EU General Safety Regulation

Too many deaths on European roads

2019 saw around 22,800 people killed in European road traffic – and although the number of documented road deaths has fallen by almost 25% compared to 2010, the rate of decline has slowed down considerably. The European Union’s original objective to halve the number of road accident victims between 2010 and 2020 now seems unattainable. Current statistics also show that in urban areas, around 70% of all accident fatalities are unprotected road users such as pedestrians and cyclists. To considerably reduce the total number of road deaths in the EU and to better protect pedestrians and cyclists in particular, the EU adopted an effective package of measures – the General Safety Regulation.
 

The General Safety Regulation – what is it?

On 27 November 2019, the EU adopted the General Safety Regulation (GSR) , with the aim of drastically reducing the number of deaths, serious injuries and accidents in the EU. This was to be achieved by introducing the latest safety technologies as standard equipment in new vehicles. These systems range from alcohol immobilisers and intelligent speed assistants to tire pressure monitoring systems, lane changing assistants and many other intelligent driver assistance systems. The general requirements apply to passenger cars and light commercial vehicles as well as buses and heavy commercial vehicles. Additional safety requirements have also been imposed on the various types of vehicles. These new requirements will be introduced successively for new car models (EU type-approval) and for vehicle registrations.

Special safety requirements for buses and heavy commercial vehicles

Serious accidents involving heavy commercial vehicles and unprotected persons such as pedestrians and cyclists occur time and time again in urban traffic. This is why the mandatory installation of safety systems for buses and heavy commercial vehicles goes beyond the GSR’s general requirements and existing systems such as lane departure warning systems and emergency brake assistance systems – for example, additional systems are planned that will warn drivers of heavy trucks of pedestrians and cyclists in the blind spot.

These safety technologies will become mandatory for buses and heavy commercial vehicles:

ADDW: Advanced Driver Distraction Warning

ALC: Alcohol Interlock Installation Facilitation

BLIS: Blind Spot Information System

DDR-AW: Driver Drowsiness and Attention Warning

EDR: Event Data Recorder

ESS: Emergency Stop Signal

ISA: Intelligent Speed Assistance

PCW: Pedestrian and Cyclist Collision Warning

REV: Reversing Detection System

TPMS: Tire Pressure Monitoring System

When will these technologies become mandatory for heavy commercial vehicles and buses?

For EU type-approval:

Emergency Stop Signal (ESS)

Alcohol Interlock Installation Facilitation (ALC)

Driver Drowsiness and Attention Warning (DDR-AW)

Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS)

Intelligent Speed Assistance (ISA)

Reversing Detection System (REV)

Pedestrian and Cyclist Collision Warning (PCW)

Blind Spot Information System (BLIS)

Modern technologies – an integral part of the implementation of new regulations

In addition to the General Safety Regulation, more packages of measures exist at EU and national levels. With the help of intelligent technologies, these packages are intended to make transport safer, reduce CO2 emissions and ensure fairer competition. With the adoption of Mobility Package I by the European Union in July 2020, the Smart Tachograph, for example, became much more important. It is a control system that documents numerous items of information on driving and rest periods, speed, distance travelled and border crossings, and enables easy controlling procedures by authorities via a standardised interface. Since 2018, e-call is also mandatory in all new models whose EU type-approval is dated after March 31. This automatic emergency call system notifies emergency services in the event of an accident and is expected to save 2,500 lives a year in Europe. The Onboard Weighing System is also a good example of the important role played by modern technologies in new regulations for traffic, transport and vehicle equipment. Based on Directive 96/53/EC regarding the dimensions and weights of heavy commercial vehicles, standardized weighing systems are intended to warn heavy commercial vehicles of overloading, thus avoiding accidents and ensuring fair competition. However, new regulations and related technologies not only lead to safer and cleaner transport, they also increase the overall level of intelligent technologies in vehicles – and this makes them decisive pioneers in autonomous driving.