The approved version of the project primarily concerns the length of trucks, permissible total weights, and electric transmissions. The most important provisions are:

1. Assemblies with a length of up to 25.25 meters and a permissible total weight of up to 44 tons will be officially included in EU regulations and allowed in international traffic freely, without the need for additional agreements. However, each state will have the freedom to decide whether to allow the circulation of these vehicles on its territory but will also be able to accept vehicles with larger dimensions.

2. Longer and heavier assemblies will be based on combustion engine trucks until 2034, thereafter only electric or hydrogen-powered ones will be allowed to circulate.

3. To facilitate the loading of the vehicle and allow the installation of heavier propulsion systems, the permissible load of the motor axles must be increased from 11.5 to 12.5 tons (this is the most surprising proposal, considering that European road networks are often not designed to handle such tasks).

4. Testing of even longer configurations, for example, 32 or 34 meters (as in Spain and Scandinavia), will need to be facilitated. The EU has given general approval for such studies over 5 years, with the possibility of extension for another 3 years.

5. Semi-trailers with electrically powered axles must be officially included in EU regulations, and additionally, an extra 2 tons for assemblies with such semi-trailers is desired. Thus, heavy batteries for the semi-trailer axles can be installed under the chassis without reducing the loading capacity of the assembly.

6. All EU countries must be encouraged to increase administrative sanctions for transport-related violations. Additionally, investments promoting intermodal transport will need to be increased.

After approval by the European Parliament, these proposals have been forwarded for negotiations with the Council of the European Union, a body composed of ministers responsible for specific areas from all EU countries. It will have the authority to approve, modify, or completely reject these proposals, most likely in the autumn of 2024. After approval, a preparatory period will be necessary for all EU countries, so the introduction of the above changes will take several months or even a few years.

Credit: Mariana Bleorț, Logistic Post

“The new weights and dimensions approved by the European Parliament”

https://logisticpost.ro/articole/noile-mase-si-dimensiuni-aprobate-de-parlamentul-ue.html