Opinion of the Economic and Social Committee on the 'Proposal for a European Parliament and Council Directive on speedometers for two- or three-wheel motor vehicles and amending Council Directive 92/61/EEC on the type-approval of two- or three-wheel motor vehicles'
Date: 1998-12-02
Institutions: European Economic and Social Committee
Subjects: ESC opinion, driving mechanism, motor vehicle, speed control, technical standard, two-wheeled vehicle

15.2.1999

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 40/1

II

(Preparatory Acts)

ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE

Opinion of the Economic and Social Committee on the ‘Proposal for a European Parliament
and Council Directive on speedometers for two- or three-wheel motor vehicles and amending
Council Directive 92/61/EEC on the type-approval of two- or three-wheel motor vehicles’ (1)

(1999/C 40/01)

On 9 June 1998 the Council decided to consult the Economic and Social Committee, under
Article 100a of the Treaty establishing the European Community, on the above-mentioned
proposal.

The Section for the Single Market, Production and Consumption, which was responsible for
preparing the Committee’s work on the subject, adopted its opinion on 28 October 1998. The
rapporteur was Mr Barros Vale.

At its 359th plenary session (meeting of 2 December 1998), the Economic and Social Committee
adopted the following opinion by 73 votes to two.

1. General comments

1.1. Whereas the reasons underlying the obligatory
installation of speedometers and odometers in all two-
or
low-
performance mopeds, are in the interests of road safety;

three-wheel motor

including

vehicles,

1.2. Whereas the installation of speedometers in all
such vehicles means that drivers are in a position to
comply with speed limits laid down by law in force in
the Member States;

1.3. Whereas the installation of speedometers in two-
and three-wheeled vehicles only serves to provide drivers
with immediate information on speed so that they can
adjust their driving to the speed limits in force;

1.4. Whereas speedometers which have been manu-
factured or selected by the manufacturers of the vehicles
concerned will always contain an error either deliberately
built in by the manufacturer or through a lack of
precision of the speedometer, indicating a speed generally
higher than actual speed;

(1) OJ C 212, 8.7.1998, p. 7.

1.5. Whereas an error of this type, indicating a speed
higher than actual speed, is in the interests of road
safety.

2. Specific comments

2.1.
Since the installation of speedometers and odom-
eters constitutes an element of information placing
responsibility on drivers, the requirement to install such
devices with the reference ‘CONF’ will also place
responsibility on manufacturers, in keeping with their
obligation to limit the power and speed of the vehicles
concerned, in accordance with the class to be registered.

2.2.
The reference ‘SD’ would involve additional
costs placing small manufacturers of components for
two-wheeled vehicles at a disadvantage compared to
major manufacturers.

2.3.
The Committee approves the compulsory instal-
lation of speedometers and odometers, viewing this as a
positive step over Directive 92/61/EEC, which left the
decision as to whether or not to install such devices up
to the vehicle manufacturer.

Compulsory type-approval with the reference
2.4.
‘SD’ should be required for new vehicles and, given

C 40/2

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

15.2.1999

that the design and launch of this type of vehicle
currently takes some two years, it should only come
into effect two years after publication of the amended
directive. Vehicles currently under production, type-
approval of which does not include the reference ‘SD’
for speedometers and odometers as now proposed,
should meet this requirement from that date onwards.

2.5.
The mechanical, electric or electronic device
for measuring speed built into different instrument
panels, possibly with additional features, will probably
be the same in different versions of the instrument
panel; consequently, type-approval should apply to the

Brussels, 2 December 1998.

speed measurement device and not to the instrument
panel as a whole.

3. Proposed modification

3.1.
Therefore, only Article 6(4) of the proposed
amendment to Directive 92/61/EEC should be reworded
and a new sentence added as follows:

‘Article 6

(...)
4. Member States shall apply the requirements set
out in the first subparagraph of paragraph 1 as from
1 July 2001. However, during the two-year period
following thisdate, speedometers andodometers may
be installed with the reference “CONF” or “SD”.’

The President

of the Economic and Social Committee

Beatrice RANGONI MACHIAVELLI