Council Directive 81/576/EEC of 20 July 1981 amending Council Directive 77/541/EEC on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to safety belts and restraint systems of motor vehicles

COUNCIL DIRECTIVE of 20 July 1981 amending Council Directive 77/541/EEC on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to safety belts and restraint systems of motor vehicles (81/576/EEC)
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, and in particular Article 100 thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission (1),
Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament (2),
Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee (3),
Whereas Council Directive 77/541/EEC of 28 June 1977 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to safety belts and restraint systems of motor vehicles (4) lays down inter alia in Annex I requirements concerning the fitting of safety belts and restraint systems to vehicles of category M1 as defined in Annex I to Council Directive 70/156/EEC of 6 February 1970 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to the type approval of motor vehicles and their trailers (5), as last amended by Directive 80/1267/EEC (6);
Whereas in the interests of road safety the fitting of safety belts and restraint systems complying with Directive 77/541/EEC should henceforth be required for the vehicles in certain M and N categories and permitted and encouraged for vehicles in the other M and N categories by extending the scope of that Directive ; whereas such an extension has been made possible by technical progress in motor-vehicle construction;
Whereas for this purpose Directive 77/541/EEC should be amended;
Whereas amendment of that Directive means adapting to technical progress certain requirements in the Annexes to Directive 77/541/EEC ; whereas the entry into force of the provisions of the present Directive should be made to coincide with that of the provisions which, following adoption of the present Directive, will then be adopted in order to adapt the requirements of the Annexes to Directive 77/541/EEC to technical progress,