EU THIRD DRIVING LICENCE DIRECTIVE THE MOTORCYCLE COMMUNITY MEETS THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
23 December 2004 - Federation of European Motorcyclists' Associations

The European Commission proposal for a recasting of the driving licence directive is presently being addressed in the European Parliament. In view of the vote in the Transport Committee (19th of January), the Motorcycle Community has been meeting MEPs and making representations in order to improve the Commission proposal.

The recasting of the driving licence directive is a subject very close to the European citizen, as it deals with issues related to people’s safety and mobility. In recognition of the important implications for the motorcycle sector, FEMA, FIM (Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme) and ACEM (the Motorcycle Industry in Europe) have decided to work in partnership and jointly make representations as ''the Motorcycle Community'' during the discussions in the European Parliament.

Whilst the Motorcycle Community broadly agrees with the spirit of the European Commission proposal, it believes that the Powered Two-Wheeler part of the proposal can be further improved and that any position in the discussions should be taken on the basis of scientific information. To that end, a position paper based on the findings of MAIDS (Motorcycle Accidents In-Depth Study, a study on motorcycle safety carried out in five EU countries by independent research teams and co-funded by the European Commission), was presented to the Members of the European Parliament (MEPs). Since September, several meetings were organised with Rapporteur Belgian MEP Mathieu Grosch and other MEPs sitting in the Transport Committee. The Motorcycle Community also attended a Hearing on Driving Licences organised in the European Parliament.

The deadline for amendments to the Commission proposal has now expired and FEMA would like to thank the MEPs who recognised the arguments put forward by the Motorcycle Community and tabled amendments to that end. In view of the vote in the Transport Committee on the 19th of January, FEMA, FIM and ACEM will seek to rally further support for these amendments, with the objective of reaching a result achieving the right balance between safety, mobility and accessibility of Powered-Two Wheelers.

When asked to comment on this issue, FEMA Secretary General Antonio Perlot said: ''FEMA supports the establishment of a balanced stepped approach to Powered-Two Wheelers, as long as this is based on reliable information and taking into account all aspects related to motorcycle safety. Rather than looking for quick-fixes by unreasonably limiting access to these vehicles, devising a better access to Powered Two-Wheelers means focussing on the relevance of experience rather than age, and on the quality of a cost-effective initial rider training. FEMA is committed to that objective through the Initial Rider Training project.''

www.fema.ridersrights.org

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