Romania is planning to extend HGV driving bans

The National Union of Road Transporters from Romania (UNTRR) has launched a survey to find out drivers’ opinion about whether additional driving bans are necessary.

According to a report published by the European Transport Safety Council, in 2019 Romania was ranked last in terms of road safety, with the highest number of deaths per 1 million inhabitants (96 deaths, compared to the European average of 51).

Because Romania has fewer HGV restrictions, in addition to a higher risk of accidents caused directly or indirectly by lorries, at the beginning of each week, there are long queues at border crossings along the country’s western border. Currently, the waiting time at the border exceeds two hours because Hungarian customs officers and border guards are not able to handle such large numbers of vehicles from Romania and weekend HGV traffic is limited in Hungary.

The new legislation proposed by the Romanian parliament would introduce a driving ban for vehicles with a GVW above 7.5 t on the entire national road network:
– on Fridays from 3.00 PM to 9.00 PM;
– on Saturdays, from 09.00 AM to 9.00 PM;
– on Sundays, from 09.00 AM to 9.00 PM;
– on the eve of public holidays, from 3.00 PM to 9.00 PM;
– on public holidays, from 09.00 AM to 9.00 PM.

The draft law is in line with European legislation and the ban is similar or even more liberal than those that are in effect in other European countries.