For a long time, the state had tried to avoid the implementation of the EU-wide general inspection obligation. Now, however, the HU obligation will also be introduced in France.
Until now, a motorbike registered in France did not need any further technical inspection. This should have changed on 1 January 2022, when the European Union decided on a uniform regulation on technical inspection. This would affect all motorbikes and scooters with an engine capacity of 125 cm³ or more. Like Denmark and Finland, however, France had resisted and announced that the state would not participate. Recently, the Council of State decided to introduce compulsory main inspection.
Admittedly, the government remains of the opposite opinion. Already in the summer of 2021, President Emmanuel Macron and Transport Minister Jean-Baptiste Djebbari had publicly spoken out against periodic motorbike inspections. "There will be no technical inspection for two-wheelers in the form it was planned," Djebbari stated. However, he said, the system will be reconsidered and "more concrete and less restrictive alternative measures will be implemented to improve the safety and environmental performance of motorised two-wheelers".
The Council of State is also initially in agreement with this. In the spring of 2022, it confirmed the repeal of the decree and declared that France would not comply with an implementation of the HU obligation until further notice. Now, however, there would be new developments. The regulation, originally planned for January 2023, is to be brought forward to October of this year. According to the authority, there is "no justification" for delaying the implementation of the European harmonisation regulations at this point in time. Mainly on the basis of security reasons, the Council of State argues its new position. Also listed as a decisive factor is the reduction of noise and environmental pollution that the technical inspection obligation for motorbikes is supposed to lead to.
However, the reasons listed by the Council of State do not yet convince other institutions involved. Among them is the European Motorcycle Federation (FEMA). The latter emphasises above all that there is no certainty about the positive influence of the compulsory inspection on road safety. According to reports available to FEMA, there are "no indications that the technical condition of motorbikes plays a significant role" in accidents. Rather, according to FEMA, the education of all road users, as well as the full enforcement of the already existing traffic rules, would benefit safety on French roads.
At the same time, it cannot be said that the compulsory implementation of technical controls after initial registration would have a negative impact. If the cause of a motorbike accident were related to the technical conditions of the two-wheeler, for example, an inspection could even prevent the accident. The environment, or at least the measures to protect it, can also benefit from the HU obligation. Already during the technical inspections, it could be noticed whether, for example, the environmental badge that has been required in France since 2016 is missing or the wrong one has been attached. In Germany, this is also the way it is done with cars at the TÜV.
There is also a growing awareness among citizens that motorbikes can have the same impact on the environment as four-wheeled vehicles. It is precisely for this reason that the associations Respire, Ras le Scoot and Paris Sans Voiture have just filed a complaint against Paris City Hall and the Prefecture of Police. Namely, they are demanding that the police control motorised two-wheelers and remove them from traffic. In doing so, the plaintiffs want to "reduce air pollution and protect public health". "The city of Paris must lead the way in the context of the Low Emission Zone and in view of the 2024 Olympic Games," says Tony Renucci, Director General of Respire. By being "a significant source of air and noise pollution", he says it only makes sense that motorbikes should also be able to bear their responsibility for road safety and pollution through verbal and punitive controls.
In any case, France will finally comply with the European directive and make technical inspections compulsory. How these will actually affect road safety or the environment, only future reports from the authorities will reveal.