Dear Sir or Madam, dear members,
We are now offering you another advantage of being a member of the Trailer Industrie Verband (Trailer Industry Association) in the form of this newsletter: In future you will, depending on the news situation, receive first-hand information and service offers on current developments in technology, law, politics and other areas.
If you have any suggestions or topics that might be of interest to the members, please send them to us by e-mail through our contact form.
We wish you a lot of enjoyment and gain a lot of information while reading it
Michael Jursch
Chairman of the board
From the board
Make a note of the date!
Next General Meeting on 14 and 15 June 2018 in Berlin, Offices of TIV - Trailer Industrie Verband e. V., Europaplatz 2, 10557 Berlin
The invitation with the agenda and documents will be issued in due course. Among other things, the topic of the “Further Development of the TIV as a European Umbrella Organisation” will be discussed at the General Meeting and, if necessary, resolutions will be passed concerning this, and we will report on this in future newslettern.
Amendment to the articles of association
Membership of foreign associations in the TIV
For the membership of foreign associations in the TIV, we have prepared an amendment to the articles of associ- ation with the notary public Mr Henn, which will be put to the vote at the 2018 General Meeting.
Board currently consisting of two members
Personnel matters
Much to our regret, our Board member Gunnar Bregler retired from the TIV Board at the end of the year. We wish him all the best and would like to thank him for his excellent work for the association. In accordance with the articles of association the remaining board members will act on behalf of the association (Dr. Meyer, Mr Jursch) until the new election of the board at the 2018 Annual General Meeting.
News from Berlin
Success: Driving licence and trailer
TIV has launched a successful development
After the parliamentary breakfast of representatives of the TIV with members of the Federal Transport Committee on the subject of driving licence and trailer classes, we are pleased that we have seemingly managed to kick-start the matter.
The Parliamentary State Secretary at the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure Dorothee Bär replied to the board by stating: “that the European Commission is currently evaluating the ... so-called 3rd EU Driving Licence Directive: In this context, the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure is working to ensure vis-à-vis the Commission that European driving licence law is regulated... in a more comprehensible and practice-oriented manner. An important aspect is also the scope of the individual licence classes. ...”
In addition, MdB (Member of the German Bundestag) Dr. Anja Weisgerber (CSU) wrote the following to us: “I would like to inform you that the EU Commission is expected to submit a new proposal on the EU Driving Licence Directive in 2023. The politicians responsible for transport in the European Parliament also estimate that the difficulties with the driving licence classes and the possibility of improving the maximum weight will be addressed.”
News from Brussels
European Union
Information from our Brussels TIV office
Summit meeting of the TIV planned at the European Parliament
In co-operation with the Brussels office of the Vice- Chairman of the Committee on Transport and Tourism (TRAN), Dieter-Lebrecht Koch from Altenburg (CDU / EPP), a summit meeting between the TIV Executive Board and representatives of the European institutions in the European Parliament has been scheduled to discuss technical and regulatory issues. The meeting should take place in April.
Meeting with the ECF Secretary General
A meeting was held with ECF General Secretary Jost Krüger in Brussels in January. He feels the time window for an own trailer driving licence is currently closed, but is not dissatisfied with the solution found by B96.
According to him, the Commission is well aware that there is also private use above the usual 3.5 tonne boundary (up to around 5 to 7 tonnes), but there seems to be no pressure to act in this regard at a European level.
Source: European Commission
Heavy Duty Vehicles: CO 2 emissions and fuel consumption
On 24 January 2018, the Environmental Committee voted on its report on the Commission‘s proposal of 31 March 2017 for a Regulation on the monitoring and reporting of CO2 emissions and fuel consumption of new heavy duty vehicles (HDV). In 2014, greenhouse gas emissions from HDVs accounted for 5 per cent of total EU emissions, a fifth of all emissions in the transport sector and about a quarter of road emissions.
The reporter, Damiano Zoffoli (I / S & D), welcomed the Commission‘s legislative proposal, calling for a timetable for the application of the Vehicle Energy Consumption Calculation Tool (VECTO) software to the HDVs that are not yet covered and a CO2 emissions test for the road, which would be carried out under the supervision of independent bodies. He emphasised the importance of creating a fully transparent market by closing existing information gaps and enabling buyers to make more well informed decisions. The draft report proposes to apply administrative sanctions if irregularities or discrepancies are detected.
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/DE/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:52017PC0279&from=EN
http://www.emeeting.europarl.europa.eu/committees/agenda/201801/ENVI/ENVI
Service for TIV members
Caution, toll road!
The truck toll from 1 July 2018 on federal roads - information on request
The toll shall also apply on federal highways for lorries with a gross vehicle weight of more than 7.5 tonnes from 1 July 2018 onwards. Approximately 150,000 vehicles in Germany will need to be equipped with a toll logging device for the first time. The amount of the toll depends on the emission class, the number of axles and the length of the route travelled.
Many questions arise for members of the association with their own truck fleet, such as “How to register with the toll operator?”, “What is an OBU and do I need it?”, “What costs should I expect?”, “How does the toll billing work?”, “How and within which deadlines do I document trips correctly?”, and “How can the toll burden be reduced by subsidies?”
Members of the TIV can obtain free information material from the SVG Bundes-Zentralgenossen- schaft Straßenverkehr eG (SVG Federal Association of Road Carriers) Frankfurt / Main. If you are interested, please contact the SVG or the TIV office through contact form.
From the field of technology
24/25 April: TIV meets up with the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure
The Automotive Technology Expert Committee of the FMTDI will be holding a meeting
at the invitation of the TIV in Dresden
At the meeting of the Automotive Technology Technical Committee of the FMTDI, we will be addressing the topics that are relevant to us (including the breakaway cable, coupling heights). Dr. Meyer and Mr Jursch will be participating on behalf of TIV.
TIV visits TÜV Nord
Standardisation of O1 and O2 plugs as well as problems with equip- ping trailers with LED lighting.
On 28 November Matthias Kieslich (TIV chassis working group, clutch, 100 km/h, employee of STEMA Metalleichtbau) and Erwin Steiner (ASPÖCK Systems) visited the “Lighting equipment on motor vehicles” FKT automotive technology technical committee of the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure, to address some urgent technical problems that concern the members of the TIV Trailer Industrie Verband e.V.
Presentation
In a brief presentation they outlined the work of the TIV, its members, characteristics and the motivation behind the foundation of the association. Particular attention was paid to the objectives of the TIV, such as new regulations or re- visions of technical requirements for O1 and O2 vehicles in the electrics, brake and clutch sectors. It was also possibly to clearly demonstrate that applicable statutory provisions, such as the approval problem in relation to the 100 km/h regulation for O1 and O2 vehicles, require urgent revision and Europe-wide harmonisation. Running in parallel with the upheaval in the automotive industry involving the reassessment of drive concepts, in particular electromobi- lity, it was successfully demonstrated that the “car trailer” connection has to be reconsidered. The topics of “driving licence regulation and insurance” (in accidents with trailer wagons) were touched upon.
Standardisation of the O1 7 pin plug and the O2 13 pin plug
In particular, the problem of the different plugs was addressed. There had already been activities in relation to this on the part of the FKT in the past. At the time, the goal was formulated of implementing the plug within the ECE R 48. The discussion on this topic was already very advanced at the time at FKT, but unfortunately without any changes being incorporated into the legislation. At the meeting, the FKT representatives agreed to critically review the work status and to put this item back on the agenda.
Equipment of O1 and O2 vehicles with LED lighting
It was also possible to intensively discuss another problem at the meeting: In the course of equipping O1 and O2 vehicles with LED lighting, increasingly severe error messages have been arising in the control units of towing vehicles. The reason for this is the absence of a standar- dised interface between the towing vehicle and the trailer. To counter this, many luminaire manufacturers install a “black box” in the trailer‘s wiring harness, which uses resistors to correct the lower consumption levels of the LED lights (3 W instead of 21 W). The heat that builds up in the resistors or in the black box is considerable, and thus temperatures arise of up to 130 °C. In addition, a failure of the LED lighting on the trailer is not displayed on the towing vehicle, and this is not in accordance with the law.
The FKT has also recognised this problem, but has been told that no quick fix is yet in sight. It was recalled that the English SMMT association had dealt with this topic. Unfortunately, no agreement was successfully reached there that would have found expression in a correspon- ding legal guideline. As a result of the meeting, the FKT has pledged to contact the English SMMT association to find out what the current situation is in relation to LED lighting on O1 and O2 vehicles and to also continue to work on the topic themselves. Mr Steiner will also make this topic public and put it on the agenda at the Fachver- band für Verkehr (Association of Transport) in Austria. Accompanied by these efforts, the TIV will then also present the problem to GRE in Brussels.
FKT technical committee on brake systems on 16 January
General use of the self-adjusting brake for O2 vehicles
The TIV Trailer Industrie Verband e. V. was represented by Matthias Kieslich (TIV chassis, cluth work group, 100 km/h) on 16 January at the meeting of the technical committee on brake systems at TÜV Süd in Munich-Garching. At the initiative of Mr. Westphäling, TÜV representatives from TÜV Süd, as well as representatives of TÜV and renowned vehicle and brake manufacturers, discussed the general use of self-adjusting brakes for O2 vehicles here. The agenda of the consultation included many requests and tasks and test cycles in the brake field for the vehicle classes O3, O4, M1, N1 etc. The reasoning behind a man- datory statutory introduction of the new self-adjusting O2 brake was explained in several points.
In the discussion, Mr Kieslich presented the arguments to the technical committee:
- Due to the constant response of the brake, the wear of the brake pads is significantly greater than with the current brake.
- In the case of double-axle units and unequal weight distribution the axle may brake excessively.
- This brake makes the axle 10–15 % more expensive, depending on the axle design.
- Each shoe brake must be ground in.
- A fter grinding in the brake shoes against the brake drum a homogeneous system results in the brake. During the brake shoe / brake drum adjustment process, there is an increase in the brake play, which inevitably leads to an extension of the preload displacement at the brake linkage. This must be corrected manually after 50–500 km by manual adjustment of the brake play at the brake linkage. If this correction is not performed, there is a delayed response time of the brake on the trailer opposite the towing vehicle. Up to 10 m of the braking distance is “conceded” until the full effective- ness of the brake is achieved.
- In the case of new cars, the brakes are designed with larger and more effective dimensions, so maximum braking decelerations of 8 m/s2 are currently all the rage in the mid-range and high-end SUV range. These enormous braking delays have the effect that in the event of emergency stop of the towing vehicle and an unadjusted brake system on the trailer this crashes into the vehicle almost without braking and thus puts a massive strain upon the traction device of the car. The consequence of this is that the pulling device is literally torn out of the rear of the vehicle or the fastening elements are torn off. It has been proven that brakes that have been improperly set have already led to accidents in Belgium and Germany.
- With an automatically adjustable brake, the critical condition described above is avoided. A distance that is always constant between the brake shoe and brake drum would ensure optimum brake response at each braking event.
The technical committee concluded in its discussions that the availability of the automatically adjustable brake is ensured by three major German manufacturers. The TIV e. V. was asked to draw up an agreed technical opinion on the self-adjusting brake in order to give rise to a new European legal provision.
Mr Pehle and Mr Adam from the Brake Technical Committee indicated that the CLCCR body in Geneva was the ideal working group to ensure European legislative changes.
In a presentation, the association together with its members presented the thematic working groups and the activities performed to date to the Brake Technical Com- mittee. Furthermore, the reasons behind the foundation of the Trailer Industrie Verband as well as the objectives of the association were explained. The presentation of the TIV was made available to the members of the technical committee.
From the working groups
Electromobility
We are looking to recruit new members for the TIV working group
The electromobility working group is working on an exciting task area. It follows new develop- ments in the field of private transport and produces future concepts for our industry. There are thus, for instance, working contacts with FSD Radeberg for the development of a standardised interface between trailers and electric cars. Mr Jursch will report on this at the next General Meeting. Likewise, Mr Jursch will make of use of the 20th Technical Congress of the Association of the German Autotive Indstry (VDA) (27 to 28 February 2018) to discuss the issue with car manufacturers.
Up to now the working group consisted of the head of the working group Mr Winterhoff, Mr Bregler and Mr Jursch. Unfortunately, Mr Winterhoff and Mr Bregler are no longer available for the working group due to in-house changes. As a result the board is now looking to appoint new members who are open to the notion of cooperating in the future of electromobility.
Chassis, clutch / 100 km/h
Breakaway cable of O1 and O2 vehicles
After the topic has been submitted to TIV by the German Association of Driving Instructors, the Chassis, Clutch / 100 km/h working group of the TIV will form an opinion on it and put it up for discussion at the forthcoming General Meeting. Following an amendment resolution or adoption of a resolution, the Executive Board will thus contact the Transport Committee of the European Parliament and request a corresponding uniform regulation.
Current EU transport policy
Car toll in Germany
The Netherlands will also be supporting the action brought by Austria before the ECJ against the German car toll
On 13 December 2017, the Netherlands stated that it would also be supporting Austria’s action before the European Court of Justice (C-591/17) of 12.10.2017 against the introduction of an infrastructure tax on the German public road network (“car toll”) (ER 17/17 ). According to the Netherlands, the planned car toll would discriminate against foreign drivers and hinder the flow of traffic. Annually an estimated 22 million journeys are made to Germany from the Nether- lands, which could lead to between € 60 and € 100 million a year at the expense of Dutch motorists when the German toll system is introduced.
The Commission had closed its infringement procedure against Germany on 17 May 2017 after Germany adapted the toll regulations (ER 09/17). The proceedings before the ECJ can take up to two years. The action brought by Austria and the Netherlands has no suspensive effect, meaning Germany can continue to announce the toll system and the toll obligation can then enter into force in 2019.
Notice of the ECJ in the case C-591/07 Austria/Germany:
http://curia.europa.eu/juris/document/document.jsf?text=&docid=197110&pageIndex=0&doclang=DE&mode=req&dir=& occ=first&part=1&cid=685134
Press release of the Commission dated 17 May 2017:
http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_MEMO-17-1280_de.htm
Source: Europa-Bericht (European Report) of the Bavarian State Representation in Brussels
Concerning the legality of Uber
ECJ passes judgement on the classification of services rendered by Uber
By means of the judgment of 20 December 2017, the ECJ issued a judgement in the preliminary ruling proceedings C-434/15 Asociación Profesional Elite Taxi versus Uber Systems Spain SL on the referring court‘s question whether the services provided by the Uber platform as “infor- mation society services” as defined by Directive 98/34 / EC shall be governed by the principle of freedom to provide services or whether they are governed by the law of the Member States Transport sector (Article 2 paragraph 2 (d) of Directive 2006/123 / EC). In the former case, the licences and authorisations required by the Regulation on Taxi Services by the City of Barcelona for the operation of Uber may be incompatible with the principle of freedom to provide services, whereas in the latter case Member States would in principle be free to regulate Uber‘s activities.
In this particular case, the Asociación Profesional Elite Taxi, a taxi driver association in Barcelona, filed an injuncti- on against Uber Systems Spain in the Barcelona No 3 Commercial Court. It is of the opinion that Uber engages in unfair competition because neither Uber nor the private persons who offer to transport people with their own cars using the „Uber Pop“ service should be in possession of the necessary licences and permits in accordance with the Taxi Regulation of the Barcelona Transport Association.
Uber, on the other hand, claims that the company does not offer any transport services that are subject to authori- sation but instead licence-free services of the information society.
The ECJ ruled in its decision that an intermediation service such as Uber, the purpose of which is to connect, by means of a smartphone application and for remuneration, non- professional drivers using their own vehicles with persons who wish to make urban journeys, is to be classified as a ‘service in the field of transport’ within the meaning of Union Law (Article 58 (1) TFEU and Article 2 (2) (d) of Directive 2006/123). Such a service should therefore be excluded from the scope of the freedom to provide services in general and from the Directive on services in the internal market and the e-commerce Directive, so that the Member States can regulate the conditions under which that service is provided “Uber Pop” is also the subject of a reference for a preliminary ruling from France: C 320/16 Uber France.
To this end in his opinion Advocate General Szpunar argued that Member States could prohibit and criminalise unlawful conduct of transport activities via the ‚Uber Pop‘ service without first informing the Commission of the draft law; a verdict date is still pending. In addition, in May 2017, the German Federal Court of Justice referred questions to the ECJ about the admissibility of the rental car app “UBER Black” (C-371/17, Uber); no hearing date has been specified here either.
Press release of the ECJ on the judgment of 20 December 2017:
https://curia.europa.eu/jcms/upload/docs/application/pdf/2017-12/cp170136de.pdf
Press release of the ECJ on the opinions of the Advocate-General:
https://curia.europa.eu/jcms/upload/docs/application/pdf/2017-05/cp170050de.pdf
Press release of the German Federal Court of Justice (BGH) concerning the proceedings C-371/17:
http://juris.bundesgerichtshof.de/cgi-bin/rechtsprechung/document.py?Gericht=bgh&Art=pm&Datum=2017-5&n%ADr=78342&pos=7&anz=25
Directive 2006/123/EC:
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2006:376:0036:0068:de:PDF
PDF-Downloadpublished on 28.02.2018 - editorial office: blaurock markenkommunikation