POLIS joins call for revised truck safety standards

Trucks constitute just 2% of vehicles, yet they are involved in 15% of fatal collisions, resulting in around 3,300 deaths each year in Europe alone.

POLIS has joined a consortium of cities and mobility stakeholders in appealing to governments for tighter standards for truck safety.

The group express their concern for the impact of vehicle safety standards for cyclists and pedestrians, noting the issues caused by current vehicle window and mirror features which distort drivers’ vision of other road users.

In a letter signed by POLIS, Eurocities, Swedish Network of Cycling Cites and nine local authorities including POLIS members, Lisbon and London, national governments are called to address the issue of truck safety on an international level.

The correspondence comes ahead of anticipated reform to truck safety standards. This year, national governments are expected to pass a direct vision standard for trucks at the UN Economic Commission for Europe (as part of UNECE vehicle regulations).

The UNECE direct vision standard is directed to newly-manufactured trucks: from January 2026, it will apply to new trucks that are newly Type Approved, and from January 2029, to all registrations of new trucks.

Read the full letter here.