Motor Vehicle Roadworthiness Test (Amendment) Regulations,

L.N. 298 of 2022

TRAFFIC REGULATION ORDINANCE

(CAP. 65)

Motor Vehicle Roadworthiness Test (Amendment) Regulations,

IN EXERCISE of the powers conferred by article 54 of the

Traffic Regulation Ordinance, the Minister responsible for transport,

after consultation with the Authority for Transport in Malta, has made

the following regulations:-

(1) The title of these regulations is the Motor Vehicle Citation and

Roadworthiness Test (Amendment) Regulations, 2022 and these scope.

regulations shall be read and construed as one with the Motor Vehicle

Roadworthiness Test Regulations, hereinafter referred to as "the S.L.65.15.

principal regulations".

(2) The scope of these regulations is to reorganise the Fourth

Schedule of the principal regulations to better reflect Annex III of

Directive 2014/45/EU and to transpose the provisions of the following

Commission Delegated Directives

(a) Commission Delegated Directive (EU) 2021/1716 of

29 June 2021 amending Directive 2014/47/EU of the European

Parliament and of the Council as regards modifications to the

vehicle category designations stemming from amendments to the

type-approval legislation; and

(b) Commission Delegated Directive (EU) 2021/1717 of 9

July 2021 amending Directive 2014/45/EU of the European

Parliament and of the Council as regards the updating of certain

vehicle category designations and the addition of eCall to the list

of test items, methods, reasons for failure and assessment of

deficiencies in Annex I and Annex III to said Directive.

Regulation 1 of the principal regulations shall be Substitutes

regulation 1 of

substituted by the following new regulation

the principal

regulations.

1. (1) The title of these regulations is the

"Citation and

applicability.

Motor Vehicle Roadworthiness Test Regulations.

(2) These regulations shall apply to vehicles

with a design speed exceeding 25km/h of the following

categories, as referred to in Regulations (EU) No 167/

2013, (EU) No 168/2013, and (EU) 2018/858 of the

European Parliament and of the Council

(a) motor

vehicles

designed

and

constructed primarily for the carriage of persons

and their luggage comprising not more than eight

seating positions in addition to the driver’s

seating position – vehicle category M1;

(b) motor

vehicles

designed

and

constructed primarily for the carriage of persons

and their luggage comprising more than eight

seating positions in addition to the driver’s

seating position – vehicle categories M2 and M3;

(c) motor

vehicles

designed

and

constructed primarily for the carriage of goods,

having a maximum mass not exceeding 3.5 tonnes

– vehicle category N1;

(d) motor

vehicles

designed

and

constructed primarily for the carriage of goods,

having a maximum mass exceeding 3.5 tonnes –

vehicle categories N2 and N3;

(e) trailers designed and constructed for

the carriage of goods or persons, as well as for the

accommodation of persons, having a maximum

mass exceeding 3.5 tonnes – vehicle categories

O3 and O4;

(f) wheeled tractors of categories T1b,

T2b, T3b, T4.1b, T4.2b and T4.3b the use of

which mainly takes place on public roads with a

maximum design speed exceeding 40km/h;

(g) from a date when the Minister may by

notice in the Gazette establish, two- or three-wheel

vehicles – vehicle categories L3e, L4e, L5e and

L7e equipped with a combustion engine with a

displacement of more than 125 cm³.".

Regulation 2 of the principal regulations shall be amended

(a)

the definition "approval" thereof shall be deleted;

(b)

the definition "category M vehicle" thereof shall be

deleted;

(c) the definition "chauffeur driven vehicle" thereof shall

be substituted by the following new definition

" "chauffeur driven vehicle" means a ‘light passenger

transport vehicle’ as defined in the Light Passenger S.L. 65.33.

Transport Services and Vehicle Hire Services Regulations,

and which for the purposes of these regulations is a

category M1 vehicle; ";

(d) the definition "goods vehicle" thereof shall be

substituted by the following new definition

" "goods vehicle" means any category N1, N2 or N3

vehicle;";

(e)

the definitions "M1 vehicle", "M2 vehicle" and "M3

vehicle" thereof shall be deleted;

(f) the definitions "N1 vehicle", "N2 vehicle" and "N3

vehicle" thereof shall be deleted;

(g) the definitions "O1 trailer", "O2 trailer", "O3 trailer"

and "O4 trailer" thereof shall be deleted;

(h)

the definition "other vehicle" thereof shall be deleted;

(i) immediately after the definition "quadricycle"

thereof, there shall be added the following new definitions

" "Regulation (EU) No 167/2013" means Regulation

(EU) No 167/2013 of the European Parliament and of the

Council of 5 February 2013 on the approval and market

surveillance of agricultural and forestry vehicles;

"Regulation (EU) No 168/2013" means Regulation

(EU) No 168/2013 of the European Parliament and of the

Council of 15 January 2013 on the approval and market

surveillance of two- or three-wheel vehicles and

quadricycles;

"Regulation (EU) 2018/858" means Regulation (EU)

2018/858 of the European Parliament and of the Council of

30 May 2018 on the approval and market surveillance of

motor vehicles and their trailers, and of systems,

components and separate technical units intended for such

vehicles, amending Regulations (EC) No 715/2007 and

(EC) No 595/2009 and repealing Directive 2007/46/EC;";

(j)

the definition "T5 vehicle" thereof shall be deleted;

(k)

the definition "test" thereof shall be deleted.

Paragraph (a) of sub-regulation (1) of regulation 18E of the

principal regulations shall be substituted by the following

"(a) the areas and items, including the recommended

methods of testing, listed in Annex I of Directive 2014/45/EU,

with the exception of the following items

(i)

2.4, 3.6, 5.3.2.1, 6.1.9,

(ii) 7.2 (only in respect of M1 category vehicles not

used for hire),

(iii) 7.4 (only in respect of M1 category vehicles not

used for hire, N and O category vehicles, and T1b, T2b,

T3b, T4.1b, T4.2b and T4.3b category vehicles),

(iv) 7.5 (only in respect of M1 category vehicles not

used for hire, N and O category vehicles, and T1b, T2b,

T3b, T4.1b, T4.2b and T4.3b category vehicles),

(v)

6,

(vi) 7.13 (in respect of all vehicle categories, except

M1 and N1 category vehicles from 20 May 2023),

(vii) 8.3,

(viii) 9.3 (in respect of all vehicle categories, except

motor route buses, M2 and M3 category vehicles for hire),

(ix) 9.5 (in respect of all vehicle categories, except

motor route buses),

(x) 9.8 (in respect of all vehicle categories, except

electric trolley vehicles, Malta heritage buses, open top

buses and trackless trains – all as defined in the Passenger

Transport Services Regulations),

(xi) 9.9 (only in respect of M1 category vehicles not

used for hire, N and O category vehicles, and T1b, T2b,

T3b, T4.1b, T4.2b and T4.3b category vehicles),

(xii) 9.12; and".

5. The First Schedule to the principal regulations shall be Amends the

First Schedule

amended as follows

to the principal

regulations.

(a) in paragraph A thereof, the words "(this item shall

apply until 19 May 2018)" shall be deleted; and

(b) in paragraph I thereof, the words "N2, N3, M2, M3

and T5 vehicles." shall be substituted by the words "N2, N3, M2,

M3, T1b, T2b, T3b, T4.1b, T4.2b and T4.3b category vehicles.".

6. In CATEGORY VIII of the Second Schedule to the Amends the

principal regulations, the words "(T5 vehicles.)" shall be substituted by Second

Schedule to the

the words "(T1b, T2b, T3b, T4.1b, T4.2b and T4.3b vehicles)".

principal

regulations.

7. The Fourth Schedule to the principal regulations shall be Substitutes the

Fourth Schedule

substituted by the following new Schedule

to the principal

regulations.

"FOURTH SCHEDULE

(Regulations 9 and 19)

SPECIFICATIONS FOR TESTING EQUIPMENT

I. Equipment

Vehicle roadworthiness tests undertaken in accordance with these

regulations shall be carried out by using the appropriate equipment.

The test equipment that is necessary will depend on the vehicle

categories to be tested, as described in Table I. The fully-computerised

test lane/s shall incorporate the following minimum equipment

1. For each test lane, a pit or lift and, for the testing of

vehicles having a maximum mass exceeding 3.5 tonnes, a device

to lift a vehicle on one of the axles, equipped with appropriate

lighting and, where necessary, with aeration devices;

2. For testing any vehicle, a roller brake tester capable

of measuring, displaying and recording the braking forces and

the air pressure in air brake systems, provided that with effect

from 20 May 2023, such roller brake tester shall be in

accordance with Annex A to standard ISO 21069-1 on the

technical requirements of roller brake tester or equivalent

standards;

3. For testing vehicles having a maximum mass not

exceeding 3.5 tonnes, a roller brake tester in accordance with

item 2, which may not have the capability of recording and

displaying braking forces, pedal force and the air pressure in air

brake systems, or

A plate brake tester equivalent to the roller brake tester in

accordance with item 2, which may not have the capability of

recording and displaying the braking forces, pedal force and the

air pressure in air brake systems;

4. A deceleration recording instrument, while non-

continuous measurement instruments must record and, or store

measurements at least 10 times per second;

5. Facilities for the testing of air brake systems, such as

manometers, connectors and hoses;

6. A wheel or axle load measuring device to determine

the axle loads (optional facilities for measuring two-wheel loads,

such as wheel weight pads and axle weight pads);

7. A device for testing the wheel-axle suspension (wheel

play detector) without lifting the axis, meeting the following

requirements

(a) the device must be equipped with at least two

power-operated plates that can be moved in opposite sense

in both the longitudinal and the transversal directions;

(b) the movement of the plates must be controllable

by the operator from the testing position;

(c) for vehicles having a maximum mass exceeding

3.5 tonnes, the plates shall comply with the following

technical requirements

- longitudinal and transversal movement of at

least 95 mm,

- longitudinal and transversal movement speed

5 cm/s to 15 cm/s;

A Class II sound level meter;

An exhaust gas analyser for petrol and diesel

vehicles, provided that with effect from 20 May 2023, such

analyser shall be a 4-gas analyser (carbon monoxide, carbon

dioxide, oxygen and hydrocarbons) in accordance with Directive

2014/32/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26

February 2014 on the harmonisation of the laws of the Member

States relating to the making available on the market of

measuring instruments (recast);

A device for measuring the absorption coefficient

with sufficient accuracy;

One headlamp aiming device allowing the setting of

the headlight to be tested in accordance with the provisions for

the setting of headlights of motor vehicles (Regulation (EU)

2019/2144); the light and dark boundary must be easily

recognisable in daylight (without direct sunlight);

A device for measuring the tread depth of tyres;

A device to connect to the electronic vehicle

interface, such as an OBD scan tool;

A device to detect LPG/CNG/LNG leakage, if such

vehicles are tested.

Any of the above devices may be combined in one

composite device, provided that this does not affect the accuracy

of each device.

II. Calibration of equipment used for measurements

The interval between two successive calibrations may not

exceed

(i) 24 months for the measurement of weight,

pressure and sound level;

(ii)

24 months for the measurement of forces;

(iii) 12 months for the measurement of gaseous

emissions.

III. Other Requirements

The fully computerised test lane/s will be required to

1. test the braking efficiency of service, secondary and

parking brakes to at least 50% maximum permissible mass, 25%

maximum permissible mass and 16% maximum permissible

mass respectively, as well as a brake imbalance limit of at least

70% on every axle;

2. test the exhaust gas emissions of petrol engines at

least for carbon monoxide and hydrocarbon gas levels to within

manufacturers’ specifications of at least 0% volume and 50 ppm

respectively;

3. measure the engine revolutions per minute and engine

oil temperature at time of test;

4. perform a Lambda test as per makers’ specification

and have 1K as its limit value;

5. test exhaust gas opacity co-efficient of absorption of

both naturally aspirated and turbo-charged diesel engines as per

makers’ specifications (minimum scale range is K= 0 to 6m⁻¹);

6. test steering free play through the use of wheel

turning plates;

7. have the facility to lift vehicles for under-vehicle

inspection and to raise separate axles to determine steering and

suspension wear and tear;

8. test headlamp aim to pre-set limits within the band

tolerances on the equipment aiming screen as required for

headlamp type and height setting;

9. perform exhaust system sound level testing;

10. print and transmit to link at Land Transport

Directorate, the limits and actual values resulting from tests

carried out, as well as the particulars of the relative authorised

testing station and of the vehicle undergoing the test, and the

date and time of test.

The software, hardware and communications equipment used by

operators must be capable of on-line retrieval and update of the vehicle

databases in use by the Land Transport Directorate. The software,

hardware and communications equipment used by operators must be in

accordance with Government standards.

Table I*

Minimum equipment required for the purpose of performing a roadworthiness test

Category

Equipment required for each item listed in section I

Maximum

1 2

8 9 10

**

L1e

P

x x

x

x

x

L3e,

P

x x

x

x

x

L4e

L3e,

D

x

x

x

x

x

L4e

L2e

P

x

x x

x

x

x

L2e

D

x

x

x

x

x

x

L5e

P

x

x x

x

x

x

L5e

D

x

x

x

x

x

x

L6e

P

x

x x

x

x

x

L6e

D

x

x

x

x

x

x

L7e

P

x

x x

x

x

x

L7e

D

x

x

x

x

x

x

2. Vehicles

for the

carriage of

persons

≤3,500

M1,

P

x

x

x x

x

x

x

x

kg

≤3,500

M1,

D

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

kg

> 3,500

M2,

P

x x

x

x

x

x

x x

x

x

x

x

kg

> 3,500

M2,

D

x x

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

kg

3. Vehicles

for the

carriage of

goods

≤ 3,500

P

x

x

x x

x

x

x

x

kg

≤ 3,500

D

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

kg

> 3,500

N2,

P

x x

x

x

x

x

x x

x

x

x

x

kg

> 3,500

N2,

D

x x

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

kg

4. Special

vehicles

derived from

a category N

vehicle, T1b,

T2b, T3b,

T4.1b, T4.2b

and T4.3b

≤ 3,500

P

x

x

x x

x

x

x

x

kg

≤ 3,500

D

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

kg

> 3,500

N2,

kg

N3,

T1b,

T2b,

P

x x

x

x

x

x

x x

x

x

x

x

T3b,

T4.1b,

T4.2b

and

T4.3b

> 3,500

N2,

kg

N3,

T1b,

T2b,

D

x x

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

T3b,

T4.1b,

T4.2b

and

T4.3b

5. Trailers

x

x

x

x

> 3,500 O3,

x x

x

x x

x

* The vehicle categories which are outside the scope of these regulations are included for guidance.

** P…petrol (positive ignition); D…diesel (compression ignition)."

8. The table in the Eighth Schedule to the principal

regulations shall be amended as follows

(a) in Category VII thereof, the words "(L3e, L4e, L5e

and L7e vehicles with an engine displacement of more than

125cm³)" shall be substituted by the words "(L3e, L4e, L5e and

L7e vehicles with a combustion engine with a displacement of

more than 125cm³)"; and

(b) in Category VIII thereof, the words "(T5 vehicles)"

shall be substituted by the words "(T1b, T2b, T3b, T4.1b, T4.2b

and T4.3b vehicles)".

9. The Ninth Schedule to the principal regulations shall be

amended as follows

(a) in Category VII thereof, the words "(L3e, L4e, L5e

and L7e vehicles with an engine displacement of more than

125cm³)" shall be substituted by the words "(L3e, L4e, L5e and

L7e vehicles with a combustion engine with a displacement of

more than 125cm³)";

(b) in Category VIII thereof, the words "(T5 vehicles)"

shall be substituted by the words "(T1b, T2b, T3b, T4.1b, T4.2b

and T4.3b vehicles)".

€0.90