Common Position (EC) No 38/2000 of 26 June 2000 adopted by the Council, acting in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 251 of the Treaty establishing the European Community, with a view to adopting a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Directive 94/55/EC on the approximation of the laws of the Member States with regard to the transport of dangerous goods by road
Date: 2000-06-26
Institutions: Council of the European Union
Subjects: approximation of laws, freedom to provide services, intra-EU transport, road transport, transport of dangerous goods, transport safety

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COMMON POSITION (EC) No 38/2000

adopted by the Council on 26 June 2000

with a view to adopting a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council of (cid:133)
amending Council Directive 94/55/EC on the approximation of the laws of the Member States
with regard to the transport of dangerous goods by road

(2000/C 245/02)

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE
EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community, and in particular Article 71(1)(c) thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission (1),

Having regard to the opinion of
Committee (2),

the Economic and Social

After consulting the Committee of the Regions,

Acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article
251 of the Treaty (3),

Whereas:

(1) The standardisation work of the European Committee
in the
for Standardisation (CEN) on quality control
yet been
transport of dangerous goods has not
completed;
therefore make a
report on the subject at present. It is therefore necessary
to amend the deadline
fourth
subparagraph of Article 1(2) of Directive 94/55/EC (4).

the Commission cannot

laid down in the

(2) The work of the United Nations Economic Commission
for Europe (UNECE) on the provisions concerning the
centres of gravity of tank-vehicles laid down in Annex B
to the European Agreement concerning the International
Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road (ADR) has not
yet been completed. It is therefore necessary to amend
the deadline laid down in Article 5(3)(b) of Directive
94/55/EC.

(1) OJ C 171, 18.6.1999, p. 17.
(2) OJ C 329, 17.11.1999, p. 10.
(3) European Parliament opinion of 18 January 2000 (not yet
published in the Official Journal), Council Common Position of 26
June 2000 and European Parliament Decision of (cid:133) (not yet
published in the Official Journal).

(4) OJ L 319, 12.12.1994, p. 7. Directive as

last amended by

(3) A provision should be included to allow certain Member
States, because of
to apply
stricter standards relating to certain equipment used in
transport.

their climatic conditions,

(4) The standardisation work of the CEN on receptacles and
therefore
tanks has not yet been completed;
necessary to amend the deadlines laid down in Article
6(4) of Directive 94/55/EC.

is

it

(5)

It
is necessary to ensure consistency between the
provisions of Directive 94/55/EC and the amendments
required to adapt the annexes thereto to scientific and
technical progress.

(6) The deadlines laid down in Article 6(4) of Directive
94/55/EC regarding certain equipment should be put
back. Identifying the equipment concerned and the latest
date for the application of Directive 94/55/EC should be
made subject to the procedure laid down in Article 9
thereof.

(7) The derogation provided for in Article 6(9) of Directive
94/55/EC should be made subject to the procedure laid
down in Article 9 thereof.

regard

(8) Member States should be allowed to adopt derogations
and
with
authorisation for that purpose should be made subject to
the procedure laid down in Article 9 of Directive
94/55/EC.

operations

transport

local

to

(9) The measures necessary for the implementation of this
Directive should be adopted in accordance with Council
Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down the
implementing powers
procedures for the exercise of
conferred on the Commission (5).

(10) The

conditions

transport
operation may be regarded as an ad hoc transport
operation should be specified.

fulfilled before

to be

a

Commission Directive 1999/47/EC (OJ L 169, 5.7.1999, p. 1).

(5) OJ L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23.

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(11) Directive 94/55/EC should be amended accordingly,

HAVE ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:

case of

special provision referred to in paragraph 3
of Annex C, but not, in any event, after 30
June 2001 in the
tank-vehicles
covered by the special provision referred to
in accordance
in paragraph 3 of Annex C,
the ADR
with the amended version of
applicable as from 1 July 2001 and not, in
any event, after 30 June 2005 in the case of
other tank-vehicles.(cid:146);

Article 1

(cid:151) the following subparagraph shall be added:

Directive 94/55/EC is amended as follows:

1.

in Article 1(2), point (c) shall be replaced by the following:

(cid:145)(c) quality controls on undertakings where they carry out
in

operations

indicated

as

national
paragraph 1 of Annex C.

transport

(cid:145)(c) Member

the

States

operating

temperature

in which the

ambient
temperature is regularly lower than ﬂ20 (cid:176)C
standards as
may impose more stringent
regards
of
materials used for plastic packaging,
tanks
and their equipment intended for use in the
transport of dangerous goods by
national
road within their territory until provisions on
the appropriate reference temperatures for
given climatic zones are incorporated in the
Annexes.(cid:146);

The scope of the national provisions concerning the
in this point may not be
requirements
extended.

set out

3. Article 6 shall be amended as follows:

(a) paragraph 3 shall be replaced by the following:

The provisions in question shall cease to apply if
under
are made
similar measures
Community provisions.

obligatory

At the latest two years after the entry into force of a
European standard on quality control in the transport
of dangerous goods, the Commission shall submit to
the European Parliament and the Council a report
assessing the safety aspects covered by this point
its
together with an appropriate proposal
continuation or repeal.(cid:146);

for

2. Article 5 shall be amended as follows:

(cid:145)3. Within its territory each Member State may
authorise the use of vehicles constructed before 1
January 1997 which do not
comply with this
Directive, but were constructed in accordance with
national requirements in force on 31 December 1996
provided that such vehicles are maintained to the
required safety levels.

Tanks and vehicles constructed on or after 1 January
1997 which do not comply with Annex B but were
constructed in accordance with the requirements of
this Directive that were applicable on the date of their
construction may continue to be used for national
transport until a date determined in accordance with
the procedure laid down in Article 9.(cid:146);

(a)

in paragraph 2, (cid:145)by Marginal 10 599 of Annex B(cid:146) shall
be replaced by (cid:145)by the special provision referred to in
paragraph 2 of Annex C(cid:146);

(b) paragraph 4 shall be replaced by the following:

(b)

in paragraph 3:

(cid:151) subparagraph (b)

shall be

replaced by

the

following:

(cid:145)(b) Member States may, however, maintain their
specific national provisions on the centres of
gravity of tank-vehicles registered within their
territories until the amendment, if any, of the

(cid:145)4.
Each Member State may maintain its national
provisions in force on 31 December 1996 relating to
the construction, use and conditions of carriage of
new receptacles within the meaning of
the special
provision referred to in paragraph 4 of Annex C and
new tanks which do not comply with Annexes A and
B, until references to standards for the construction
and use of
tanks and receptacles with the same
binding force as the provisions of this Directive are
added to Annexes A and B and in any event no later
than 30 June 2001. Receptacles and tanks constructed
before 1 July 2001 and maintained to the required

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safety levels may continue to be used under the
original conditions.

These dates shall be put back for receptacles and tanks
for which there are no detailed technical requirements
or
to the
appropriate European standards have been added to
Annexes A and B.

for which no sufficient

references

The receptacles and tanks referred to in the second
subparagraph and the latest date for the application of
this Directive as regards those receptacles and tanks
shall be determined in accordance with the procedure
laid down in Article 9.(cid:146);

(c)

the end of paragraph 6 the following shall be

at
added:

(cid:145)(cid:133), except that in the case of plastic packaging not
exceeding 20 litres in capacity, that date may be
put back to 30 June 2001 at the latest(cid:146);

(d) paragraph 9 shall be replaced by the following:

(cid:145)9.
Provided they give the Commission advance
notification no later than 31 December 2002 or until
two years after the last date of application of amended
versions of Annexes A and B to this Directive,
Member States may adopt provisions that are less
stringent than those in the Annexes for the transport
territory only, of small quantities of
within their
certain dangerous goods, with the
exception of
substances having a medium or high level of
radioactivity.

give

they

Commission

advance
the
Provided
notification no later than 31 December 2002 or until
two years after the last date of application of amended
versions of Annexes A and B to this Directive,
Member States may adopt provisions different from
those contained in the Annexes in respect of local
transport limited to their territory.

shall

Commission

examine whether

The
the
conditions laid down in this paragraph have been met
and shall decide,
in accordance with the procedure
laid down in Article 9, whether the Member States
concerned may adopt these derogations.(cid:146);

(e)

in the second subparagraph of paragraph 10,
(cid:145)of
Marginals 2 010 and 10 602 of Annexes A and B(cid:146)
shall be replaced by (cid:145)of the special provisions referred
to in paragraph 5 of Annex C(cid:146);

(f)

paragraph 11 shall be replaced by the following:

The Member States may issue authorisations,
(cid:145)11.
valid for their territory only,
to carry out ad hoc
transport operations of dangerous goods which are
either prohibited by Annex A or B or are performed
under conditions different from those laid down in
those Annexes, on conditions
these ad hoc
transport operations are clearly defined and limited in
time(cid:146);

that

(g)

in paragraph 12,
(cid:145)Marginals 2 010 and 10 602 of
Annexes A and B(cid:146) shall be replaced by (cid:145)the special
provisions referred to in paragraph 5 of Annex C(cid:146);

4.

in Article 8,
(cid:145)Annexes A, B and C(cid:146);

(cid:145)Annexes A and B(cid:146) shall be replaced by

5. Article 9 shall be replaced by the following:

(cid:145)Article 9

The Commission shall be assisted by a committee on

1.
the transport of dangerous goods.

2. Where reference is made to this Article, Articles 5
and 7 of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply having regard
to the provisions of Article 8 thereof.

The derogations provided for in the first and second
subparagraphs shall be applied without discrimination.

The period referred to in Article 5(6) of Decision
1999/468/EC shall be set at three months.

they

Notwithstanding the above, Member States may,
provided
advance
the
notification, at any time adopt provisions similar to
provisions adopted by other Member States with
reference to this paragraph.

Commission

give

3.

The Committee shall adopt its rules of procedure.(cid:146);

6.

the text set out in the Annex to this Directive, shall be
added as Annex C.

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Article 2

Article 3

1. Member States shall bring into force the laws, regulations
and administrative provisions necessary to comply with this
forthwith inform the
Directive before (cid:133) (*). They shall
Commission thereof.

When Member States adopt these measures, they shall contain
a reference to this Directive or shall be accompanied by such
reference on the occasion of
their official publication. The
methods of making such reference shall be adopted by the
Member States.

This Directive shall enter
publication in the Official Journal of the European Communities.

into force on the day of

its

Article 4

This Directive is addressed to the Member States.

Done at (cid:133)

2. Member States shall communicate to the Commission the
text of the main provisions of national law which they adopt
in the field governed by this Directive.

For the European Parliament

The President

For the Council

The President

(*) Six months after the entry into force of this Directive.

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ANNEX

(cid:145)ANNEX C

Special provisions relating to certain Articles of this Directive

1. The national transport operations referred to in Article 1(2)(c) are as follows:

(i)

explosive substances and articles in class 1, where the quantity of explosive substance contained per transport
unit exceeds:

(cid:151) 1 000 kg for division 1.1, or

(cid:151) 3 000 kg for division 1.2, or

(cid:151) 5 000 kg for divisions 1.3 and 1.5;

(ii)

the following substances in tanks or in tank containers of a total capacity exceeding 3 000 litres:

(cid:151) substances in class 2: gas assigned to the following risk groups: F, T, TF, TC, TO, TFC, TOC,

(cid:151) substances in classes 3, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 5.1, 5.2, 6.1 and 8: substances not listed under (b) or (c) in those
classes or listed therein but having a hazard code with three or more significant digits (not including any
zero);

(iii) the following packages of class 7 (radioactive materials): packages of fissile materials, packages of type B(U),

packages of type B(M).

2. The special provision applicable to Article 5(2) is Marginal 10 599 of Annex B.

3. The special provision applicable to Article 5(3)(b) is Marginal 211 128 of Annex B.

4. The special provision applicable to Article 6(4) is Marginal 2 211 of Annex A.

5. The special provisions applicable to Article 6(10) and (12) are Marginals 2 010 and 10 602 of Annexes A and B.(cid:146)

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STATEMENT OF THE COUNCIL’S REASONS

I.

INTRODUCTION

On 18 May 1999 the Commission submitted to the European Parliament and the Council a proposal
for a Directive amending Council Directive 94/55/EC on the approximation of the laws of the
Member States with regard to the transport of dangerous goods by road, which is based on Article
71(1)(c) of the EC Treaty (1).

The European Parliament and the Economic and Social Committee delivered their opinions on 18
January 2000 (2) and 22 September 1999 (3) respectively.

Following the Council’s request for consultation of 7 June 1999 the Committee of the Regions
communicated by letter of 22 July 1999 its decision not to give an opinion.

In the light of the European Parliament’s opinion, the Commission forwarded an amended proposal to
the Council on 25 April 2000 (4).

On 26 June 2000, the Council adopted its Common Position pursuant to Article 251 of the EC
Treaty.

II. OBJECTIVE

The main purpose of the Commission proposal is to settle the problems arising from the application
of certain transitional provisions laid down by Directive 94/55/EC (5) which were valid until 31
December 1998.

The Commission proposes that the deadline of 31 December 1998 be deferred in view of the delay in:

(cid:151) the work of the European Committee for Standardisation (CEN) on quality control of undertakings
(Article 1(2)(c) of Directive 94/55/EC) and on the construction, use and conditions of carriage of
receptacles for the transport of class 2 gases and tanks (Article 6(4) of the Directive),

(cid:151) the work of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) on amending the

provisions on the centre of gravity of tank-vehicles (Article 5(3)(b) of the Directive).

The proposal is also intended to ensure consistency between some of the Directive’s provisions and
the amendments to the Annexes to the European Agreement concerning the International Carriage of
Dangerous Goods by Road (ADR).

It also seeks to flesh out a number of the derogations provided for in Article 6 of the Directive, their
long-term treatment and the procedure for their acceptance.

(1) OJ C 171, 18.6.1999, p. 17.
(2) Not yet published in the Official Journal.
(3) OJ C 329, 17.11.1999, p. 10.
(4) Not yet published in the Official Journal.
(5) Council Directive 94/55/EC of 21 October 1994 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States with

regard to the transport of dangerous goods by road (OJ L 319, 12.12.1994, p. 7).

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III. ANALYSIS OF THE COMMON POSITION

Like the Commission’s amended proposal, the Council’s Common Position takes on board the four
amendments proposed by the European Parliament.

It covers:

(cid:151) in the ninth recital, amendment 1 and, in Article 1(5), amendment 4 altering Article 9 of Directive

94/55/EC,

(cid:151) in Article 1(2), amendment 2 adding a further subparagraph to Article 5(3),

(cid:151) in Article 1(3)(a), amendment 3 altering Article 6(3).

The Common Position further incorporates the following changes fitting in with the objectives of the
Commission’s amended proposal:

(cid:151) the first indent of Article 1(2)(b) stipulates that Article 5(3)(b) of Directive 94/55/EC enables Member
States,
in accordance with the Commission proposal, to maintain national provisions on the
centres of gravity of tank-vehicles registered within their territories until 30 June 2001 at the
latest. These tank-vehicles are covered by the special provision referred to in paragraph 3 of
Annex C.

Unlike the proposal, the Common Position provides for this date to be deferred until 30 June
2005 at the latest for tank-vehicles not yet covered by that special provision,

(cid:151) Article 1(3)(c) of the Common Position provides for an addition to be made to Article 6(6)
whereby the transitional period for plastic packaging not exceeding 20 litres is deferred until 30
June 2001 at the latest. The period provided for in the existing paragraph 6 for all plastic
packaging is five years from their date of manufacture up to a final date of 31 December 1998.

Under Article 6(6) of Directive 94/55/EC Member States may, under certain conditions,
derogate within their territory from the Directive’s provisions on packaging, the length of the
transitional period differing according to the packaging concerned.

The Council considers that this derogation does not constitute a barrier to intra-Community trade
as it applies to small packaging used for local distribution operations involving the ultimate
consumers,

(cid:151) Article 1(3)(d) of the Common Position also limits in time the period during which Member States
may notify the Commission of derogations for the transport of small quantities of certain
dangerous goods within their territory and also for local transport operations.