The European Parliament adopted by 578 votes to 30, with 25 abstentions, a legislative resolution on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on type-approval requirements for motor vehicles and their trailers, and systems, components and separate technical units intended for such vehicles, as regards their general safety and the protection of vehicle occupants and vulnerable road users, amending Regulation (EU) 2018/.... and repealing Regulations (EC) No 78/2009, (EC) No 79/2009 and (EC) No 661/2009.
The European Parliament's position adopted at first reading under the ordinary legislative procedure amended the Commission's proposal.
Improving vehicle and road safety
The proposed Regulation seeks to ensure the proper functioning of the internal market by introducing harmonised technical requirements concerning the safety and environmental performance of motor vehicles and their trailers. The amended text recalls that 25 300 people lost their lives on EU roads in 2017 and that 135 000 people are seriously injured each year in collisions.
Advanced vehicle systems for all categories of motor vehicles
Motor vehicles shall be equipped with the following advanced vehicle systems: (i) intelligent speed assistance; (ii) alcohol interlock installation facilitation; (iii) driver drowsiness and attention warning; (iv) advanced driver distraction warning; (v) emergency stop signal; (vi) reversing detection; (vii) event data recorder.
Intelligent speed assistance systems shall have the following minimum specifications:
- it shall be possible for the driver to be made aware through the accelerator control, or dedicated, appropriate and effective feedback, that the applicable speed limit is exceeded;
- it shall be possible to switch off the system. Information about the speed limit may still be provided, and the intelligent speed assistance system shall be in normal operation mode upon each activation of the vehicle master control switch;
- the dedicated and appropriate feedback shall be based on speed limit information obtained through observation of road signs and signals, based on infrastructure signals or electronic map data, or both, made available in-vehicle;
- it shall not affect the drivers' possibility to exceed the system’s prompted vehicle speed;
- its performance targets shall be set in order to avoid or minimise the error rate in real driving conditions.
Driver drowsiness and attention warning and advanced driver distraction warning systems
These shall be designed in such a way that those systems do not continuously record nor retain any data other than what is necessary in relation to the purposes for which they were collected or otherwise processed within the closed-loop system.
Furthermore, that data shall not be accessible or made available to third party at any time and shall be immediately deleted after processing. Those systems shall also be designed to avoid overlap and shall not prompt the driver separately and concurrently or in a confusing manner in case one action triggers both systems.
Event data loggers
An event data recorder shall not be capable of recording and storing the last four digits of the vehicle indicator section of the vehicle identification number or any other information which could allow the individual vehicle itself, its owner or holder, to be identified.
Event data recorders shall meet the following requirements in particular:
- the data that they are capable of recording and storing with respect of the period shortly before, during and immediately after a collision shall include the vehicle's speed, braking, position and tilt of the vehicle on the road, the state and rate of activation of all its safety systems, 112-based eCall in-vehicle system, brake activation and relevant input parameters of the on-board active safety and accident avoidance systems, with high level of accuracy and ensured survivability of data;
- it shall not be possible to deactivate the devices;
- the way in which they are capable of recording and storing data shall be such that: (i) they operate on a closed-loop system; (ii) the data collected is anonymised and protected against manipulation and misuse; (iii) precise vehicle type, version and variant, and in particular the active safety and accident avoidance systems fitted to the vehicle, can be identified;
- the data can be made available to national authorities, on the basis of Union or national law only for the purpose of accident research and analysis, including for the purposes of type approval of systems and components and in compliance with Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (General Data Protection Regulation), over a standardised interface.
Safety features and warnings used in assisting driving should be easily perceived by every driver, including the elderly and persons with disabilities.
Passenger cars and light commercial vehicles
These shall be equipped with advanced emergency braking systems designed and fitted in two phases and providing for: (i) detection of obstacles and of moving vehicles ahead of the motor vehicle in the first phase; (ii) extending the detection capability to also include pedestrians and cyclists ahead of the motor vehicle in the second phase.
Buses and trucks
These should (i) be equipped with advanced systems capable of detecting pedestrians and cyclists located in close proximity to the front or nearside of the vehicle and providing a warning or avoiding collision with such vulnerable road users; (ii) be designed and constructed so as to enhance the direct visibility of vulnerable road users from the driver seat, by reducing to the greatest possible extent the blind spots in front and to the side of the driver.
Review and reports
No later than five years after the date of application of the Regulation and every five years thereafter, the Commission shall submit an evaluation report on the achievements of safety measures and systems, including their penetration rates and convenience for the user. Where appropriate, this report shall be accompanied by recommendations, including a legislative proposal to amend the requirements as regards general safety and protection and safety of vehicle occupants and vulnerable road users, in order to reduce or to eliminate the number of accidents and injuries in road transport.