The EU Commission has set out plans for a comprehensive overhaul of the EU’s road safety and vehicle registration rules, covering vehicle check-ups, registration and roadside checks of commercial vehicles.
The proposed updates cover progress in vehicle technology, including the growth of electric cars, growing concerns about pollution and persistent road safety issues.
The rules will prioritise road safety and air quality, says the Commission, taking into account the growing presence of electric vehicles and adapting to emerging technologies such as advanced driver-assistance systems.
“The EU is firmly committed to cutting road fatalities and serious injuries by 50% by 2030,” said Transport Commissioner Apostolos Tzitzikostas: “Today’s initiative marks a major step forward in making our roads safer, our air cleaner and making citizen’s life easier.”
The rules will introduce periodic technical inspections for electric vehicles, new tests for electronic safety systems, and advanced emission testing methods to detect high-emitting vehicles. In addition, the Commission proposes to introduce annual inspections for cars and vans that are ten years or older, which are responsible for a disproportionate amount of harmful emissions.
There will be better protection against fraudulent odometer tampering. Periodic technical inspections will be made easier for those temporarily residing in another EU country.
The EU executive is also proposing to introduce digital vehicle registration certificates as the new standard and to simplify cross-border data sharing by improving the electronic exchange of vehicle registration data between Member States. This is to make it easier to recognise and verify certificates across borders.
The changes are expected to have a significant impact on road safety, preventing approximately 65,000 serious injuries and save around 7, 000 lives over the next 25 years.
The proposals now go to scrutiny by the European Parliament and EU Council.
Proposal for a revision of the directive on vehicle registration documents.
Questions and answers on the revision of the roadworthiness package
