The deployment of intelligent transport systems in Europe

SUMMARY OF:

Directive 2010/40/EU – rules on the deployment of intelligent transport systems in the field of road transport and for interfaces with other modes of transport

WHAT IS THE AIM OF THE DIRECTIVE?

It aims to encourage the development of innovative transport technologies to create intelligent transport systems (ITSs). This will be done by introducing common European Union (EU) standards and specifications. These aim to establish interoperable* and efficient ITS services while allowing individual EU Member States to decide which systems to invest in.

KEY POINTS

ITSs cover a wide area of services

The directive applies to ITS applications and services in the EU road transport sector and to the way in which these applications communicate with other modes of transport.

ITSs are systems in which information and communication technologies are applied in road transport, including infrastructure, vehicles and users, traffic management and mobility management.

The following have been identified as priority areas for the development and use of specifications and standards:

optimal use of road, traffic and travel data, for example to allow road users to plan trips;
continuity of traffic and freight management ITS services (i.e. services that are uninterrupted when trucks cross borders);
ITS road safety and security applications (e.g. alerts of risks of reduced visibility, or of people, animals and debris on the road);
linking vehicles with the transport infrastructure (i.e. equipping vehicles to allow for exchange of data or information).

Within these priority areas, there are six priority actions which focus on:

1.
EU-wide multimodal travel information services (for journeys involving different transport modes, e.g. by train and ship);
2.
EU-wide real-time traffic information services;
3.
how to provide road-safety-related traffic information free of charge to users;
4.
the harmonised availability of an interoperable EU-wide eCall service;
5.
information services for safe and secure parking places for trucks and commercial vehicles;
6.
reservation services for safe and secure parking places for trucks and commercial vehicles.

With regard to the deployment of ITS applications and services, Member States must ensure that the related specifications adopted by the European Commission are applied. However, individual Member States have the right to decide on the deployment of these applications and services in their own territory.

EU-wide eCall service to report road traffic accidents

One of the six priority actions is an EU-wide eCall service. If there is a serious road accident, eCall automatically dials Europe’s single emergency number (112) and communicates a vehicle’s location to the emergency services. A telephone link is then set up with the appropriate emergency call centre (or public safety answering point) and details of the accident are sent to the rescue services, including the time of incident, the accurate position of the crashed vehicle and the direction of travel.

Member States agreed to deploy the eCall public safety answering point infrastructure required for the proper receipt and handling of all eCalls in their territory by 1 October 2017, and on the mandatory fitting of the 112-based eCall in-vehicle system on all new types of passenger cars and light-duty vehicles from 31 March 2018.

Work on priority actions

By means of delegated acts, the Commission has adopted specifications for:

eCall (Regulation (EU) No 305/2013);
information services for safe and secure parking places (Regulation (EU) No 885/2013);
road-safety-related minimum universal traffic information free of charge to users (Regulation (EU) No 886/2013);
EU-wide real-time traffic information services (Regulation (EU) 2015/962, which will be repealed and replaced on 1 January 2025 by Regulation (EU) 2022/670);
EU-wide multimodal travel information services (Regulation (EU) 2017/1926).

An evaluation took place in 2019 to assess to what extent the directive has contributed to:

faster and more coordinated deployment of ITSs; and
better functioning of the road transport system and its interfaces with other transport modes.

Following that evaluation, the Commission adopted a proposal to amend Directive 2010/40/EU in December 2021.

Delegation of powers

According to Article 12 of Directive 2010/40/EU, the power to adopt delegated acts is conferred upon the Commission until 27 August 2017. Decision (EU) 2017/2380 amends Directive 2010/40/EU extending the period for the Commission to adopt delegated acts for a further 5 years from 27 August 2017. Unless the European Parliament or the Council of the European Union opposes such an extension no later than 3 months before the end of each period, the delegation of power is tacitly extended for periods of an identical duration.

Working programme

The Commission’s decision on the working programme on the implementation of Directive 2010/40/EU was adopted on 15 February 2011. This was followed by a Commission decision updating the working programme in relation to the actions under Article 6(3) of Directive 2010/40/EU adopted in December 2018, which, in turn, was followed by a further decision covering the 2022–2027 period adopted in December 2022.

FROM WHEN DO THE RULES APPLY?

The directive had to be transposed into national law by 27 February 2012.

BACKGROUND

The volume of road transport is expected to increase in the EU. This is likely to lead to increased congestion on the roads, rising energy consumption and environmental and social problems. Innovations such as ITSs are needed to find solutions to these sorts of problems. They are advanced applications that aim to provide innovative services for various modes of transport and traffic management. They enable users to be better informed about transport conditions and to make safer and better use of transport networks.

For further information, see:

Intelligent transport systems (European Commission).

KEY TERMS

Interoperable. When systems and the underlying business processes are able to exchange data and to share information and knowledge.

MAIN DOCUMENT

Directive 2010/40/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 July 2010 on the framework for the deployment of intelligent transport systems in the field of road transport and for interfaces with other modes of transport (OJ L 207, 6.8.2010, pp. 1–13).

Successive amendments to Directive 2010/40/EU have been incorporated into the original text. This consolidated version is of documentary value only.