The European Parliament votes to accept Pan-European enforcement

In a landmark move, the European parliament has voted to approve Pan-European enforcement of traffic laws. This will allow police forces across Europe to share information on foreign motorists who break road traffic rules. No longer will offenders be able to dodge fines and other penalties for driving offences while committed abroad. The European Transport Safety Council (ETSC) and TISPOL – the European Traffic Police Network have both welcomed this move Non-resident drivers account for approximately 5% of
February 11, 2015 Read time: 2 mins
RSS

In a landmark move, the European parliament has voted to approve Pan-European enforcement of traffic laws. This will allow police forces across Europe to share information on foreign motorists who break road traffic rules. No longer will offenders be able to dodge fines and other penalties for driving offences while committed abroad. The 1197 European Transport Safety Council (ETSC) and 4753 TISPOL – the European Traffic Police Network have both welcomed this move
Non-resident drivers account for approximately 5% of road traffic in the EU but are responsible for 15% of speeding offences, according to 2465 European Commission figures. The law is expected to save at least 400 lives/year. The new rules cover offences including speeding, drink driving, using a mobile phone at the wheel and ignoring red lights.

Antonio Avenoso, Executive Director of the European Transport Safety Council (ETSC) said, “Today’s vote will help put an end to the injustice of foreign drivers escaping traffic penalties while locals get punished for the same offence. This is a long overdue change. The deterrent effect is important, knowing that you can be caught plays a key role in preventing dangerous driving.”

The law will come into effect in most EU countries later this year; Denmark, Ireland and the UK will have two additional years. Those three countries opted-out of an earlier version of the rules, but agreed to back a new proposal after the European Court of Justice ruled last year that the legal basis had to be changed. The rules are also set to be reviewed in 2016.

TISPOL General Secretary Ruth Purdie commented, “The next step will be to improve enforcement of traffic laws across the EU, starting with minimum standards for large-scale, regular and visible police enforcement actions on the three main causes of death: speeding, failure to wear a seat belt and drink driving.”

The European Parliament's vote is the culmination of a seven-year legislative process and today’s positive result is thanks in no small part to several MEPs who have fought tirelessly for stronger enforcement of road safety rules across the EU. Inés Ayala Sender, a Spanish MEP, deserves particular credit for shepherding this law through the EU decision-making process since it was first proposed in 2008.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Concern over seat belt use in Europe
    November 1, 2012
    Concern has been expressed over recidivist motorists in Europe who continue to flout seatbelt laws, despite strong evidence that they risk serious injury or death. According to recent police safety data, results from a recent pan-European seatbelt control operation show that nearly 100,000 drivers and passengers were detected not wearing seatbelts. A total of 25 countries took part in the operation, which was co-ordinated by the European Traffic Police Network (TISPOL). Of the final total of 97,489 detectio
    Read More
  • Road safety checks for Europe
    December 2, 2014
    From Monday 8th December a pan-European police road safety operation will commence. The aim is to raise awareness of the dangers of drink-driving and drug driving. The operation will involve officers conducting alcohol and drug checks at any time of the day and night. The message from pan-European police body TISPOL is simple: the ability to drive safely is impaired by even a small amount of alcohol. Do not drink and drive. Drivers can expect highly visible and widespread enforcement of alcohol and drug law
    Read More
  • Police in Europe are getting tough on driving under the influence
    November 13, 2012
    Police in Europe are using tough enforcement to tackle the problem of drivers under the influence of drink and drugs. A series of measures have been employed to enforce drink driving and drug driving regulations across Europe. Police conducted more than 900,000 breath tests in a seven-day operation this summer. Of these, nearly 18,000 drivers tested positive for alcohol. Motorists were also checked for drugs in the operation. In total, 928,863 drivers were checked and there were 17,970 alcohol and 2,773 dru
    Read More
  • New European road safety target set for 2030
    June 8, 2017
    A new road safety target has been set for 2030. The European Union transport ministers have agreed to aim at halving the number of serious injuries on roads in the EU by 2030 from their 2020 level. Ministers have endorsed the Valletta declaration aimed at improving road safety. The ministers also called on the European Commission to come forward with a new road safety strategy for the decade 2020-2030.
    Read More

Highlighted Content