The proposed changes to the Weight and Dimensions’ Directive, seen by EurActiv, will allow for longer cabins and enable smarter design of the lorry front, with a round, deflecting nose and a crash box or crumple zone.
This improves the aerodynamics of the lorry and avoids accidents. A better driver vision will reduce the impact of frontal crashes and help prevent pedestrians and cyclists from being overrun in the event of an accident.
The previous European law on lorry sizes forced the front end of European lorry cabins to be blunt. This made them inefficient and dangerous, the NGOs European Federation of Road Traffic Victims (FEVR) and Transport and Environment stated.
The new changes can save the lives of hundreds of cyclists, pedestrians and car drivers as well as billions of litres of diesel every year, FEVR and T&E said.
"Lorries have an infamous reputation when it comes to road safety, and rightly so," president of FEVR Jeannot Mersch said.
"Currently, a frontal crash with a lorry is like hitting a brick wall. Design changes to the nose of the lorry cab will help to reduce severe injuries and save hundreds of lives each year. These improvements should be mandated for all lorries as soon as possible," he added.
The aluminium industry agreed that a new improved design can make a real difference in terms of safety.
"Allowing a smarter truck cabin design enables truck manufacturers to make cabins both safer and more aerodynamic," said Gerd Götz, director general of the European Aluminium Association (EAA).
Wasted fuel
Lorries represent 3% of the vehicle fleet but cause 25% of road transport emissions and are involved in 18% of fatal crashes, which kill approximately 7,000 people annually.
A rounder lorry front could reduce air resistance by 12% and improve fuel economy by 3-5% – which at today’s fuel prices would save drivers €1,500 per lorry per year. This improved fuel economy translates to about 5 million tonnes of carbon emissions savings.
William Todts, a policy officer at Transport and Environment, said European lorries have been stuck in the past and this is costing Europe billions of euros in wasted fuel.
"The proposal is a small step towards freight transport fit for the 21st century,” Todts stated.
EAA Director General Götz added that aluminium is an essential enabler to provide innovative solutions and assist the EU in pursuing its goals.
“This is particularly true in the transport sector where aluminium can increase the vehicles’ safety, on top of the well-known light weighting potential, one of the most straightforward ways to reduce energy consumption and emissions,” Götz said.
