In a “memorandum of defense”, that The Parisian was able to consult, addressed to the litigation section of the Council of State, the Ministry of Ecological Transition justifies its wish not to adopt the measure before January 2023.
While the Council of State ruled in mid-May that the technical control of two-wheelers over 125 cm3 should be set up at 1er next October in France, the government replies that an additional delay would be appropriate.
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As a reminder, faced with the obligation made by Europe to impose this new measure no later than 1er January 2022, France is already late. A decree was published last August indicating that this constraint would come into force on 1er January 2023, even if this deviates from the European calendar. But faced with the rebellion of biker associations, the Ministry of Transport had announced the suspension of this measure, until further notice, arguing that “it is not the priority of the ministry”. This same ministry then announced the implementation of alternative measures to meet the objectives targeted by the technical control, but no decree listing these measures has been published. This is what the Council of State criticized the government for, considering that it is now time for the French government to respect European law.
In a “defense memory“, that The Parisian was able to consult, addressed on June 1 to the litigation section of the Council of State, the director of legal affairs of the Ministry of Ecological Transition justifies the government’s wish not to adopt this measure, for the moment.
Alternative measures
“Derogation from this obligation is permitted when the Member State has put in place alternative road safety measures“allowing to reduce the mortality of two-wheelers, he writes while affirming that the government notified the European Commission, in December 2021, of a series of provisions going in this direction.
The letter cites, as an example, a new theoretical test of the motorcycle license which “insists in particular on the maintenance of the vehicle, the checkpoints to be carried out regularly and the risks of accidents incurred in the event of poor maintenance“. Among this series of provisions, the new obligation to wear gloves for motorcyclists, experimentation with sound radars making it possible to verbalize the noisiest two-wheelers and the establishment of new, more drastic standards in terms of polluting emissions are also cited in this eight-page letter.
“France is not the only country concerned by the implementation of alternative measures to technical control. Finland, Ireland and the Netherlands have thus indicated that they have no intention of introducing technical inspection and are sticking to alternative measures, which are quite similar to those adopted in France.“, argues the senior official.
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The director of legal affairs of the Ministry of Ecological Transition highlights that a few additional months are necessary before the application of this measure. “An entry into force on January 1, 2023 of the contested decree would make it fully effective by leaving the time necessary for the various technical control centers to train and adapt to the new regulations.“, he says.