EFAS

The implementation of EU legislation

The European Commission passed a resolution that all commercial vehicles weighing over 3.5 tons and buses with more than 8 seats registered after May 01, 2006 are to be fitted with a digital tachograph.

Requirements

The digital tachograph is an electronic system that captures, records and stores information on the time that the driver and co-driver of a goods vehicle spend driving, working, resting, and on standby. The control device stores the activity-related data of the driver onto the driver's smartcard. Vehicle-related data including speed, distance driven, vehicle mileage, etc. is saved to the mass memory.

Legal basis

The legal basis for the introduction and utilization of the digital tachograph is Regulation (EC) no. 2135/98 of 24th September 1998. Although there is no obligation to upgrade vehicles that are already registered, the driver and vehicle owner are well advised to modify their vehicles as soon as possible. Not only do digital tachographs save large amounts of time regarding data capture and processing, they also enable the exact and complete recording of legally required information. Unlike conventional analog tachographs, they cannot be manipulated and they are highly reliable.