union level”, he added.
Remote sensing data in national vehicle registers. In addition to the Directive on roadworthiness, the Commission’s package also covered the Directives applicable to vehicle registration. MEP Johan Danielsson (S&D, Swedish) published his draft report on Wednesday 3 December.
He welcomed the digitalisation of vehicle registration documents. However, he stressed that the digital switchover must be accompanied by “solid guarantees to protect and support citizens who have only limited access to digital technology or few digital skills”. “A physical version of the registration document should therefore always remain available on request and be provided free of charge”, he said.
The rapporteur also felt that greater use could be made of innovation and data exchange to protect public health. It therefore proposes to include remote sensing data on emissions in the scope of data exchanged between Member States. This measure is “cost-effective in reducing the harmful impact of high-emission vehicles on air quality and noise pollution”, he explained.
These draft reports will be discussed by the European Parliament’s Committee on Transport and Tourism (TRAN). For its part, the Council of the EU has already drawn up its negotiating position (see EUROPE 13766/4).
Read the draft report on roadworthiness testing: https://aeur.eu/f/k3c
Read the draft report on registration: https://aeur.eu/f/k3e (Original version in French by Anne Damiani)