Progress in Europe on the Smart Tachograph

Posted by AndrewT on 31st Oct 2012

Euro Ministers reached agreement on 29 October for new regulations on the tachograph used in road transport across the EU. The objective of the new draft legislation is to make fraud more difficult and to make it easier for enforcement agencies. This will be achieved by making full use of existing technology and introducing new regulatory measures.

Satellite positioning will be used to record the location of the vehicle automatically. The draft legislation includes remote communication from the tachograph to provide basic information on compliance. This will enable early detection by the authorities of possible manipulation or breaches of regulations.

The new "smart tachograph", will become mandatory 40 months after the technical specifications for the new tachograph have been established in 2017 or 2018.