Directive 2004/52/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 on the interoperability of electronic road toll systems in the Community (Text with EEA relevance)
Modified by
  • Regulation (EC) No 219/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Councilof 11 March 2009adapting a number of instruments subject to the procedure referred to in Article 251 of the Treaty to Council Decision 1999/468/EC with regard to the regulatory procedure with scrutinyAdaptation to the regulatory procedure with scrutiny — Part Two, 32009R0219, March 31, 2009
  • Directive (EU) 2019/520 of the European Parliament and of the Councilof 19 March 2019on the interoperability of electronic road toll systems and facilitating cross-border exchange of information on the failure to pay road fees in the Union(recast)(Text with EEA relevance), 32019L0520, March 29, 2019
Corrected by
  • Corrigendum to Directive 2004/52/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 on the interoperability of electronic road toll systems in the Community, 32004L0052R(01), June 7, 2004
Directive 2004/52/EC of the european parliament and of the councilof 29 April 2004on the interoperability of electronic road toll systems in the Community(Text with EEA relevance)
Article 1Objective and scope1.This Directive lays down the conditions necessary to ensure the interoperability of electronic road toll systems in the Community. It applies to the electronic collection of all types of road fees, on the entire Community road network, urban and interurban, motorways, major and minor roads, and various structures such as tunnels, bridges and ferries.2.This Directive does not apply to:(a)road toll systems for which no electronic means of toll collection exists;(b)electronic road toll systems which do not need the installation of on-board equipment;(c)small, strictly local road toll systems for which the costs of compliance with the requirements of this Directive would be disproportionate to the benefits.3.To achieve the objective set in paragraph 1, a European electronic toll service shall be created. This service, which is complementary to the national electronic toll services of the Member States, shall ensure the interoperability throughout the Community, for users, of the electronic toll systems that have already been introduced in the Member States and of those to be introduced in the future in the framework of this Directive.
Article 2Technological solutions1.All new electronic toll systems brought into service on or after 1 January 2007 shall, for carrying out electronic toll transactions, use one or more of the following technologies:(a)satellite positioning;(b)mobile communications using the GSM-GPRS standard (reference GSM TS 03.60/23.060);(c)5,8 GHz microwave technology2.The European electronic toll service shall be brought into service pursuant to Article 3(1). Operators shall make available to interested users on-board equipment which is suitable for use with all electronic toll systems in service in the Member States using the technologies referred to in paragraph 1 and which is suitable for use in all types of vehicle, in accordance with the timetable set out in Article 3(4). This equipment shall at least be interoperable and capable of communicating with all the systems operating in the Member States using one or more of the technologies listed in paragraph 1. The detailed arrangements in this respect shall be determined by the Committee referred to in Article 5(1), including arrangements for the availability of on-board equipment to meet the demand of interested users.3.It is recommended that new electronic toll systems brought into service after the adoption of this Directive use the satellite positioning and mobile communications technologies listed in paragraph 1. In respect of the possible migration to systems using such technologies by systems using other technologies, the Commission, in liaison with the Committee referred to in Article 5(1), shall draw up a report by 31 December 2009. This report shall include a study of use of each of the technologies referred to in paragraph 1, as well as a cost-benefit analysis. If appropriate, the Commission shall accompany the report with a proposal to the European Parliament and the Council for a migration strategy.4.Without prejudice to paragraph 1, on-board equipment may also be suitable for other technologies, on condition that this does not lead to an additional burden for users or create discrimination between them. Where relevant, on-board equipment may also be linked to the vehicle's electronic tachograph.5.Where Member States have toll systems, they shall take the necessary measures to increase the use of electronic toll systems. They shall endeavour to ensure that, by 1 January 2007 at the latest, at least 50 % of traffic flow in each toll station can use electronic toll systems. Lanes used for electronic toll collection may also be used for toll collection by other means, with due regard to safety.6.Interoperability work on existing toll technologies undertaken in connection with the European electronic toll service shall ensure the full compatibility and interfacing of those technologies with the technologies referred to in paragraph 1 and of their equipment with each other.7.Member States shall ensure that processing of personal data necessary for the operation of the European electronic toll service is carried out in accordance with the Community rules protecting the freedoms and fundamental rights of individuals, including their privacy, and that, in particular, the provisions of Directives 95/46/EC and 2002/58/EC are complied with.
Article 3Setting-up of a European electronic toll service1.A European electronic toll service shall be set up which encompasses all the road networks in the Community on which tolls or road-usage fees are collected electronically. This electronic toll service will be defined by a contractual set of rules allowing all operators and/or issuers to provide the service, a set of technical standards and requirements and a single subscription contract between the clients and the operators and/or issuers offering the service. This contract shall give access to the service on the whole of the network and subscriptions shall be available from the operator of any part of the network and/or from the issuer.2.The European electronic toll service shall be independent of the fundamental decisions taken by Member States to levy tolls on particular types of vehicles, of the level of charges and of the purpose for which such charges are levied. It shall concern only the method of collecting tolls or fees. The service shall allow for contracts to be concluded irrespective of the place of registration of the vehicle, the nationality of the parties to the contract, and the zone or point on the road network in respect of which the toll is due.3.The system shall allow intermodality to develop without creating disadvantages for other modes of transport.4.Where Member States have national systems of electronic toll collection, they shall ensure that operators and/or issuers offer the European electronic toll service to their customers in accordance with the following timetable:(a)for all vehicles exceeding 3,5 tonnes and for all vehicles which are allowed to carry more than nine passengers (driver + 8), at the latest three years after the decisions on the definition of the European electronic toll service, as referred to in Article 4(4), have been taken;(b)for all other types of vehicle, at the latest five years after the decisions on the definition of the European electronic toll service, as referred to in Article 4(4), have been taken.
Article 4Features of the European electronic toll service1.The European electronic toll service shall be based on the items listed in the Annex to this Directive.2.Where appropriate, the Annex may be adapted for technical reasons. Those measures, designed to amend non-essential elements of this Directive, shall be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in Article 5(2).3.The European electronic toll service shall employ the technological solutions referred to in Article 2, using specifications which shall be publicly available.4.The decisions relating to the definition of the European electronic toll service shall be taken by the Commission. Those measures, designed to amend non-essential elements of this Directive by supplementing it, shall be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in Article 5(2). Such decisions shall only be taken if all the conditions, evaluated on the basis of appropriate studies, are in place to enable interoperability to work from all points of view, including technical, legal and commercial conditions.5.Technical decisions relating to the realisation of the European electronic toll service shall be taken by the Commission. Those measures, designed to amend non-essential elements of this Directive by supplementing it, shall be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in Article 5(2).7.The Commission shall ask the relevant standardisation bodies, in particular the CEN, in accordance with the procedure laid down by Directive 98/34/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 June 1998 laying down a procedure for the provision of information in the field of technical standards and regulationsOJ L 204, 21.7.1998, p. 37. Directive as last amended by the 2003 Act of Accession., to make every necessary effort rapidly to adopt standards applicable to electronic toll systems with regard to the technologies listed in Article 2(1).8.Equipment for the European electronic toll service shall comply in particular with the requirements of Directives 1999/5/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 March 1999 on radio equipment and telecommunications terminal equipment and the mutual recognition of their conformityOJ L 91, 7.4.1999, p. 10. Directive as amended by Regulation (EC) No 1882/2003. and Council Directive 89/336/EEC of 3 May 1989 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to electromagnetic compatibilityOJ L 139, 23.5.1989, p. 19. Directive as last amended by Directive 93/68/EEC (OJ L 220, 30.8.1993, p. 1)..
Article 5Committee procedure1.The Commission shall be assisted by an Electronic Toll Committee.2.Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 5a(1) to (4) and Article 7 of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply, having regard to the provisions of Article 8 thereof.
Article 6ImplementationMember States shall bring into force the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with this Directive before 20 November 2005. They shall immediately forward to the Commission the text of those provisions, together with a table correlating those provisions with this Directive.When Member States adopt these measures, they shall contain a reference to this Directive or be accompanied by such a reference on the occasion of their official publication. The methods of making such reference shall be laid down by Member States.
Article 7Entry into forceThis Directive shall enter into force on the 20th day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.
Article 8AddresseesThis Directive is addressed to the Member States.
nullANNEXItems required for the definition and deployment of the European electronic toll serviceThe matters listed below are essential for the definition and deployment of the European electronic toll service set up under the Directive. These matters are distinguished between technical, procedural and legal issues:Technical issues:(a)operational procedures for the service: subscription, instructions for use, installation and attachment of on-board equipment in vehicles, processing of transactions at toll stations or for continuous charging, procedures for recovering transaction data in the event of equipment breakdown or malfunction, control systems, invoicing and collection of sums due, after-sales service, customer assistance, definition of the level of service offered to customers; when establishing such operational procedures, the existing procedures in the Member States shall be taken into account;(b)functional specifications of the service: description of the functions of on-board equipment and ground-based equipment;(c)technical specifications of ground-based and on-board equipment supporting the service, and the standards, certification procedures and constraints to be observed;(d)launching and following up work involving relevant standardisation bodies, and any technical additions to the standards or pre-standards used, in order to ensure interoperability,(e)specifications for installing on-board equipment;(f)transactional models: precise definition of transactional algorithms for each different type of toll (fixed-point tolls or continuous charging), and definition of the data exchanged between on-board and ground-based equipment and of the data formats;(g)arrangements for the availability of on-board equipment to meet the demand of all interested users;Procedural issues:(h)procedures for verification of technical performance of on-board equipment, roadside equipment and the way equipment is installed in vehicles;(i)parameters for vehicle classification: validation of a Community list of technical parameters from which each Member State will select those it wishes to use for its charging policy. The parameters will represent vehicles' physical, engine and environmental characteristics. Establishment of vehicle classes based on those parameters will be a matter for Member States;(j)implementation of procedures for dealing with particular cases, such as any type of malfunction. This relates in particular to cases in which the road toll operators and the customer come from different countries;Legal issues:(k)validation of the chosen technical solutions vis-à-vis the Community rules protecting the freedoms and fundamental rights of individuals, including their privacy. In particular, it will be necessary to ensure compliance with Directive 95/46/EC and Directive 2002/58/EC;(l)setting non-discriminatory common rules and minimum requirements which potential service providers should respect when providing the service;(m)assessment of the possibility of harmonising the rules of enforcement relating to electronic road tolls;(n)a memorandum of understanding between road toll operators, enabling the European electronic toll service to be implemented, including conflict resolution procedures.
Article 1Objective and scope1.This Directive lays down the conditions necessary to ensure the interoperability of electronic road toll systems in the Community. It applies to the electronic collection of all types of road fees, on the entire Community road network, urban and interurban, motorways, major and minor roads, and various structures such as tunnels, bridges and ferries.2.This Directive does not apply to:(a)road toll systems for which no electronic means of toll collection exists;(b)electronic road toll systems which do not need the installation of on-board equipment;(c)small, strictly local road toll systems for which the costs of compliance with the requirements of this Directive would be disproportionate to the benefits.3.To achieve the objective set in paragraph 1, a European electronic toll service shall be created. This service, which is complementary to the national electronic toll services of the Member States, shall ensure the interoperability throughout the Community, for users, of the electronic toll systems that have already been introduced in the Member States and of those to be introduced in the future in the framework of this Directive.
Article 2Technological solutions1.All new electronic toll systems brought into service on or after 1 January 2007 shall, for carrying out electronic toll transactions, use one or more of the following technologies:(a)satellite positioning;(b)mobile communications using the GSM-GPRS standard (reference GSM TS 03.60/23.060);(c)5,8 GHz microwave technology2.The European electronic toll service shall be brought into service pursuant to Article 3(1). Operators shall make available to interested users on-board equipment which is suitable for use with all electronic toll systems in service in the Member States using the technologies referred to in paragraph 1 and which is suitable for use in all types of vehicle, in accordance with the timetable set out in Article 3(4). This equipment shall at least be interoperable and capable of communicating with all the systems operating in the Member States using one or more of the technologies listed in paragraph 1. The detailed arrangements in this respect shall be determined by the Committee referred to in Article 5(1), including arrangements for the availability of on-board equipment to meet the demand of interested users.3.It is recommended that new electronic toll systems brought into service after the adoption of this Directive use the satellite positioning and mobile communications technologies listed in paragraph 1. In respect of the possible migration to systems using such technologies by systems using other technologies, the Commission, in liaison with the Committee referred to in Article 5(1), shall draw up a report by 31 December 2009. This report shall include a study of use of each of the technologies referred to in paragraph 1, as well as a cost-benefit analysis. If appropriate, the Commission shall accompany the report with a proposal to the European Parliament and the Council for a migration strategy.4.Without prejudice to paragraph 1, on-board equipment may also be suitable for other technologies, on condition that this does not lead to an additional burden for users or create discrimination between them. Where relevant, on-board equipment may also be linked to the vehicle's electronic tachograph.5.Where Member States have toll systems, they shall take the necessary measures to increase the use of electronic toll systems. They shall endeavour to ensure that, by 1 January 2007 at the latest, at least 50 % of traffic flow in each toll station can use electronic toll systems. Lanes used for electronic toll collection may also be used for toll collection by other means, with due regard to safety.6.Interoperability work on existing toll technologies undertaken in connection with the European electronic toll service shall ensure the full compatibility and interfacing of those technologies with the technologies referred to in paragraph 1 and of their equipment with each other.7.Member States shall ensure that processing of personal data necessary for the operation of the European electronic toll service is carried out in accordance with the Community rules protecting the freedoms and fundamental rights of individuals, including their privacy, and that, in particular, the provisions of Directives 95/46/EC and 2002/58/EC are complied with.
Article 3Setting-up of a European electronic toll service1.A European electronic toll service shall be set up which encompasses all the road networks in the Community on which tolls or road-usage fees are collected electronically. This electronic toll service will be defined by a contractual set of rules allowing all operators and/or issuers to provide the service, a set of technical standards and requirements and a single subscription contract between the clients and the operators and/or issuers offering the service. This contract shall give access to the service on the whole of the network and subscriptions shall be available from the operator of any part of the network and/or from the issuer.2.The European electronic toll service shall be independent of the fundamental decisions taken by Member States to levy tolls on particular types of vehicles, of the level of charges and of the purpose for which such charges are levied. It shall concern only the method of collecting tolls or fees. The service shall allow for contracts to be concluded irrespective of the place of registration of the vehicle, the nationality of the parties to the contract, and the zone or point on the road network in respect of which the toll is due.3.The system shall allow intermodality to develop without creating disadvantages for other modes of transport.4.Where Member States have national systems of electronic toll collection, they shall ensure that operators and/or issuers offer the European electronic toll service to their customers in accordance with the following timetable:(a)for all vehicles exceeding 3,5 tonnes and for all vehicles which are allowed to carry more than nine passengers (driver + 8), at the latest three years after the decisions on the definition of the European electronic toll service, as referred to in Article 4(4), have been taken;(b)for all other types of vehicle, at the latest five years after the decisions on the definition of the European electronic toll service, as referred to in Article 4(4), have been taken.
Article 4Features of the European electronic toll service1.The European electronic toll service shall be based on the items listed in the Annex to this Directive.2.Where appropriate, the Annex may be adapted for technical reasons. Those measures, designed to amend non-essential elements of this Directive, shall be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in Article 5(2).3.The European electronic toll service shall employ the technological solutions referred to in Article 2, using specifications which shall be publicly available.4.The decisions relating to the definition of the European electronic toll service shall be taken by the Commission. Those measures, designed to amend non-essential elements of this Directive by supplementing it, shall be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in Article 5(2). Such decisions shall only be taken if all the conditions, evaluated on the basis of appropriate studies, are in place to enable interoperability to work from all points of view, including technical, legal and commercial conditions.5.Technical decisions relating to the realisation of the European electronic toll service shall be taken by the Commission. Those measures, designed to amend non-essential elements of this Directive by supplementing it, shall be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in Article 5(2).7.The Commission shall ask the relevant standardisation bodies, in particular the CEN, in accordance with the procedure laid down by Directive 98/34/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 June 1998 laying down a procedure for the provision of information in the field of technical standards and regulationsOJ L 204, 21.7.1998, p. 37. Directive as last amended by the 2003 Act of Accession., to make every necessary effort rapidly to adopt standards applicable to electronic toll systems with regard to the technologies listed in Article 2(1).8.Equipment for the European electronic toll service shall comply in particular with the requirements of Directives 1999/5/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 March 1999 on radio equipment and telecommunications terminal equipment and the mutual recognition of their conformityOJ L 91, 7.4.1999, p. 10. Directive as amended by Regulation (EC) No 1882/2003. and Council Directive 89/336/EEC of 3 May 1989 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to electromagnetic compatibilityOJ L 139, 23.5.1989, p. 19. Directive as last amended by Directive 93/68/EEC (OJ L 220, 30.8.1993, p. 1)..
Article 5Committee procedure1.The Commission shall be assisted by an Electronic Toll Committee.2.Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 5a(1) to (4) and Article 7 of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply, having regard to the provisions of Article 8 thereof.
Article 6ImplementationMember States shall bring into force the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with this Directive before 20 November 2005. They shall immediately forward to the Commission the text of those provisions, together with a table correlating those provisions with this Directive.When Member States adopt these measures, they shall contain a reference to this Directive or be accompanied by such a reference on the occasion of their official publication. The methods of making such reference shall be laid down by Member States.
Article 7Entry into forceThis Directive shall enter into force on the 20th day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.
Article 8AddresseesThis Directive is addressed to the Member States.
nullANNEXItems required for the definition and deployment of the European electronic toll serviceThe matters listed below are essential for the definition and deployment of the European electronic toll service set up under the Directive. These matters are distinguished between technical, procedural and legal issues:Technical issues:(a)operational procedures for the service: subscription, instructions for use, installation and attachment of on-board equipment in vehicles, processing of transactions at toll stations or for continuous charging, procedures for recovering transaction data in the event of equipment breakdown or malfunction, control systems, invoicing and collection of sums due, after-sales service, customer assistance, definition of the level of service offered to customers; when establishing such operational procedures, the existing procedures in the Member States shall be taken into account;(b)functional specifications of the service: description of the functions of on-board equipment and ground-based equipment;(c)technical specifications of ground-based and on-board equipment supporting the service, and the standards, certification procedures and constraints to be observed;(d)launching and following up work involving relevant standardisation bodies, and any technical additions to the standards or pre-standards used, in order to ensure interoperability,(e)specifications for installing on-board equipment;(f)transactional models: precise definition of transactional algorithms for each different type of toll (fixed-point tolls or continuous charging), and definition of the data exchanged between on-board and ground-based equipment and of the data formats;(g)arrangements for the availability of on-board equipment to meet the demand of all interested users;Procedural issues:(h)procedures for verification of technical performance of on-board equipment, roadside equipment and the way equipment is installed in vehicles;(i)parameters for vehicle classification: validation of a Community list of technical parameters from which each Member State will select those it wishes to use for its charging policy. The parameters will represent vehicles' physical, engine and environmental characteristics. Establishment of vehicle classes based on those parameters will be a matter for Member States;(j)implementation of procedures for dealing with particular cases, such as any type of malfunction. This relates in particular to cases in which the road toll operators and the customer come from different countries;Legal issues:(k)validation of the chosen technical solutions vis-à-vis the Community rules protecting the freedoms and fundamental rights of individuals, including their privacy. In particular, it will be necessary to ensure compliance with Directive 95/46/EC and Directive 2002/58/EC;(l)setting non-discriminatory common rules and minimum requirements which potential service providers should respect when providing the service;(m)assessment of the possibility of harmonising the rules of enforcement relating to electronic road tolls;(n)a memorandum of understanding between road toll operators, enabling the European electronic toll service to be implemented, including conflict resolution procedures.