CELEX: 51987PC0407
Language: en
Date: 1987-09-18
Title: PROPOSAL FOR A COUNCIL DIRECTIVE ON THE APPROXIMATION OF THE LAWS OF THE MEMBER STATES RELATING TO THE TREAD DEPTH OF TYRES OF CERTAIN CATEGORIES OF MOTOR VEHICLES AND OF THEIR TRAILERS

17.10.87                                Official Journal of the European Communities                              N o C 279/5
                                                                II
                                                        (Preparatory Acts)
                                                  COMMISSION
               Proposal for a Council Directive on the approximation of the laws of the Member States
                relating to the tread depth of tyres of certain categories of motor vehicles and of their trailers
                                                       COM(87) 407 final
                              (Submitted by the Commission to the Council on 25 September 1987)
                                                         (27/C 279/06)
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,                            Whereas harmonization of these requirements will fa-
                                                                    cilitate the free movement of vehicles between Member
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European               States;
Economic Community, and in particular Article 75
thereof,                                                            Whereas such harmonization is necessary and fully
                                                                    justified by the aim of guaranteeing road users a greater
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,                  degree of safety; whereas there is an urgent need for the
                                                                    requirements concerning tyre tread wear indicators,
Having regard to the opinion of the European Par-                   already proposed in 1977 (3), also to be laid down;
liament,                                                            Whereas the narrowly-focused question of the harmon-
                                                                    ization of the tread depth of tyres is nevertheless in line
Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and                    with the aims and activities of the Community Road
Social Committee,                                                   Safety Year 1986,
Whereas the Council and the representatives of the                  HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:
governments of the Member States, meeting in the
Council on 19 December 1984, adopted a resolution on                                           Article 1
road safety (') inviting the Commission to present
proposals in this context;                                          Member States shall take all necessary steps to ensure
                                                                    that throughout their service life on the road, tyres for
Whereas the European Parliament adopted on 18                       category Mi, Ni, d and 0 2 vehicles, as defined in
February 1986 a resolution on the Community's                       Annex I to Council Directive 70/156/EEC (*) shall have
programme for Road Safety Year 1986 (2) which                       a tread depth of at least 1.6 millimetres over their entire
included the tread depth of tyres as one of the common              tread surface.
provisions to be implemented as soon as possible;
                                                                                              Article 2
Whereas the requirements which tyres for motor vehicles
                                                                    After consulting the Commission Member States shall
and their trailers must meet in pursuance of national
                                                                    adopt and publish before 31 December 1987 the laws,
laws relate, inter alia, to the tread depth of such tyres,
                                                                    regulations and administrative provisions necessary for
even and especially while such tyres are in use;
                                                                    the implementation of this Directive from 1 June 1988.
Whereas these requirements vary from one Member                     Member States shall inform the Commission of the texts
State to another and whereas such differences raise                 of the provisions they adopt to implement this Directive.
serious problems in respect of driver liability where
vehicles are driven on the territory of other Member                                          Article 3
States, that is to say within the Community;
                                                                    This Directive is addressed to the Member States.
0) O J N o C 341,21. 12. 1984, p. 1.                                C) O J N o C 37, 14.2. 1977, p. 1.
O O J N o C 68, 24. 3. 1986, p. 35.                                 (4) OJ No L 42, 23. 2. 1970, p. 1.