A blanket rollout of European HGV safety standards without modifying them for the UK market could weaken the high standards already in place in our country, Brigade Electronics has warned.
The CV safety solutions firm has urged the government to ensure that any implementation of General Safety Regulation 2 (GSR 2) strengthens rather than compromises the UK’s position as a world leader in vehicle safety standards.
It said the country already set the benchmark for lorry safety best practice, with standards such as CLOCS, Crossrail and FORS; in addition, the introduction of the DVS in London had been widely praised internationally.
But Brigade said these achievements could be undermined through the wholesale adoption of GSR 2 unless they were adapted to UK market strengths first.
The UK government is proposing to mandate many of the GSR2 safety technologies for manufacturers seeking GB type approval and is currently consulting on the plans.
It proposes manufacturers seeking GB type approval for mass-produced vehicles to equip them with a series of safety features.
The department for transport said that although the country had one of the best road safety records globally, progress in reducing the number people killed or seriously injured had slowed since 2010.
In its response, Brigade said it fully supported the ambition of zero fatality on the roads, but it also highlighted how OEM-led, factory-fit solutions can lag behind the pace of technological innovation.
It instead advocated that compliance with the regulations should be required at the point of vehicle registration instead.
“Vehicle development and production cycles often take years, meaning systems fitted at manufacture may already be outdated by the time vehicles enter service,” the company said.
“This was clearly demonstrated during DVS phase 2, where factory-fitted GSR-compliant systems permitted detection gaps of up to 0.9 metres along the vehicle side and 0.8 metres at the front – areas large enough to obscure vulnerable road users such as pedestrians and cyclists.”
Emily Hardy, international marketing and regulations manager at Brigade, added: “Mandating fitment at the factory level risks locking in older technologies and limiting the effectiveness of safety systems on UK roads.
“Additionally, a registration-based approach would provide UK-based multi-stage vehicle builders and vehicle converters with type approval the opportunity to compete fairly in supplying and installing safety technologies.
“Mandating factory fitment risks shifting significant volumes of business to original equipment manufacturers based in Europe, impacting the UK economy and reducing competition and innovation among domestic component suppliers.”
The consultation is open until 11 May and can be found here
