IRU calls for grace period on new smart tachograph rules

As EU rules requiring second generation smart tachographs on new vehicles come into force, the International Road Transport Union (IRU) has asked the European Commission for a grace period due to a scarcity of such devices on the market.

New vehicles first registered from 21 August onwards and which have a tachograph must be fitted with second generation smart units.

The rules apply to UK as they are part of EU Retained Law, although parliament.uk website noted in 2022 that a “pragmatic solution” will be deployed here, if availability is short.

IRU supports the introduction of the latest generation of smart tachographs but claims delays in their delivery mean up to 40,000 registrations will be blocked by the end of 2023.

The second-generation units facilitate recording of crossing international borders and allow bodies such as the DVSA to remotely interrogate tachographs.

In a letter sent last week to EC Transport Commissioner Adina Vălean, IRU called on the EC to recommend member states provide a grace period until the end of 2023. It is proposed that, during this period, new vehicles carrying the previous version of the smart tachograph would be provisionally accepted for registration, providing they are retrofitted with second generation units by the end of the year.

IRU Director of EU Advocacy Raluca Marian says: “Our sector has been looking forward to the smart tachograph version 2.

“Among other benefits, its new features could reduce the number of roadside checks and improve the working conditions of drivers and enforcers by targeting only frequent and heavy offenders, an ideal scenario IRU has long pleaded for.

“But the delays in the delivery of the new tachographs may block between 20,000 and 40,000 vehicles from registration until the end of 2023.”

“This blockage is unacceptable. It means delays in receiving new vehicles, which may materially affect transport operators’ planning and, consequently, the EU’s passenger and goods transport capacity,” she added.

IRU says that already several member states including Germany, Spain and Sweden have decided on grace periods.

The body also says a bigger crisis is potentially on the horizon when the retrofitting deadline for existing tachograph-equipped vehicles passes in either December 2024 or August 2025, depending on the vehicle.

Ms Marian says: “As the new smart tachograph will most likely not be widely available for retrofitting until the beginning of 2024, we’re asking the European Commission to set up a monitoring system for vehicle retrofitting to prevent a predictable crisis. This could be an even bigger issue than the current one. We expect that between 1.5 and 2 million vehicles will need retrofitting, and the window for that is getting smaller and smaller due to delays.”