The European Parliament adopted by 485 votes to 151, with 32 abstentions, a legislative resolution on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council concerning type-approval requirements for the deployment of the eCall in-vehicle system and amending Directive 2007/46/EC.
Parliament’s position adopted at first reading under the ordinary legislative procedure amended the Commission’s proposal as follows:
Reference to the 112 service: Parliament recalled that the deployment of an eCall service available in all vehicles and in all Member States has been one of the high Union priorities in the area of road safety since 2003.
It is still necessary to improve the operation of the 112 service throughout the Union, so that it provides assistance swiftly and effectively in emergencies. In this respect, Members called for the eCall system to be based on the 112 service and that this should be explicitly stated in the Regulation.
In order to ensure continuity of the public 112-based eCall service in all Member States throughout the lifetime of the vehicle and guarantee that the public 112-based eCall service is always automatically available, all vehicles should be equipped with the public 112-based eCall service, regardless of whether or not a vehicle buyer opts for a private eCall service.
Definition: Members defined the '112-based eCall in-vehicle system' means an emergency system, comprising in-vehicle equipment and the means to trigger, manage and enact the eCall transmission.
The system should be activated either automatically via in-vehicle sensors or manually, which emits signals by means of a public mobile wireless communications networks, to enable the transmission of a standardised minimum set of data and the establishment of a 112-based audio channel between the occupants of the vehicle and the appropriate public safety answering point.
The 112-based eCall is a public service of general interest and should therefore be accessible free of charge to all consumers.
Co-existence with other systems: the vehicle owner should have the right to use another emergency call system installed in the vehicle and providing a similar service, in addition to the 112-based eCall in-vehicle system. In that case, that other emergency call system shall be compliant with the standard EN 16102.
Manufacturers should ensure that there is only one system active at a time and that 112-based eCall in-vehicle system is triggered automatically in the event that the other emergency call system does not function.
Data and privacy protection: Parliament called for the Regulation to apply, without prejudice, to Directives 95/46/EC and 2002/58/EC. Any processing of data through the 112-based eCall in-vehicle system should therefore be carried out in accordance with these Directives.
Manufacturers should ensure that eCall users are provided with clear and comprehensive information about the existence of a free public eCall system, based on 112, and the processing of data carried out through the 112-based eCall in-vehicle system, in particular about: (i) the fact that there is no tracking of the vehicle beyond the collection of the minimum amount of data necessary for the 112-based eCall in-vehicle system to determine and transmit the location and the direction of travel of the vehicle when reporting an incident, as well as the fact that any tracking data are only stored on the device for as long as strictly necessary for that purpose.
Manufactures shall ensure that the 112-based eCall in-vehicle system and another installed emergency call system and a system providing added-value services are designed in such a way that no exchange of personal data between them is possible.
Technical inspections: periodic technical inspections should therefore be carried out regularly in accordance with Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on periodic roadworthiness tests for motor vehicles and their trailers.
Delay for equipping vehicles: in a new recital, Parliament stressed that the equipping of vehicles of existing types to be manufactured after 1 October 2015 with the 112-based eCall in-vehicle system should be promoted in order to increase penetration. In respect of types of vehicles type-approved before 1 October 2015, an eCall system may be retrofitted on a voluntary basis.
Review: by 1 October 2018, the Commission should prepare an evaluation report on the achievements of the 112-based eCall in-vehicle system, including its penetration rate. The Commission should investigate whether the scope of the Regulation should be extended to other categories of vehicles, such as powered two-wheelers, heavy goods vehicles, busses and coaches, and agricultural tractors. If appropriate, the Commission should present a legislative proposal to that effect.