The willingness to increase effectiveness of the drivers working hours rules set out has obviously not yet led to harmonization of enforcement procedures in Europe. Moreover this problem will gain weight with the accession of Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries. Already now it is well known that some truck drivers/operators prefer to run the risks of the low penalties in CEE countries as the profits resulting from not taking the necessary breaks outweigh by far the costs of eventual penalties. The shortcomings and possibilities of traffic safety rules and their enforcement in Europe were investigated, both for passenger and freight transport by road. Those individual countries that have implemented a successful set of rules with complementary enforcement methods were examined from a policy/legal/institutional angle rather than a technical angle. At the same time the paper highlights practical and successful initiatives that were taken in various places in Europe to fight unsafe driving. Harmonization of penalties is an extremely difficult subject. It makes sense that the driver referred to earlier - behind the steering wheel for 24 hours in a row - faces similar severe consequences no matter on what side of the border he operates. However Member States are extremely keen on their own competencies regarding penal law. Apart from a juridical analysis, practical examples of successful practices are provided. For the covering abstract see ITRD E126595.
Abstract