belgian road safety institute cara department bioptic telescope international bioptic driving...

Belgian Road Safety Institute

CARA Department

BiOptic Telescope

International BiOptic Driving Conference18-20 June 2004, London

EU Driver’s Licence

and


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Belgisch Instituut voor de Verkeersveiligheid vzw

Afdeling CARA

Mark TantG. Baten


CARA Department


CARA Department

The term "Brussels" is often used in the media to refer to the EU institutions, most of which are located in the city of Brussels.

There are 5 EU institutions, each playing a specific role:the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union, the European Commission, the Court of Justice, and the Court of Auditors.

"Brussels has

decided…"


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the European Parliament, which represents the EU's citizens and is directly elected by them;

the Council of the European Union, which represents the governments of the individual member states;

the European Commission, which is the driving force and executive body.

The EU's decision-making process involves 3 main institutions:


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The Commission's staff is organised into 36 departments, known as "Directorates-General" (DGs) and "services" (such as the Legal Service).

Each DG is responsible for a particular policy area and is headed by a Director-General who is answerable to one of the commissioners.

The Directorate-General for Energy and Transport, reports to Loyola de Palacio, Vice-President of the European Commission. The Directorate-General is made up of some 1000 officials, and is headed by François Lamoureux, Director-General.


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Transport sectors Rail transport

Air transport

Maritime transport

Inland waterways

Intermodal transport

Logistics

Clean urban transport

Transport infrastructure charging policy

Road transport

Driving licence

Community Road accident data base (CARE)

European road safety charter: “White Paper”, reducing the

number of fatalities by 50%, by the year 2010.


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The legislative acts of the European Union (EU) can have different forms:

regulations, directives, decisions, recommendations and opinions.

A directive fixes the objectives to be pursued by the EU member states , but leaves freedom of choice for the ways of obtaining them (maintaining an obligation to achieve the result):

"A directive shall be binding, as to the result to be achieved, upon each Member State to which it is addressed, but shall leave to the national authorities the choice of form and methods." (art. 249 ex.189).


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COUNCIL DIRECTIVE

of 29 July 1991

on driving licences

(91/439/EEC)Amended by:

Council Directive 94/72/EC of 19 December 1994

Council Directive 96/47/EC of 23 July 1996

Council Directive 97/26/EC of 2 June 1997

Commission Directive 2000/56/EC of 14 September 2000

Amended by:

Act of Accession of Austria, Sweden and Finland C 241 21 29.8.1994

(adapted by Council Decision 95/1/EC, Euratom, ECSC) L 1 1 1.1.1995

Corrected by:

Corrigendum, OJ L 310, 12.11.1991, p. 16 (91/439/EEC)


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Article 7

1. Driving licences shall, moreover, be issued only to those applicants:

(a) who have passed a test of skills and behaviour and a theoretical test and who meet medical standards, in accordance with the provisions of Annexes II and III;

3. Member States may, with the agreement of the Commission, derogate from the provisions of Annex III where such derogations are compatible with the development of medical science and with the principles laid down in that Annex.


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ANNEX I

PROVISIONS CONCERNING THE COMMUNITY MODEL DRIVING LICENCE

specifications on:

colour, number of pages, languages, personal information, (sub)categories of vehicle(s), codes, serious offences etc.

codes:

1 - 99: Harmonized Community Codes

> 100: National Codes valid only for driving in the territory of the State which issued the licence


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Belgian Driving Licence


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DRIVER (Medical reasons)

01. Sight correction and/or protection

01.01 Glasses

01.02 Contact lens(es)

01.03 Protective glass

01.04 Opaque lens

01.05 Eye cover

01.06 Glasses or contact lenses

codes:



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05. Limited use

05.01 Limited to day time journeys (for example: one hour after sunrise and one hour before sunset)

05.02 Limited to journeys within a radius of… km from holder's place of residence or only inside city/region…

05.03 Driving without passengers

05.04 Limited to journeys with a speed not greater than… km/h

05.05 Driving authorised solely when accompanied by a holder of a driving licence

05.06 Without trailer

05.07 No driving on motorways

05.08 No alcohol

codes:



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ANNEX II

I. MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS FOR DRIVING TESTS

Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that applicants for driving licences possess the knowledge and skills and exhibit the behaviour required for driving a motor vehicle. The tests introduced to this effect must consist of:

a theory test, and then

a test of skills and behaviour

II. KNOWLEDGE, SKILL AND BEHAVIOUR FOR DRIVING A POWER-DRIVEN VEHICLE


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ANNEX III

MINIMUM STANDARDS OF PHYSICAL AND MENTAL FITNESS FOR DRIVING A POWER-DRIVEN VEHICLE


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Definitions Neurological Diseases

Medical examinations Mental Disorders

Sight Alcohol

Hearing Drugs and Medicinal Products

Locomotor disability Renal Disorders

Cardiovascular disease Miscellaneous Provisions

Diabetes Mellitus

ANNEX III: Structure:


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Definitions

ANNEX III

Group 1

Group 2

Medical examinations

3. applicants shall be required to undergo a medical examination if it becomes apparent, when the necessary formalities are being completed or during the tests which they have to undergo prior to obtaining a driving licence, that they have one or more of the medical disabilities mentioned in this Annex.

5. The standards set by Member States for the issue or any subsequent renewal of driving licences may be stricter than those set out in this Annex.


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Sight6. All applicants for a driving licence shall undergo an

appropriate investigation to ensure that they have adequate visual acuity for driving powerdriven vehicles. Where there is reason to doubt that the applicant's vision is adequate, he shall be examined by a competent medical authority. At this examination attention shall be paid the following in particular: visual acuity, field of vision, twilight vision and progressive eye diseases.

For the purpose of this Annex, intra-ocular lenses shall not be considered corrective lenses.


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Sight6.1. Applicants for a driving licence or for the renewal of such

a licence shall have a binocular visual acuity, with corrective lenses if necessary, of at least 0,5 when using both eyes together. Driving licences shall not be issued or renewed if, during the medical examination, it is shown that the horizontal field of vision is less than 120º, apart from exceptional cases duly justified by a favourable medical opinion and a positive practical test, or that the person concerned suffers from any other eye condition that would compromise safe driving. When a progressive eye disease is detected or declared, driving licences may be issued or renewed subject to the applicant undergoing regular examination by a competent medical authority.


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Sight6.2. Applicants for a driving licence, or for the renewal of such

a licence, who have total functional loss of vision in one eye or who use only one eye (e.g. in the case of diplopia) must have a visual acuity of at least 0,6, with corrective lenses if necessary. The competent medical authority must certify that this condition of monocular vision has existed sufficiently long to allow adaptation and that the field of vision in this eye is normal.


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Miscellaneous Provisions17.1. Subject to authorized medical opinion and, if necessary,

regular medical check-ups, driving licences may be issued to or renewed for applications or drivers who have had an organ transplant or an artificial implant which affects the ability to drive.


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Comitology:

Also known as "committee procedure". It describes a process in which the Commission, when implementing EU law, has to consult special advisory committees made up of experts from the EU countries.

Article 7b (Council Directive 91/439/EEC)

1. The Commission shall be assisted by a committee on driving licences, hereinafter referred to as ‘the committee’, composed of the representatives of the Member States and chaired by the representative of the Commission.

Article 7a (Council Directive 91/439/EEC)

2. The amendments necessary to adapt the parts of Annexes I and Ia which concern the harmonized codes and Annexes II and III to scientific and technical progress shall be adopted in accordance with the procedures laid down in Article 7b.


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Questions - Suggestions (1)

Find out about the Driving Licence Committee and Vision Expert Group (Art. 7b.1)

relevant: Art. 7.1.a: medical standards

Art. 7.3: development of Medical Science

Art. 7a.2: Scientific and Technical Progress


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Can BiOptic be incorporated into Harmonized Community Codes?:

01.01 BiOptic = glasses?

05 Does BiOptic driving entail limited use?

Can BiOptic be incorporated into National Codes? (MS can be stricter!)


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Define and Argument (Annex III: par. 6: Sight)

effect on: Visual Acuity (VA)

Field of Vision (VF)

Twilight Vision

relation to Progressive Eye Diseases


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Define and Argument (Annex III: par. 6.1)

How BiOptic provides VA 0.5 binoc

Is it a corrective lens?

Horizontal field: if changed: when, how and how important?

VF measurement with or without BiOptic

VF measurement during BiOptic use?


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Favourable medical opinion: who

criteria

Positive Practical test: who

criteria


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Is ‘BiOptic’ vision ‘Monocular’ Vision?

Again ‘field of vision’ issue

(Annex III: par. 17.1)

What if BiOptic would be intra-ocular (artificial implant)?


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Questions - Suggestions (final)

Define and Argument

… and HOPE …

no promises

no guarantees


CARA Department


CARA department

Haachtsesteenweg 1405

1130 Brussels

Belgium

[email protected]

belgian road safety institute cara department bioptic telescope international bioptic driving...

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