How UNECE Road Transport Conventions Facilitate International Trade and Road Transport By José Capel Ferrer, Director, Transport Division United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

International Road Transport, Vital to Development Mobility, a key component of everyday life of people Access to basic services: education, health, …. for all Transport, vital to economic activities Transport, key to growth, job creation, an important sector of the economy (% of GDP) Road transport, a major share of transport International transport, indispensable for international trade, exports and imports, a major factor for growth 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

International Road Transport Faces Barriers, Hazards Incoherent Road Networks Heterogeneous national transport regulations Road accidents, Environmental concerns Long, cumbersome procedures and controls Security threats: organized crime, terrorism 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

UNECE, Pioneer in Removing Barriers to International Road Transport Transport, a major responsibility of Governments Intergovernmental cooperation is needed to remove barriers to international transport UNECE: created in 1947 in a devastated Europe Since then, UNECE has promoted cooperation to facilitate international road transport in Europe 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

Removing Barriers to International Road Transport: UNECE Conventions 55 legally binding Agreements and Conventions Kept up to date by specialized intergovernmental bodies, with participation of NGOs like IRU Most Conventions are open to all UN Members S.-G. is the Depositary, Follow UN legal rules 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

UNECE Conventions that Facilitate International Road Transport A coherent road network: The AGR Rules for safe road traffic: Conventions on Road Traffic and on Road Signs and Signals, of 1968 Regulations for safe, clean road vehicles: The 1958 and 1998 Agreements Simplified border procedures: The TIR Convention 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

UNECE Transport Division AGR: The E Road Network The AGR Agreement : Establishes the “E” road network, minimum technical standards and a numbering system Extended to the Caucasus and Central Asia Used by UNESCAP as a basis for the Asian Highway Network (AHN) Agreement 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

UNECE Transport Division E – Road Network motorways roads 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

Convention on Road Traffic, 1968 (1) Facilitates international road traffic and ensures a high level of road traffic safety Through internationally agreed traffic rules and reciprocal recognition of documents issued in conformity with those rules 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

Convention on Road Traffic, 1968 (2) General and specific rules for Drivers: At all times able to control their vehicle Must hold a driving permit, issued after tests Driving rules: speed, distance, overtaking,.... General rules for Vehicles Must be registered, Registration Certificate Distinguishing Sign of country of registration 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

Convention on Road Traffic, 1968 (3) Behaviour towards Pedestrians, Cyclists…… Recent Amendments: No hand-held mobile phone while driving Stricter rules for issuance of Driving Permits 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

Convention on Road Traffic, 1968 (4) Contracting Parties: 62 States 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

Convention on Road Signs and Signals, of 1968 (1) Facilitates international road traffic and increases road traffic safety Through a set of about 200 internationally agreed road signs and signals 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

Convention on Road Signs and Signals, of 1968 (2) Three Categories of Road Signs: Danger Warning, Regulatory, Informative Norms on shapes, dimensions, colours, visibility Norms on Traffic Light Signals, Road Markings Road Works and Level Crossings Signs 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

UNECE Transport Division Danger Warning Road Signs Equilateral Triangle, White or Yellow Ground, Red border Road narrows ahead (A, 4), men at work or road works (A, 16), roundabout ahead (A, 22), bumpy road or uneven surface (A, 7), falling rocks (A, 11), level crossing (A, 25) 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

Regulatory Road Signs Circular, White or Yellow Background, Red Border No entry (C, 1), maximum speed limit of 80 kilometres per hour (C, 5), no overtaking (C, 4), no entry for vehicles having an overall height exceeding 3.5 metres (C, 6), no left turn (C, 11a) 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

UNECE Transport Division Informative Road Signs Rectangular, Blue or Green Background, White or Yellow Rectangle with Sign Filling station (F, 4), camping site (F, 10), first-aid station (F, 1), General speed limits (G, 14), closure of a traffic lane (G, 12a), beginning of a built up area (E, 7) 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

UNECE Transport Division Convention on Road Signs and Signals, 1968 Contracting Parties: 52 States Contracting Parties 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

UNECE Transport Division The 1958 Agreement (1) Establishes regulations to improve safety, emissions and consumption for road vehicles, including trucks, buses, coaches 121 Regulations to date Have improved safety and environmental performance of vehicles significantly 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

UNECE Transport Division The 1958 Agreement (2) 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

The 1958 Agreement (3) Emissions of Heavy Vehicles 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

The 1958 Agreement (4) Contracting Parties: 43 States + EU 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

The 1998 Global Agreement (1) Establishes global technical regulations (gtrs) to improve safety, pollution, consumption and anti-theft performance of all types of road vehicles Global regulations may set lower stringency for developing countries China is a Contracting Party 2 Global regulations adopted so far 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

The 1998 Agreement (2) Contracting Parties: 23 States + EU 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

The TIR Convention, of 1975 (1) Facilitates international trade and road transport of goods across one, more borders, while ensuring a high level of anti-fraud security Through a carefully designed border crossing procedure and an international guarantee chain Implemented in cooperation with IRU, its National Associations and Transport operators 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

The TIR Convention of 1975 (2) Use Secure, Approved Vehicles or Containers Mutual Recognition of Customs Controls, Seals International Guarantee system, managed by IRU TIR Carnet: Customs&Guarantee document. Still on paper, but with advanced security features Controlled access of national associations, transport operators Computerization of the TIR procedure under way 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

The TIR Convention of 1975 (3) Benefits No inspection of goods at intermediate borders No payment of taxes and duties en route Lower border delays, Lower transport, import and export costs, Higher competitiveness, growth High level of security and anti-fraud protection 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

The TIR Convention of 1975 (4) 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

The TIR Convention of 1975 (5) Contracting Parties: 64 States + EU 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

UNECE Transport Division Tangible Results In the past 40 years, in the UNECE, on average: Road traffic increased by a factor of 4, bringing economic growth, jobs and prosperity to Europeans People killed annually on the roads reduced to 1/2 Pollution of cars manufactured to UNECE rules reduced to just about 2,5% (about 40 times less) UNECE Conventions contributed 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

No Room for Complacency In 2003, over 152 000 people killed on UNECE roads 1,2 Million people per year killed on the world’s roads Demand for road transport continues to grow Mobility in Eastern Europe, Asia to grow sharply About 800 million vehicles in the world and increasing We must keep on updating UNECE Conventions 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

UNECE Transport Division Conclusions International road transport, vital to development International road transport faces obstacles, safety hazards, security threats, environmental impacts UNECE Conventions facilitate international road transport while addressing these challenges Most UNECE Conventions are open to all countries Countries around the world would benefit from acceding to UNECE Conventions on transport Still UNECE Conventions need to be implemented 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division

UNECE Transport Division www.unece.org/trans 17 January 2019 UNECE Transport Division