COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT pursuant to the second subparagraph of Article 251 (2) of the EC Treaty concerning the common position of the Council on the adoption of a a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council relating to tyres for motor vehicles and their trailers and to their fitting, and amending Directive 92/23/EEC

1997/0348 (COD)

COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT pursuant to the second subparagraph of Article 251 (2) of the EC Treaty concerning the common position of the Council on the adoption of a a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council relating to tyres for motor vehicles and their trailers and to their fitting, and amending Directive 92/23/EEC

1. Background to the file

- Date of transmission of proposal: 10.12.1997 (Document COM(1997) 680 final - 1997/348 COD of 10.12.1997);

- Date of European Parliament opinion on first reading: 18.2.1998;

- Date of opinion of the Economic and Social Committee: 27.5.1998;

- Date of adoption of common position: 13.4.2000.

2. Aim of the Commission proposal

This proposal for a Directive seeks to limit the noise generated by the contact between tyres in motion and road surfaces. In conjunction with the action already taken in order to curtail noise emissions from the mechanical parts of vehicles, the new measures will help to reduce noise emissions caused by road traffic, without thereby diminishing road safety and without unduly disrupting the tyre market. The proposal is a follow-up to the provisions of Article 4(2) of Directive 92/97/EEC amending Directive 70/157/EEC relating to the permissible sound level and the exhaust system of motor vehicles.

3. Comments on the common position

3.1. General comments on the common position

The Council's common position involves no changes of substance to the Commission's initial proposal, except as regards Article 3.

However, among the amendments included in the common position are the following:

- In Article 1, the definition of a "tyre" has been amended in such a way as to exempt studded winter tyres from the provisions of the Directive. Similarly, the scope of the Directive has been spelled out more clearly so as to restrict it to tyres intended to be fitted to vehicles put on the road after 1 October 1980 and to exempt very large tyres from the sound emission requirements.

- In Articles 1(6) and 2, the dates laid down for the transposition and mandatory entry into force of the requirements have been amended slightly so as to leave an adequate time interval for the orderly completion of the administrative and technical procedures.

- In Article 3, the Council has introduced provisions specifying that the Commission will amend Directive 92/23/EEC within 24 months of the publication of the Directive by including a requirement for road holding tests for tyres (paragraph 1) and will improve safety, environmental protection and energy saving (paragraph 2) within 48 months. The Commission takes the view that paragraph 1 has no place in this Directive. With regard to paragraph 2, the Commission believes that it calls into question its exclusive right to propose legislation.

- In Annex I, the technical testing requirements have been defined more clearly with a view to ensuring more reliable results, and a new appendix has been added detailing the information to be contained in the test report (Appendix 2). Furthermore, the Council has introduced a provision enabling the manufacturers' laboratories, up to 31 December 2005, to be authorised as approved test laboratories within the meaning of Article 14(1)(i) of Directive 70/156/EEC.

- A new Annex VI has been added describing the technical characteristics and configuration of the test track on the basis of the ISO standards.

3.2. European Parliament amendments on first reading

Delivering its opinion, Parliament approved the proposal without amendment.

4. Conclusions

Since the Council has adopted the common position unanimously, the Commission can at this stage only take note of the common position.