CELEX: 51996PC0556
Language: en
Date: 1996-11-05
Title: Amended proposal for a COUNCIL DIRECTIVE amending Directive 91/439/EEC on driving licences

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
                                    Brussels, 05 11.1996
                                    COM(96) 556 final
                                    96/0040 (SYN)
                 Amended proposal for a
                 COUNCIL DIRECTIVE
            amending Directive 91/439/EEC
                   on driving licences
(presented by the Commission pursuant to Article 189 a (2)
                    of the EC-Treaty)
 ---pagebreak---  ---pagebreak---                            EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM
A.      On 20 February 1996 the Commission submitted to the Council a proposal for a
        Directive amending Directive 91/439/EEC on driving licences (COM(96) 55 final
        - SYN 96/0040 ' ).
                              2
        On 24 April 1996        the Economic and Social Committee gave a favourable
        opinion.
        On 5 September 1996 the European Parliament gave an opinion on the proposal
        at the first reading. The Commission accepts amendment 1 and takes account, h
        the amended proposal in the annex, of amendment 5, although it is unable to
        accept it in full.
        The Commission has not been able to accept the other amendments tabled by
        Parliament for the following reasons:
                the recital concerning the code of conduct does not relate to any of the
                articles;
                the recital on setting up a European penalty points driving licence system
                and that on mutual recognition of decisions to suspend or withdraw driving
                licences fall outside the proposal remit;
                introducing a universal code 00, without a definition, would run counter
                to the proposal's objective which is to define harmonized codes which
                everyone can easily understand;
                the obligation to subdivide codes before 31 December 1996 does not
                correspond to the content of Article 2 of the Commission proposal.
                According to this provision the task of subdividing codes actually falls on
                the appropriate committee, which must take scientific and technical
                progress into consideration; this also applies after 31.12.1996;
                the amendment concerning the committee's composition and working
                methods is not in line with the provisions of Council Decision 87/373/EEC
                on committee procedure;
                the amendment on mutual recognition of decisions to suspend or withdraw
                driving licences falls outside the proposal remit;
                the amendment on medical standards for driving falls outside the proposal
                remit.
1
  O J N o C 110, 16.4.1996, p. 7.
2
  OJ No C 204, 15.7.1996, p.20.
 ---pagebreak--- B. The Commission thus amends its proposal as follows:
   Amendment 1:       addition of the words "and sub-codes"
   Amendment 2:       addition of the words:
                      02 ... / "communication aid"
                      03 ... / "for the limbs"
                      70 and 71 ... "(ECE/UN symbol of third country)"
                      79 "Restricted to vehicles meeting the specifications set out
                      in parentheses, with reference to the application of Article
                       10(1) of Directive 91/439/ECE".
 ---pagebreak---                                  Amended proposal for a
                                COUNCIL DIRECTIVE
                            amending Directive 91/439/EEC
                                  on driving licences
The Commission proposal in document COM(96) 55 final - SYN 96/0040 3 is amended
as follows:
        Text initially proposed by the                    Amended text
                 Commission
                                     (Amendment 1)
                                       Recital 3
   Whereas the codes applying to the         Whereas the codes and sub-codes
   conditions of issue governed by           applying to the conditions of issue
   Directive 91/439/EEC are valid            governed by Directive 91/439/EEC are
   throughout the Community;                 valid throughout the Community;
 3
   ()J NoC 110, 16.4.1996, p. 7.
 ---pagebreak---     Text initially proposed by the Commission                               Amended text
                                              (Amendment 2)
                                                ARTICLE 1
                                           Annex 1.2, sixth indent
                                and Annex la 2.12 (Directive 91/439/EEC)
- codes 01 to 99 = harmonized Community codes           - codes 01 to 99 = harmonized Community codes
01       Eyesight correction                            01        Eyesight correction
02       Hearing aid                                    02        Hearing aid/communication aid
03       Prosthesis/Orthosis for the locomotive         03        Prosthesis/Orthosis for the limbs
         apparatus
04       Subject to the possession of a valid           04        Subject to the possession of a valid
         medical certificate                                      medical certificate
05       Driving subject to restrictions for medical    05        Driving subject to restrictions for
         reasons                                                  medical reasons
10       Modified transmission                           10       Modified transmission
15       Modified clutch                                 15       Modified clutch
20       Modified braking systems                       20        Modified braking systems
25       Modified accelerator systems                   25        Modified accelerator systems
30       Modified combined braking and                   30       Modified combined braking and
         accelerator systems                                      accelerator systems
35       Modified control layouts                        35       Modified control layouts
40       Modified steering                              40        Modified steering
42       Modified rear-view mirror(s)                   42        Modified rear-view mirror(s)
43       Modified driving seat                           43       Modified driving seat
44       Modifications to motorcycles                    44       Modifications to motorcycles
45       Motorcycle combinations only                    45       Motorcycle combinations only
50       Restricted to a specific vehicle/chassis        50       Restricted to a specific vehicle/chassis
         number                                                   number
51       Restricted to a specific                        51       Restricted to a specific
         vehicle/registration mark                                vehicle/registration mark
55       Combinations of vehicle modifications           55       Combinations of vehicle modifications
70       Exchange of licence No ... issued by ...        70       Exchange of licence No ... issued by ...
                                                                  (ECE/UN symbol of third country)
71       Duplicate of licence No ...                     71       Duplicate of licence No ... (ECE/UN
                                                                  symbol of third country)
72       Restricted to category-A vehicles having        72       Restricted to category-A vehicles having
         a maximum cylinder capacity of 125 cm3                   a maximum cylinder capacity of 125 cm3
         and a maximum power of 11 kW (Al)                        and a maximum power of 11 kW (Al)
73       Restricted to catcgory-B vehicles of the        73        Restricted to catcgory-B vehicles of the
         motor tricycle or quadricyclc type (Bl)                   motor tricycle or quadricyclc type (Bl)
 ---pagebreak---  74        Restricted to category-C vehicles, the     74        Restricted to category-C vehicles, the
           maximum authorized mass of which does                maximum authorized mass of which does
           not exceed 7 500 kg (C1 )                            not exceed 7 500 kg (CI)
 75        Restricted to category-D vehicles with     75        Restricted to category-D vehicles with
           not more than 16 passenger seats,                    not more than 16 passenger seats,
           excluding that of the driver (Dl)                    excluding that of the driver (Dl)
 76        Restricted to category-C vehicles of       76        Restricted to category-C vehicles of
           which the maximum authorized mass                    which the maximum authorized mass
           does not exceed 7 500 kg (CI), attached              does not exceed 7 500 kg (CI), attached
           to a trailer of which the maximum                    to a trailer of which the maximum
           authorized mass exceeds 750 kg,                      authorized mass exceeds 750 kg,
           provided that the maximum mass of the                provided that the maximum mass of the
           vehicle train thus formed does not exceed            vehicle train thus formed does not
            12 000 kg and that the maximum                      exceed 12 000 kg and that the maximum
           authorized mass of the trailer does not              authorized mass of the trailer does not
           exceed the unladen mass of the drawing               exceed the unladen mass of the drawing
           vehicle (Cl+E)                                       vehicle (Cl+E)
 77        Restricted to category-D vehicles with     77        Restricted to category-D vehicles with
           not more than 16 passenger seats,                    not more than 16 passenger seats,
           excluding that of the driver (Dl),                   excluding that of the driver (Dl),
           attached to a trailer the maximum                    attached to a trailer the maximum
           authorized mass of which exceeds                     authorized mass of which exceeds
           750 kg, provided that (a) the maximum                750 kg, provided that (a) the maximum
           authorized mass of the resultant vehicle             authorized mass of the resultant vehicle
           train does not exceed 12 000 kg and that             train does not exceed 12 000 kg and that
           the maximum authorized mass of the                   the maximum authorized mass of the
           trailer does not exceed the unladen mass             trailer does not exceed the unladen mass
           of the drawing vehicle and (b) the trailer           of the drawing vehicle and (b) the trailer
           is not used to carry passengers (Dl+E)               is not used to carry passengers (Dl+E)
 78        Restricted to vehicles with an automatic   78        Restricted to vehicles with an automatic
           transmission (Annexes II, 8.1.1                      transmission (Annexes II, 8.1.1
           Section 2)                                            Section 2)
                                                      79         Restricted to vehicles meeting the
                                                                 specifications set out in parentheses, with
                                                                 reference to the application of Article
                                                                 10(1) of Directive 91/439/EEC
  If necessary a subdivision of the codes will be      A subdivision of the codes will be defined by 31
 defined in line with the provisions of Article 2 of   December 1996 in line with the provisions of
  this Directive and more particularly with regard to  Article 2 of this Directive and more particularly
  codes 04, 05, 44 and 55.                             with regard to codes 04, 05, 44 and 55.
The remainder of the text is unchanged.
Done at
 ---pagebreak---                                                                   ISSN 0254-1475
                                                           COM(96) 556 final
                                              DOCUMENTS
EN                                                                       07 06
                                    Catalogue number : CB-CO-96-560-EN-C
                                                             ISBN 92-78-10862-6
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