Activites

• 1997/06/02 Final act published in Official Journal
• 1997/05/16 Decision by Parliament, 1st reading/single reading
  • T4-0259/1997 summary

    In adopting the report by Mr Marcel SCHLECHTER (PSE, L) on the implementation of the social legislation relating to road transport, Parliament called for the number of working days checked to be made uniform throughout the Community, with a target of a fixed level of 2% (rather than 1%, as currently provided for). Concerned at the significant number of serious accidents which are to a large extent attributable to human error resulting from extreme fatigue, Parliament called on the Commission to instigate new legislation designed to reduce the maximum limits on driving time laid down in Regulation 382/85/EEC. It hoped that the Commission would give due consideration to non-driving periods on duty and that it would incorporate all the occupational activities of drivers into social legislation in order to create uniform competitive conditions for all road transport operators. Parliament took the view that the general safety of road users was at stake, as well as the health and safety of the drivers themselves. Parliament insisted that more uniform fines having a deterrent effect should be imposed (so as to ensure that the cost of breaking the law exceeded the financial gain therefrom) and noted that there were major disparities in the number and the nature of the checks carried out in the various Member States. Parliament welcomed the imminent introduction of inviolable electronic chronotachographs, which would constitute an important means of control, and called upon the Commission to investigate possible use of technology such as that used in automatic road tolls as a means of recording driver information on a continuous basis. Lastly, Parliament pointed out that there had been a considerable delay in the drawing up of the 1993-94 report on the subject and called for it to be prepared without delay. That report should contain more consistent and comprehensive data and efforts would have to be made by the Member States' authorities to improve the quality of the information forwarded to the Commission, which should be provided with consistent and mutually comparable data. �

• 1997/05/15 Debate in Parliament
  • Debate in Parliament
• 1997/03/18 Vote in committee, 1st reading/single reading
  • A4-0106/1997
• 1996/02/01 Committee referral announced in Parliament, 1st reading/single reading
• 1996/01/10 Non-legislative basic document published
  • COM(1995)0713 summary

    OBJECTIVE: 17th report by the Commission on the implementation of the social legislation relating to road transport (Regulation 3820/85/EEC), the main aim of which is to ensure that the rules on driving time and rest periods are observed in the Member States. SUBSTANCE: The report covers the 1991-1992 period and presents conclusions relating to checks, types of offence, penalties and the national regulatory and administrative initiatives launched in order to ensure compliance with the rules. It also relates to cooperation between the Member States as regards application of the rules. The report has been drawn up by the first time on the basis of the standard form introduced by the decision of 22 February 1993, but the data gathered are often fragmentary, incomplete or for the wrong reference period. Certain conclusions may nonetheless be drawn: - the new standard form has allowed greater standardization of the data, even if it was introduced to late, and the target of checking at least 1% of the total annual number of days worked by drivers has been attained or exceeded; - interpretation of the regulation continues to pose problems and there are frequent differences between the Member States: the Commission presents a series of relevant rulings by the Court of Justice which demonstrate the disputed points in respect of which the Court has expressed its views (for example the definition of the words 'undertaking', 'day', etc); - there have been major developments in European social legislation on road transport including, in particular, the adoption of: . Regulation 3688/92/EEC, which is intended to make tachographs more inviolable; . the Commission Communication on the concept of working time, which concludes that the length of working time, and the methods of calculating it, vary from one Member State to another and that European harmonization is called for. Similarly, harmonized limits on working hours should help to improve road safety. The Commission concludes its report with some comments on the prospects for checks and penalties. To follow up the recommendations contained in the 1994 report it intends to take four main lines of approach: . modernization of tachographs to make them more reliable and to ensure that they produce recordings which are easier to read; . mandatory training for drivers; . tightening up and harmonization of inspection systems; . alignment of penalties and/or establishment of minimum penalties and a uniform approach to the immobilization of vehicles. �

Documents

• Non-legislative basic document published: COM(1995)0713
• Committee report tabled for plenary, single reading: A4-0106/1997
• Debate in Parliament: Debate in Parliament
• Decision by Parliament, 1st reading/single reading: T4-0259/1997

History

(these mark the time of scraping, not the official date of the change)