Commission Directive 2003/26/EC
of 3 April 2003
adapting to technical progress Directive 2000/30/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards speed limiters and exhaust emissions of commercial vehicles
(Text with EEA relevance)
THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,
Having regard to Directive 2000/30/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 6 June 2000 on the technical roadside inspection of the roadworthiness of commercial vehicles circulating in the Community(1), and in particular Article 8 thereof,
Whereas:
(1) Directive 2000/30/EC concerns a legal framework for the roadside inspection of commercial vehicles, whether carrying passengers or freight. It requires Member States to supplement the annual roadworthiness test with unexpected inspections of a representative proportion of the commercial vehicle fleet on their roads each year.
(2) The field of roadworthiness testing is embraced by Council Directive 96/96/EC of 20 December 1996 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to roadworthiness tests for motor vehicles and their trailers(2), as last amended by Commission Directive 2001/11/EC(3), which covers regular roadworthiness testing, and by Directive 2000/30/EC, which applies to the roadside inspections of heavy commercial vehicles for their roadworthiness. Both Directives use the same Committee and the same procedure for technical adaptations.
(3) Directive 96/96/EC has been amended by the prescription of stricter emission limits for certain categories of motor vehicle and the functional testing of speed limitation devices on heavy commercial vehicles. In order to be consistent with that Directive, Directive 2000/30/EC also needs to be adapted so as to include the new technical provisions, namely by bringing on-board diagnostic (OBD) monitoring systems and speed limiters within the scope of roadside inspections. Directive 2000/30/EC also needs updating (together with Directive 96/96/EC) to incorporate revised emission testing limit values for certain categories of motor vehicles.
(4) The provisions of this Directive are in accordance with the opinion of the Committee on the adaptation to Technical Progress set up pursuant to Article 8 of Directive 96/96/EC,
HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:
Article 1
Annexes I and II to Directive 2000/30/EC are amended as set out in the Annex to this Directive.
Article 2
1. Member States shall bring into force the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with this Directive by 1 January 2004 at the latest. They shall forthwith inform the Commission thereof.
When Member States adopt those provisions, they shall contain a reference to this Directive or be accompanied by such a reference on the occasion of their official publication. Member States shall determine how such reference is to be made.
2. Member States shall communicate to the Commission the texts of the provisions of national law that they adopt in the field governed by this Directive.
Article 3
This Directive shall enter into force on the 20th day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.
Article 4
This Directive is addressed to the Member States.
Done at Brussels, 3 April 2003.