Regulation on the new digital tachograph specifications

The Regulation on the new digital tachograph specifications has been published last 27^th of May. The tachograph is a device that records the driving time, breaks, rest periods as well as periods of other work undertaken by a driver.

This new REGULATION (EU) 2016/799 implements the previous Regulation (EU) N.165/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council and lays down the requirements for the construction, testing, installation, operation and repair of tachographs and their components. It defines also the remote early detection facility that shall transmits the weight data provided by an internal on-board weighing system, for the purpose of early fraud detection. Moreover, the regulation determines the provisions necessary for the uniform application of the following aspects regarding tachographs:

• recording of the position of the vehicle at certain points during the daily working period of the driver;
• remote early detection of possible manipulation or misuse of smart tachographs;
• interface with intelligent transport systems;
• the administrative and technical requirements for the type-approval procedures of tachographs, including the security mechanisms.

The previous Council Regulation (EU) N° 165/2014 on recording equipment in road transport provided the basis for the tachograph. This aimed at helping to enforce the rules on driving times and rest periods and monitor the driving times of professional drivers in order to prevent fatigue, and guarantee fair competition and road safety.

Since 2006, tachographs are digital, which allows a more secure and accurate recording and storage of data than the previous analogue tachograph. This device records all the vehicle’s activities, for example distance, speed and driving times and rest periods of the driver. The system includes a printer for use in road side inspections and the driver has a card incorporating a microchip, which the driver must insert into the tachograph when taking control of the vehicle. This personal driver card ensures that inspections remain simple.