Proposition 55K0589

Projet de loi modifiant, en ce qui concerne la circulation des véhicules prioritaires, l'arrêté royal du 1er décembre 1975 portant règlement général sur la police de la circulation routière et de l'usage de la voie publique.

General information ¶

Authors

N-VA Frieda Gijbels, Yngvild Ingels, Wouter Raskin, Tomas Roggeman

Submission date

Oct. 5, 2019

Official page

Visit

Status

Adopted

Requirement

Simple

Subjects

public safety traffic regulations vehicle road traffic

Voting ¶

Voted to adopt

Groen CD&V Vooruit Ecolo LE DéFI Open Vld N-VA LDD PVDA | PTB VB

Voted to reject

PS | SP

Abstained from voting

MR

Party dissidents ¶

• Philippe Tison (PS | SP) voted to adopt.
• Malik Ben Achour (PS | SP) abstained from voting.

Contact form ¶

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Discussion ¶

July 9, 2020 | Plenary session (Chamber of representatives)

Full source

I think the rapporteur for the first part was Mr Vandenbroucke and for the second part Mrs Verhaert.

Do you have an appointment with Mrs. Verhaert, colleague Vandenbroucke?

I refer to the written report, Mr. Speaker.

Does everyone agree that on this basis we start the general discussion? (the approval of)

I have included Mr. Raskin and Mr. Van den Bergh in my list, but they are both not present. Mr Vandenbroucke, you can immediately take the floor.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to speak after Mr. Raskin. I would like to give the main initiator the honour to outline the strengths.

Normally, his colleagues are delighted if they can shift up in the ranking. These are strange times, but Mr. Raskin is coming.

Mr. Speaker, colleagues, the possibility of using the accident strip by the priority vehicles with an urgent assignment is not an ideal solution. We have already come to this conclusion during the discussion of Mr Vandenbroucke’s bill on the rescue strip, which was voted in the House a few weeks ago.

The proposal presented today creates a legal basis for using that rescue belt during the execution of priority contracts. The initially submitted text was, as usual, submitted for advice to the regions. In the midst of our committee, a ⁇ interesting hearing was organized with numerous experts. What is presented today is an amended text which very explicitly takes into account the opinions of the various regions and which also clearly carries the spirit of the proposal for the revision of the road code. That proposal could not, by reason of circumstances, be reached in the previous legislature. Around the whole, which thus takes into account various factors, a majority formed in the committee that gave green light to this proposal.

By approving this later, priority vehicles with an urgent assignment will be exempted from complying with the provisions of the road code, with the exception of a restrictive list of provisions which they must respect at all times. In addition, the use of blue flashlights in non-urgent contracts is also strengthened in this proposal. This is permitted only when the nature of the assignment requires it. The proposal also includes an adjustment for priority vehicles that use their sound device and are de facto dealing with an urgent task related to passing the red light. Today, the red light can only be bypassed after effectively stopping first. If we later approve this proposal, it will no longer be obliged to stop first before slowly rising again, but may be passed by the light at moderate speed. This is of course, colleagues, provided that other road users are not endangered.

Overall, the present bill thus meets the opinions of the regions and takes into account the spirit of the proposal for a new road code which was already initiated in the previous legislature. In order to optimize it, we have adopted a number of amendments in the committee this afternoon, which ensure that the exception to whom this law applies is somewhat extended. The categories of priority drivers that are not covered by this text will not be reduced in any way tomorrow in the looming by traffic.

Colleagues, I would like to thank you for your support for this proposal and for the constructive debate over the past few months and this afternoon in the committee.

Mr. Speaker, I will be very brief, because Mr. Raskin explained very clearly what is in the amended bill. We and the Mobility Committee fired a two-stage rocket around the situation of emergency services on and around the road. We have already approved the mandatory creation of a rescue strip in the falls. Today we vote on who can drive on it and under what circumstances, and resolve a number of other hassles that make a big difference for the work provided by the emergency services and which is absolutely necessary.

I would like to emphasize that for this purpose we have obtained all the opinions of the regions. We held a very interesting hearing for this and we have had a lot of bilateral contacts with the stakeholders on the ground. Those who have tried to block any attempt to adjust the road code in the Mobility Committee, with the argument that there is actually a need for a general revision of the road code, while they themselves have failed to do so for five years, hopefully stopped their attempt. This two-stage missile has proven that through good cooperation we can make good legislation, even in these circumstances.