Brussels: Europe and the Arabs

The Council and the European Parliament today reached a provisional agreement on the regulation relating to the approval and market control of non-road mobile machines (NRMM) traded on public roads. The amended legislation creates harmonized road safety requirements for the handling of self-propelled machinery (such as lawn mowers, harvesters or bulldozers) that must be handled on public roads and which have hitherto been regulated by Member States. This regulation will replace existing national regulatory systems and will reduce costs, administrative burdens and delays for companies. The temporary agreement reached Wednesday between co-legislators sets out the scope of the regulation in some important elements such as the types of mobile machinery involved, situations in which member states can limit the circulation of certain machines, or a production limit that exempts producers from requiring EU type approval. Safer roads, protected workers While many technical aspects of non-road mobile machines are harmonized at EU level, the safety requirements for their handling on public roads are regulated only by national rules. This leads to market fragmentation and additional costs and administrative burdens on the sector. The proposed regulation simplifies procedures for all actors. Manufacturers and distributors of non-road mobile machines will only have to seek road approval once, in one EU country, for the machines to be accepted for road use in all EU countries. Users (such as leasing companies) will benefit from lower compliance costs, and it will be easier for them to use and resell machines across borders within the EU. Drivers, in turn, will benefit from harmonized rules that ensure a high level of road safety across the European Union. The regulation proposes a simplified one-step procedure that takes into account the specific characteristics of non-road mobile machines (i.e. the fact that they do not normally travel on roads). It also provides for more effective market surveillance: it provides clear procedures, including preventive measures against non-compliant machinery, which are in line with those used in the broader EU legislative framework on products. Main elements of the agreement According to a European statement distributed in Brussels, the agreement reached creates a new vehicle category (Class U) for non-road mobile machines, which will be added to the existing vehicle categories (i.e. L for scooters and motorcycles, M for passenger cars, and N for small trucks). The text also explains the different variants and types that will come under this new category, depending on criteria such as basic construction and design characteristics. The interim agreement reached today allows Member State authorities to limit the circulation of fully automated mobile machines not intended for roads (i.e. machines that do not have a driver and are operated remotely). Authorities can also limit the circulation of machines when excessive dimensions of the machine hinder maneuverability. Furthermore, Member States can restrict traffic when the mass of the machine, the load on each of its axles, or the pressure on the surface damage the roads on which it turns or other infrastructure such as bridges or viaducts. To harmonize the text with the regulation on motor vehicle approval and market surveillance, the Convention gives Member States the power to act if the type approval granted for that machine does not comply with this regulation. In those cases, national approval authorities can refuse to recognize approval for non-road machinery. Producers of non-road machinery will be exempt from requiring EU type approval (approval may be limited to approval under national legislation) when they produce small series (the number of units of each type does not exceed 70 per year and in each Member State). Now the temporary agreement reached between the Council of Member States and the European Parliament needs to be ratified and formally adopted by the two institutions. The Commission previously submitted a proposal for the Regulation on 30 March 2023. This legislative text complements the EU legal framework for non-road mobile machinery, which has so far included some harmonized rules, such as Directive 2006/42/EC on safety in relation to the design and construction of machinery, Directive 2014/ 30/EU on electromagnetic compatibility, and Regulation (EU) 2016/1628 on limits of pollutants. A 2019 study suggested that establishing uniform EU-wide requirements could help the sector save between 18% and 22% on compliance costs. It is expected that over 10 years, this proposal could generate savings of up to €846 million for all stakeholders. Since the administrative cost is estimated at 4% of the total, the total administrative saving is calculated at €3.38 million per year.