EU Personal Transport Safety Standards Act
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Councillor Hook, with all due respect to the introduced legislation: the European Union is culturally diverse. It is not our job to end with those cultural differences, but to respect them. And observing the record of proposals made by Duchian Councillors, there is a trend whose conclusion is that you do not understand our differences. I would like to remind you, because it is my job as Speaker, that this Council, under my point of view, is expected to respect the union in diversity that forms one of the pillars of our Union. The introduction of legislation, may it come from the Commission, may it come from any Councillor, should be as respectful with our diversity as possible.
Donald Tusk
Council Speaker and Councillor for Spain
The Kingdom of Spain
His Majesty the King, Felipe VI
President Alberto Núñez-Feijóo
Councillor and Council Speaker Donald Tusk -
I understand that but there is also the matter of what the EU and the Council is here for. One of those things is harmonisation of standards to make trade easier. The other is protecting the safety of the European people which this aims at doing. Whenever something is proposed in the interests of the European people its seen as a Duchieism. Why shouldn't we propose policies that work in the Duchies well to protect people to the council to make those wider? Why shouldn't Spain do the same if they have a policy that works? I'd have no issue with Spain proposing a policy thats worked well in their country across the EU as thats what this chamber is for sharing good ideas that ultimately make a safer better EU for all. If your country has things that work better safety wise than Duchies we'd be more than happy for you to share it in the council also.
Skye Hook.
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It is simply not the responsibility of this Union to impose the highest, most bleeding-edge possible standards on its member-states. That is the prerogative of the member-states. While, as I have made clear, I am not opposed in principle to a set of basic regulations for motorized vehicles, this proposal is simply too extreme.
Iras Tilkanas
Councillor for the Republic of Istkalen -
In the spirit of compromise I am Willing to propose an amendment
Article I:Definitions
I.Personal Automobile:Any vehicle with 4 or 3 wheels above 500kg with a fixed or convertible roof that is powered either an electric or combustion engine.
II.Motorcycle: A powered two-wheel motor vehicle by either electric or combustion engine
III.E-Bike: A motor-assisted or driven, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, with two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other.
IV.E-Tri-cycle: A small vehicle like a bicycle with two wheels at the back and one at the front either powered by pedal , electrically assisted or by a motor.
V.E-Scooter: A vehicle ridden while standing that consists of a narrow footboard mounted between or atop two wheels tandem that has an upright steering handle attached to the front wheel, and that is moved by pushing with one foot or an electric motor.
VI.Light Personal Vehicle:Motor vehicles with four or three wheels whose unladen mass is not more than 500kg
VII.Personal Electric Micro-mobility Vehicle:Any powered bike , scooter or Light Personal Vehicle powered by electric or electrically assisted with a battery system on board.Article 4: Safety Standards for -E-Bikes and E-Scooters
I.All newly manufactured E-bikes and E-scooters must have a registration plate on back and front readable by cameras to be road legal
II.All newly manufactured E-bikes and E-scooters must have indicators visible from the rear and front to be road legal
III.All newly manufactured E-bikes and E-scooters must have mirrors to be road legal
IV.All newly manufactured E-bikes and E-scooters must have working front and back lights to be road legal
V.All newly manufactured E-bikes and E-scooters must have working brake lights in order to be road legal
VI.Any 2 wheeled Personal Electric Micro-mobility Vehicle may only have 500 watt motors and a maximum assisted speed of 30 km/h, GPS assist speed limiters and cut out to be road legal
VII.Motorcycles must meet all the above regulations exept Article 4 VI and have anti-lock braking systems in order to be road legal. The speed on motorcycles allowed shall be decided by nationstates.Skye Hook
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I have been listening closely to this debate, and I appreciate both the objections from the Spanish and Istklenian councillors, and the compromise proposed by Cllr Hook.
The most prominent concern--I am nearly certain--is that this act doesn't account for the economic and cultural diversity of the EU. And I have to agree, Cllr Hook. This act would require the least amount of work from higher income nations--such as the Duchies--and the most from the lower income nations, such as my constituency (Sertia).
That's not the only problem in this category. Imagine how people would see, as Cllr Tilkannas already perceives it, a massive piece of regulatory legislation enforced by those in Europolis. Is there a better way to turn the public against the 'legislative elite '? Even from our fellow councillors there are already defensive responses within this vein.
For us in Sertia, the legislation would be no problem. We could enforce this whilst sat back watching rubbish TV. Do you know why? Because in Sertia we have less than 300 cars total. And there are scarcely any more versatile or transferable regulations to alternative modes of transport, such as horse carriages.
I do think that this act would be useful for us, though. With the expansion of personal transit, E-bikes and electric scooters are becoming more and more commonplace ans they require regulation. So on that point I applaud the intentions of this act.
So in a way, I understand the concern of the Spanish and Istkalenian councillors. However, I think the issue is quite easily rectifiable. We'll need an amendment which requires multiple chapters of the Transport Board to govern locally. I therefore propose the following amendments:Amendment V: Article 2 Section VI: In cross-border areas where a similar mode of transport is utilised, a local chapter of the EU Personal Transit Safety Board must be established to create suitable regulations for the locality. Regions located within a single country must permit the Board to establish a chapter there before they can do so.
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I do understand concerns the reason I think it is important for those features to remain is this is about life and death. I wouldn't personally want to explain to a parent of a dead child about why their child died to save a little bit of money on the production costs of a car. The sensors and cameras for lane keep assist are already essentially on the car anyway in most circumstances for features such as parking assist or cruise control. The only real extra cost is a little extra coding. All cars nowadays tend to have GPS units as GPS is very cheap , so much so even most cars at the lowest price points have those systems. This act would barely add any extra cost to cars and bikes but would save 10's of thousands if not hundreds of thousands of lives per year. Surely that is worth the cost of adding maximum of a few thousand euros per car or a few hundred euros per E-Bike or possibly even bike and scooter.
After all if one can afford a 1,000 Euro E-Bike or a 14,000 Euro car new can they not also afford an extra few thousand Euros or few hundred Euros for the extra safety features. This is an argument essentially over spending cents on the Euro to get lifesaving results that could save 10's or hundreds of thousands of lives especially those of children who are the most vulnerable road and street users.
Skye Hook , Councillour for United Duchies
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Debate is now over. It is time to vote on the proposed amendments. There are EIGHT amendments up to vote:
Amendment I - Proposed by Cllr. Iras Tilkanas
Article I: Definitions
I. Personal Automobile:Any vehicle with 4 or 3 wheels above 500kg with a fixed or convertible roof that is powered either an electric or combustion engine.
II. Motorcycle: A powered two-wheel motor vehicle by either electric or combustion engine
III. Bike: Ahuman-powered ormotor-assisted, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, with two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other.
IV. Tri-cycle:A small vehicle like a bicycle with two wheels at the back and one at the front either powered by pedal withelectrically assistedelectrical assistance or by a motor.
V. Scooter:A vehicle ridden while standing that consists of a narrow footboard mounted between or atop two wheels tandem that has an upright steering handle attached to the front wheel, and that is moved bypushing with one foot or,in part or in whole, an electric motor.
VI. Light Personal Vehicle:Motor vehicles with four or three wheels whose unladen mass is not more than 500kg
VII. Personal Electric Micro-mobility Vehicle:Any powered bike , scooter or Light Personal Vehicle powered by electric or electrically assisted with a battery system on board.
Amendment II - Proposed by Cllr. Iras Tilkanas
Remove Article 2
Amendment III - Proposed by Cllr. Iras Tilkanas
Article 3: Safety Standards for Personal Automobiles
I. All newly manufactured Personal Automobiles must have indicators visible at the back and front of the vehicle to be considered road legal
II. All newly manufactured Personal Automobiles must have working brake lights in working order to be considered road legal
III. All Personal Automobiles must have working daytime running tail and headlights to be considered road legal.
IV. All newly manufactured Personal Automobiles must have working seat belts, anti-lock braking systems,drowsiness detection systems, intelligent speed assistance ,accurate tyre pressure monitoring,lane keeping assist,blindspot monitoring systems, door mirrors, internal central mirrors ,GPS based speed limiter systems (on by default),safe crumple zones and front and rear airbags to be considered road legal.
V. All Personal Automobiles must have number plate holders and number plates on the back and front of the vehicle readable by cameras to be road legal
VI. Personal Automobiles designed for purely track based or motorsport use are exempt from these requirements but may not be used on public roads
Amendment IV - Proposed by Cllr. Iras Tilkanas
Article 4: Safety Standards for Bikes and Scooters
I. All newly manufactured bikes and scooters must have a registration plate on back and front readable by cameras to be road legal
II. All newly manufactured bikes and scooters must have indicators visible from the rear and front to be road legal
III. All newly manufactured bikes and scooters must have mirrors to be road legal
IV. All newly manufactured bikes and scooters must have working front and back lights to be road legal
V. All newly manufactured bikes and scooters must have working brake lights in order to be road legal
VI.Any 2 wheeled Personal Electric Micro-mobility Vehicle may only have 500 watt motors and a maximum assisted speed of 30 km/h, GPS assist speed limiters and cut out to be road legal
VII.VI. Motorcycles must meet all the above regulations and have anti-lock braking systems in order to be road legal. The speed on motorcycles allowed shall be decided by nationstates.
Amendment V - Proposed by Cllr. Skye Hook
Article 3: Safety Standards for Personal Automobiles
I. All newly manufactured Personal Automobiles must have indicators visible at the back and front of the vehicle to be considered road legal
II. All newly manufactured Personal Automobiles must have working brake lights in working order to be considered road legal
III. All Personal Automobiles must have working daytime running tail and headlights to be considered road legal.
IV. All newly manufactured Personal Automobiles must have working seat belts, anti-lock braking systems, drowsiness detection systems, intelligent speed assistance ,accurate tyre pressure monitoring, overridable lane keeping assist or lane departure warning systems , blindspot monitoring systems, door mirrors, internal central mirrors ,GPS based speed limiter systems (on by default), safe crumple zones and front and rear airbags to be considered road legal.
V. All Personal Automobiles must have number plate holders and number plates on the back and front of the vehicle readable by cameras to be road legal
VI. Personal Automobiles designed for purely track based or motorsport use are exempt from these requirements but may not be used on public roads
Amendment VI - Proposed by Cllr. Skye Hook
Article 4: Safety Standards for Bikes and Scooters
I.All newly manufactured bikes and scooters must have a registration plate on back and front readable by cameras to be road legal
III. All newly manufactured bikes and scooters must have indicators visible from the rear and front to be road legal
IIIII. All newly manufactured bikes and scooters must have mirrors to be road legal
IV.III. All newly manufactured bikes and scooters must have working front and back lights to be road legal
VIV. All newly manufactured bikes and scooters must have working brake lights in order to be road legal
VIV. Any 2 wheeled Personal Electric Micro-mobility Vehicle may only have 500 watt motors and a maximum assisted speed of 30 km/h, GPS assist speed limiters and cut out to be road legal
VIIVI. Motorcycles must meet all the above regulations and have anti-lock braking systems in order to be road legal. The speed on motorcycles allowed shall be decided by nationstates.
Amendment VII - Proposed by Cllr. Skye Hook
Article I: Definitions
I. Personal Automobile:Any vehicle with 4 or 3 wheels above 500kg with a fixed or convertible roof that is powered either an electric or combustion engine.
II. Motorcycle: A powered two-wheel motor vehicle by either electric or combustion engine
III. E-Bike: A motor-assisted or driven, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, with two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other.
IV. E-Tri-cycle: A small vehicle like a bicycle with two wheels at the back and one at the front either powered by pedal , electrically assisted or by a motor.
V. E-Scooter: A vehicle ridden while standing that consists of a narrow footboard mounted between or atop two wheels tandem that has an upright steering handle attached to the front wheel, and that is moved by pushing with one foot or an electric motor.
VI. Light Personal Vehicle:Motor vehicles with four or three wheels whose unladen mass is not more than 500kg
VII. Personal Electric Micro-mobility Vehicle:Any powered bike , scooter or Light Personal Vehicle powered by electric or electrically assisted with a battery system on board.
Amendment VIII - Proposed by Cllr. Skye Hook
Article 4: Safety Standards for -E-Bikes and E-Scooters
I. All newly manufactured E-bikes and E-scooters must have a registration plate on back and front readable by cameras to be road legal
II. All newly manufactured E-bikes and E-scooters must have indicators visible from the rear and front to be road legal
III. All newly manufactured E-bikes and E-scooters must have mirrors to be road legal
IV. All newly manufactured E-bikes and E-scooters must have working front and back lights to be road legal
V. All newly manufactured E-bikes and E-scooters must have working brake lights in order to be road legal
VI. Any 2 wheeled Personal Electric Micro-mobility Vehicle may only have 500 watt motors and a maximum assisted speed of 30 km/h, GPS assist speed limiters and cut out to be road legal
VII. Motorcycles must meet all the above regulations exept Article 4 VI and have anti-lock braking systems in order to be road legal. The speed on motorcycles allowed shall be decided by nationstates.
Voting on amendments will commence NOW and will last until 23:27 GMT on July 8th, 2024.
I vote FOR Amendments I, II, III and IV and AGAINST Amendments V, VI, VII and VIII.
Donald Tusk
Council Speaker and Councillor for SpainThe Kingdom of Spain
His Majesty the King, Felipe VI
President Alberto Núñez-Feijóo
Councillor and Council Speaker Donald Tusk -
On behalf of United Duchies I vote AGAINST amendments I, II,III and IV ,and FOR amendments V ,VI, VII and VIII
Sky Hook Deputy Councillour for United Duchies -
The United Kingdom votes for amendments V, VI, VII and VIII; against all others.
Jess Phillips
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I vote FOR all amendments, including that of Cllr Dína's - that ought to be included, no?
Iras Tilkanas
Councillor for the Republic of Istkalen -
Yes, my mistake. There are indeed NINE amendments up to vote, with the missing one in the compilationg being the following:
Amendment IX - Proposed by Cllr. Edutitale Dína
Article 2 - Creation of European Personal Transport Safety Board
VI. In cross-border areas where a similar mode of transport is utilised, a local chapter of the EU Personal Transit Safety Board must be established to create suitable regulations for the locality. Regions located within a single country must permit the Board to establish a chapter there before they can do so.
VI.VII. This agency shall be based in Europolis.
Due to this inconvenience, I urge Councillors Hook and Philips to express their position on the amendment.
I vote FOR Amendment IX.
Donald Tusk
Council Speaker and Councillor for SpainThe Kingdom of Spain
His Majesty the King, Felipe VI
President Alberto Núñez-Feijóo
Councillor and Council Speaker Donald Tusk -
On behalf of United Duchies I vote AGAINST Amendment IX
Skye Hook, Deputy Councillour for United Duchies -
This post is deleted! -
@Spain said in EU Personal Transport Safety Standards Act:
Yes, my mistake. There are indeed NINE amendments up to vote, with the missing one in the compilationg being the following:
Amendment IX - Proposed by Cllr. Edutitale Dína
Article 2 - Creation of European Personal Transport Safety Board
VI. In cross-border areas where a similar mode of transport is utilised, a local chapter of the EU Personal Transit Safety Board must be established to create suitable regulations for the locality. Regions located within a single country must permit the Board to establish a chapter there before they can do so.
VI.VII. This agency shall be based in Europolis.
Due to this inconvenience, I urge Councillors Hook and Philips to express their position on the amendment.
I vote FOR Amendment IX.
Donald Tusk
Council Speaker and Councillor for SpainDitto, The United Kingdom votes for Amendment IX
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Voting on the amendments has concluded. The voting results are the following:
- With 2 votes FOR and 2 votes AGAINST, Amendment I has FAILED.
- With 2 votes FOR and 2 votes AGAINST, Amendment II has FAILED.
- With 2 votes FOR and 2 votes AGAINST, Amendment III has FAILED.
- With 2 votes FOR and 2 votes AGAINST, Amendment IV has FAILED.
- With 3 votes FOR and 1 vote AGAINST, Amendment V has PASSED.
- With 3 votes FOR and 1 vote AGAINST, Amendment VI has PASSED.
- With 3 votes FOR and 1 vote AGAINST, Amendment VII has PASSED.
- With 3 votes FOR and 1 vote AGAINST, Amendment VIII has PASSED.
- With 3 votes FOR and 1 vote AGAINST, Amendment IX has PASSED.
The proposal has been updated accordingly.
Final voting begins NOW and will last until 22:26 GMT on July 16th, 2024.
On behalf of the Kingdom of Spain, I vote AGAINST this act.
Donald Tusk
Council Speaker and Councillor for Spain -
I vote AGAINST this act.
Iras Tilkanas
Councillor for the Republic of Istkalen -
On behalf of United Duchies I vote FOR this act
Skye Hook ,Deputy Councillou for United Duchies -
I vote AGAINST this act.
Devon Albert
Interim Councillor for The State of Elthize -
The United Kingdom votes for the legislation.
Caroline Lucas
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The Kingdom of Sertia votes for this act.
Ms Édutitalle Dína
