In recent months, the Italian government has introduced important changes to Article 175 of the Highway Code, which regulates speed limits and traffic rules for vehicles, with particular attention to the needs of the road haulage sector. These updates aim to improve road safety, optimize traffic management and promote more sustainable transport.
THE MAIN CHANGES: SPEED AND QUALIFICATIONS
One of the most significant changes concerns the reduction of speed limits for certain heavy vehicles. In particular, for vehicles over 3.5 tonnes, the speed limit on motorways has been lowered from 130 km/h to 120 km/h. This measure aims to reduce the risk of serious accidents and improve safety on large motorway junctions, often frequented by large and heavy vehicles. In addition, the speed limits on some extra-urban and urban roads have also been revised. For commercial vehicles, the speed limit on dual carriageway roads has been set at 80 km/h, while in urban areas it remains at 50 km/h, but with some exceptions and new, more flexible traffic rules for limited traffic areas. Another important innovation concerns professional certifications. An update to the regulations on driver training has been introduced, with the aim of ensuring more in-depth training on safety, the use of on-board technology and risk management.
PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS FOR HAULERS
On a practical level, for hauliers these innovations mean an adjustment of their fleets and operating procedures. All the changes and updates reported are naturally aimed at improving the circulation of vehicles, even if sometimes, due to the inconvenient or even dangerous positions in which the vehicles stop, authorised emergency workers are unable to intervene quickly because they are busy with other interventions or do not have the tyre needed to restart the vehicle. And with the arrival of the warm season and the increase in vehicles circulating on the major Italian arteries, the situation can only get more complicated. It would be useful to think and study a way to broaden the radius of action of highway rescuers (especially in the hottest periods) or, in special cases, to foresee the involvement of rescuers who generally do not have the possibility of operating on the highway, in order to facilitate the restarting of the vehicle in the shortest possible time.
