The European Parliament’s transport committee is poised to undertake a place on EU driving licence guidelines that might allow 17-year-olds to function vans and 16-year-olds to drive 2.5-tonne SUVs.
It is an astonishing proposition rooted in political curiosity quite than information, with doubtlessly dire penalties for all highway customers, particularly for individuals who stroll and cycle.
In consideration are proposals to revise the EU Driving License Directive, a legislation on easy methods to implement and govern driving licence coaching in EU international locations. This consists of licensing for truck driving.
Presently, an individual should be a minimum of 21 years outdated earlier than they will start coaching as a truck driver. Nationwide governments can decrease that age to 18 if the individual passes an preliminary principle check. Round half of EU international locations permit this.
The transport committee is contemplating amendments that might require all EU international locations to drop the age restrict for truck driving coaching to 17-years-old supplied they’ve an grownup older than 24 accompanying them.
What might probably go fallacious?
Statistics point out a pointy decline in crash charges as age will increase, elevating considerations concerning the proposed amendments’ potential influence on highway security.
Analysis by the German Insurance coverage Affiliation reveals a big crash danger related to younger truck drivers aged 18-20 years, revealing that they contribute to round 25 p.c of accidents per variety of licence holders — a danger that diminishes with age, dropping to round 1-2 p.c for older age teams.
We additionally know that it’s tough for adults accompanying youthful drivers to stay continually vigilant within the cab. We’re beginning to see this extra incessantly with autonomous automobiles colliding into pedestrians and cyclists even with somebody within the driver’s seat. Operating over a bicycle owner whereas turning proper at a junction is a standard sort of crash with vans. They occur in a short time and usually tend to occur with youthful drivers.
Now let’s discuss children driving heavy vehicles.
The transport committee is contemplating a legislative modification that might permit holders of a B1 licence to drive a automobile weighing as much as 2.5 tonnes if its pace is restricted to 45 km/h. The B1 licence, accessible from the age of 16, is often used for low-speed quad automobiles weighing between 0.2 and 0.4 tonnes.
If this modification goes by, any 16-year-old with a B1 licence might drive a automobile weighing as much as 2.5 tonnes. This opens the door for younger drivers to deal with outsized automobiles like Ford Rangers and Ram 1500s, each beneath 2.5 tonnes.
Proof reveals the vulnerability of younger drivers of passenger SUVs and vans, significantly these aged 16-17, who face a collision danger twice as excessive as their counterparts aged 18-19. After age limits have been loosened in Finland, they discovered that 17-year-olds account for about eight p.c of all highway infractions though they make up simply 0.3 p.c of all licence holders.
The proposed modification I’ve seen stipulates that 16-year-old B1 licence holders can drive automobiles weighing as much as 2.5 tonnes if it has ”a most pace technically restricted to 45 km/h.” Nevertheless it’s not clear what ”technically restricted” means. Would a cruise management button with an off swap simply subsequent to the fingers of an impatient 16-year-old driver match this situation? Pace limiter units are straightforward to put in however equally straightforward to beat.
What’s extra, the transport committee needs to extend the load restrict of B class automobiles (your typical passenger automobile) to 4.25 tonnes. The argument is that it is meant to permit individuals to drive new electrical vans with their B licences. However parliamentarians are enabling it for all ”alternatively-fuelled” automobiles.
Presently, EU legislation limits B licence-holders to automobiles weighing as much as 3.5 tonnes. This was the one barrier to permitting US-style heavy truck automobiles into Europe. But when that barrier falls, anticipate to see very massive, e-trucks on Europe’s streets.
These amendments tackle real issues however with the fallacious strategy.
There is not a scarcity of certified truck drivers, it is simply that the working situations are poor, salaries are low, and hours are lengthy. Older youngsters dwelling in rural areas with few transport choices needn’t drive 2.5 tonne automobiles; they want higher public transport and extra secure strolling and biking infrastructure. If a weight exemption for giant electrical vans is required, then this must be specified unambiguously in EU legislation, as a result of 4.25 tonnes is significantly heavier than any automobile on the EU market.
MEPs may have an opportunity to vote on these adjustments in plenary over the past week of February.
In the event that they genuinely care about highway security for all EU residents, then they need to reject these amendments and ask the transport committee to maintain politics outdoors the door and write smart coverage that does not put lives in danger.