E-bikes: Will helmets soon be compulsory?
The Federal Council wants to increase road safety for e-bikers: Bike helmets and lights during the day are to become mandatory. The corresponding consultation will last until mid-December. The foundations for automated driving are also to be improved.
In recent years, the number of serious e-bike accidents has increased almost fivefold. In order to break this trend and prevent accidents, the Federal Council wants to increase safety with quickly realizable measures at the ordinance level: All e-bike riders are to be required to wear a helmet and to switch on their lights during the day as well. In addition, fast e-bikes should be equipped with a speedometer in the future, so that they can precisely adhere to the speed limits, according to the Federal Council's statement.
On August 12, 2020, the Federal Council approved the package of revisions to the Road Traffic Act. Consultation It includes an amendment to the Road Traffic Act and the Administrative Fines Act as well as the revision of eight ordinances. Because in addition to improved road safety for e-bikers, there are other points up for discussion.
Promotion of environmentally friendly technologies
New technologies make it possible to reduce fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions in road freight transport. These include construction methods to improve the aerodynamics of vehicles and the use of electric drives with batteries or based on hydrogen, the Federal Council writes. However, the current law hinders such possibilities because the use of environmentally friendly technologies has a negative impact on the payload or the loading volume of the vehicles. The Federal Council therefore wants the maximum lengths and the maximum permissible weights of vehicles and vehicle combinations to be increased by the required additional weight or the required additional length. The loading capacity of the vehicles must not be increased in the process.
Automated driving
The Assistance systems of the vehicles are being continuously improved. In the future, it will be possible to drive a car without the driver having to constantly monitor what is happening. In order to be able to react quickly to such developments, the Federal Council should now be given the authority in the Road Traffic Act (SVG) to issue the specific regulations at ordinance level. In addition, the framework conditions that the Federal Council must observe in exercising its authority would be defined. The revision would also create a legal basis for the Federal Roads Office (Astra) to approve tests with fully automated vehicles on public roads. Such tests could provide important findings.
Adaptation of "Via sicura
The Federal Council also proposes, in fulfillment of a mandate from parliament, to use the amendment to the SVG to make the speeding measures introduced as part of "Via sicura" more proportionate and thus avoid undesirable cases of hardship. The courts should now be able to examine the concrete circumstances in each individual case and freely decide which penalty is appropriate for the case in question, as it concludes.
Sourcee: Covenant
For more information on the topic: "The Federal Council wants to better protect e-bike riders - and is tackling the problem at the mouth instead of the source"writes the online portal infosperber.ch. An interesting discussion on the subject of mandatory helmet use.
