EU Mandates Eight New Safety Features for Trucks and Buses from July 2024
The EU's General Safety Regulation (GSR) requires all new trucks and buses registered from July 2024 to be equipped with eight mandatory automatic driver assistance safety features.
All new trucks and buses registered in the European Union will be required to comply with the General Safety Regulation (GSR) from July 2024. This regulation is part of the EU's "Vision Zero" initiative, aiming to achieve zero road fatalities and serious injuries by 2050.
The GSR mandates eight specific automatic driver assistance systems for all new vehicle registrations starting July 2024. These features include emergency stop signals, tire pressure monitoring systems, blind spot information systems, reversing information systems, moving off information systems, alcohol interlock facilitation, driver drowsiness and inattention warnings, and intelligent speed assistance.
Scania stated that most of these required safety technologies are already established in their vehicles, ensuring compliance for all new trucks and buses sold from the deadline. The company emphasizes its commitment to "smart and safe" transport solutions.
The regulation aims to address the high number of road accidents in the EU, where heavy vehicles were involved in approximately 14% of the nearly 20,000 fatal accidents in 2021. Human error is cited as a primary cause in up to 90% of accidents, with rear-end collisions and incidents involving cyclists and pedestrians being common.
The GSR also makes provisions for three additional mandatory safety functions to be installed in 2026 and 2029, with Scania indicating ongoing development to meet these future requirements.