Motor vehicles and trailers: masses and dimensions

The common position of the Council, in keeping with the spirit of Parliament's first-reading amendments, incorporates, with respect to vehicle dimensions, references to the values set in Directive 96/53/EC. It also takes account, for purposes of vehicle type-approval, of the exemptions provided for by that Directive. Regarding masses, the common position creates an evolutive framework enabling harmonized masses to be incorporated once they have been fixed under Directive 96/53/EC. The framework in question is Annex IV, which introduces a uniform procedure for determining registration-in-service maximum permissible mass in each Member State. The procedure is to serve for determining not only the maximum mass of the laden vehicle but also the maximum mass on the axle, the maximum towable mass, and the maximum laden mass of a tractor-trailer combination. The Directive's technical aspects, notably mass distribution calculations and the procedures concerning incomplete vehicles, are the result of adaptation. In addition, all technical concepts relating to masses and dimensions have been clarified. Finally, the Council identified five features which ought to be covered by masses-and-dimensions legislation, but require closer examination. These features are listed in a statement inviting the Commission to carry out such examination within the Committee for adaptation to technical progress. �