“Road transport in the EU has shown great commitment and speed in retrofitting vehicles with the second-generation smart tachograph,” the IRU highlights in a post on LinkedIn.
However, the organisation points out that between 10 and 15 per cent of commercial vehicles will not be equipped with the required equipment by the deadline of 31 December 2024, which will result in their temporary exclusion from the EU transport market.
“This would cause serious disruption to hauliers’ operations for several months,” the IRU emphasises.
The organisation has therefore appealed to Apostolos Tzitzikostas, EU Commissioner for Sustainable Transport and Tourism, to urge EU Member States to grant a three-month grace period for hauliers who fail to replace their tachographs with newer generation equipment on time.
“This would provide the flexibility needed to bridge the gap and ensure timely vehicle upgrades by the first quarter of 2025. A pragmatic and collaborative approach is essential to protect supply chains, maintain mobility, and support the industry in this critical transition,” the IRU emphasises.
83% of Romanian hauliers risk EU market ban for tachograph non-compliance
The IRU’s appeal for pragmatism highlights a Europe-wide struggle with the implementation of second-generation smart tachographs, but the challenges are particularly acute in Romania. In mid-October, the Romanian National Union of Road Hauliers (UNTRR) raised alarm about the looming January 2025 deadline, estimating that tens of thousands of Romanian vehicles remain non-compliant. Of the 60,000 vehicles dedicated to intra-community transport, only 10,000 had been retrofitted with the required tachographs, while 17,000 were equipped with an earlier version, still needing upgrades.
Non-compliance threatens not only Romanian hauliers’ access to the EU market but also the nation’s position as a key player in European logistics. Romania’s road transport sector, which generated €7.81 billion in 2023, is vital to the national economy, surpassing even IT services in export value. To address these risks, UNTRR called for a two-year extension, aligning retrofits with routine vehicle inspections and easing resource bottlenecks caused by tachograph shortages.