UNTC

STATUS AS AT : 06-12-2024 10:16:08 EDT

CHAPTER XI

TRANSPORT AND COMMUNICATIONS

B. Road Traffic

23. European Agreement supplementing the Convention on road traffic opened for signature at Vienna on 8 November 1968

Geneva, 1 May 1971

Entry into force

7 June 1979, in accordance with article 4(1).

Registration

7 June 1979, No. 17847

Status

Signatories : 12. Parties : 37

Text

Certified true copy

United Nations, Treaty Series , vol. 1137. p. 369; depositary notifications C.N.20.1992.TREATIES-1 of 28 February 1992 (proposal of amendments) and C.N.134.1993.TREATIES-1 of 29 July 1993 (acceptance of the amendments); C.N.663.1999.TREATIES-1 of 27 July 1999 (proposal of amendments) and C.N.556.2000.TREATIES-3 of 9 August 2000 (acceptance of amendments); C.N.1022.2004.TREATIES-1 of 28 September 2004 (proposal of amendments) and C.N.999.2005.TREATIES-2 of 29 September 2005 (acceptance of amendments).¹

Note

The text of the Agreement was approved by the Inland Transport Committee of the Economic Commission for Europe on 1 May 1971, at its thirtieth session held at Geneva. In accordance with a decision of the Committee at its thirty-first session, held at Geneva from 1 to 4 February 1971, the period during which the Agreement was open for signature (originally from 1 May 1971 to 30 April 1972) was extended to 31 December 1972 (doc. E/ECE/TRANS/568, paragraph 132).

Participant	Signature	Accession(a), Succession(d), Ratification
Albania		27 Oct 2005 a
Austria	15 Dec 1972	11 Aug 1981
Belarus		17 Dec 1974 a
Belgium	28 Oct 1971	16 Nov 1988
Bosnia and Herzegovina ²		1 Sep 1993 d
Bulgaria		28 Dec 1978 a
Croatia ²		23 Nov 1992 d
Czech Republic ³		2 Jun 1993 d
Denmark	2 May 1972	3 Nov 1986
Estonia		14 Mar 2003 a
Finland	22 Dec 1972	1 Apr 1985
France	29 Dec 1972	16 Jan 1974
Germany ^{4, 5}	28 May 1971	3 Aug 1978
Greece		18 Dec 1986 a
Hungary	29 Dec 1972	16 Mar 1976
Italy		2 Oct 1996
Kazakhstan		21 Apr 2011 a
Latvia		7 Dec 2001 a
Liechtenstein		2 Mar 2020 a
Lithuania		31 Jan 1992 a
Luxembourg	25 May 1971	25 Nov 1975
Monaco		6 Jun 1978 a
Montenegro ⁶		23 Oct 2006 d
Netherlands (Kingdom of the) ⁷		8 Nov 2007 a
North Macedonia ²		20 Dec 1999 d
Poland		23 Aug 1984 a
Republic of Moldova		25 Apr 2007 a
Romania	6 Oct 1972	9 Dec 1980
Russian Federation		27 Sep 1974 a
Serbia ²		12 Mar 2001 d
Slovakia ³		28 May 1993 d
Slovenia ²		6 Jul 1992 d
Sweden	1 Feb 1972	25 Jul 1985
Switzerland	31 Oct 1972	11 Dec 1991
Türkiye		22 Jan 2013 a
Turkmenistan		31 Aug 2020 a
Ukraine		30 Dec 1974 a
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland	27 Oct 1971

Declarations and Reservations

(Unless otherwise indicated, the declarations and reservations were made upon ratification, accession or succession.)

Austria

Reservation:

"Paragraph 18 of the Annex to the European Agreement supplementing the Convention on Road Traffic (referring to article 23 of the Convention) is applied with the exception of the provision under paragraph 3 (a) (i), according to which any halting or parking of a vehicle on the road is prohibited within a distance of less than 5 m before a pedestrian crossing."

Belarus

The Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic considers it necessary to state that the provisions of article 3 of the European Agreement supplementing the Vienna Convention on Road Traffic of 1968 and of article 3 of the European Agreement supplementing the Vienna Convention on Road Signs and Signals of 1968, under which States may extend the applicability of the Agreements to territories for the international relations of which they are responsible, are anachronistic and contrary to the Declaration of the United Nations General Assembly on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples (General Assembly resolution 1514 (XV) of 14 December 1960), which proclaims the necessity of bringing to a speedy and unconditional end colonialism in all its forms and manifestations.

The Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic does not consider itself bound by article 9 of the European Agreement supplementing the Vienna Convention on Road Traffic of 1968 or by article 9 of the European Agreement supplementing the Vienna Convention on Road Signs and Signals of 1968, under which disputes relating to the interpretation or application of the Agreements shall be referred to arbitration if any of the Parties in dispute so requests.

Czech Republic ³

Czech Republic3

Denmark

[ Same reservations as those made by Denmark under chapter XI.B.19. ]

Reservation:

Annex, item 18, re: article 23.3(a) according to which standing or parking shall be prohibited within 5 m. of an intersection.

Estonia

Reservation:

"..., the Republic of Estonia informs that Estonia does not consider itself bound by Article 9 of the Agreement".

Finland

Declaration:

"With respect to article 11, paragraph 3, Finland notified that the reservations Finland has made to article 11 paragraph 1 (a), article 18 paragraph 2 and article 33 paragraph 1 (c) and (d) of the Convention on Road Traffic shall also apply to the European Agreement supplementing the Convention."

France ⁸

France8

Moreover, with regard to article 23, paragraph 3 (a) (i) and 3 (a) (iii), France does not intend to specify metric distances in connexion with the prohibition of standing and parking mentioned in those provisions.

Germany ⁵

Germany5

Reservations:

Ad paragraph 3 of the annex

(Article 1, sub-paragraph (n), of the Convention):

       The Federal Republic of Germany does not consider itself bound by paragraph 3 of the annex (article 1, sub-paragraph (n) of the Convention).
Ad paragraph 18 of the annex
(Article 23, paragraph 3, sub-paragraph (a), new No. (iii) of the Convention):
       The Federal Republic of Germany does not consider itself bound by paragraph 18 of the annex (article 23, paragraph 3, sub-paragraph (a), new No. (iii) of the Convention).
Ad paragraph 18 of the annex
(Article 23, paragraph 3, sub-paragraph (b), new No. (iv) of the Convention):
       The Federal Republic of Germany does not consider itself bound by paragraph 18 of the annex (article 23, paragraph 3, sub-paragraph (b), new No. (iv) of the Convention).

Hungary

Reservation:

The Presidential Council of the Hungarian People's Republic does not consider itself bound by the provisions of article 9 of the Agreement, in pursuance of article 11, paragraph 1, thereof.

Declarations:

The Presidential Council of the Hungarian People's Republic declares that the provisions of article 2 of the European Agreement supplementing the Convention on Road Traffic opened for signature at Vienna on 8 November 1968, opened for signature at Geneva on 1 May 1971, are at variance with the generally recognized principle of the sovereign equality of States and it considers that these international instruments should be open for participation by all interested States without any discrimination.

The Presidential Council of the Hungarian People's Republic further declares that the provisions . . . of article 3 of the European Agreement, supplementing the Convention on Road Traffic opened for signature at Vienna on 8 November 1968 opened for signature at Geneva on 1 May 1971, are at variance with the Declaration of the United Nations General Assembly on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples [resolution 1514 (XV) of 14 December 1960].

Liechtenstein

Reservation with regard to the annex, item 7 ad Article 8 of the Convention, paragraph 5

"The Principality of Liechtenstein does not consider itself bound by the additional paragraph to be inserted immediately after paragraph 5 of article 8 of the Convention."

Declaration with regard to the reservations made under the Convention on Road Traffic

"The relevant reservations of the Principality of Liechtenstein on the Convention on Road Traffic also apply to this Agreement."

Poland ⁹

Poland9

Romania

Reservation made upon signature and confirmed upon ratification:

a. The Socialist Republic of Romania declares that, in accordance with article 11, paragraph 1, of the European Agreement supplementing the Convention on Road Traffic opened for signature at Vienna on 8 November 1968, and with article 11, paragraph 1, of the European Agreement supplementing the Convention on Road Signs and Signals opened for signature at Vienna on 8 November 1968, it does not consider itself bound by article 9 of the two Agreements, under which any dispute between two or more Contracting Parties which relates to the interpretation or application of the Agreements and which is not settled by negotiation is to be referred to arbitration if any of the Parties so requests.

It is the position of the Socialist Republic of Romania that such disputes may be referred to arbitration only with the consent of all the Parties in dispute in each individual case.

Declaration made upon signature:

b. The Council of State of the Socialist Republic of Romania considers that the provisions of article 2 of the European Agreement supplementing the Convention on Road Traffic opened for signature at Vienna on 8 November 1968, and article 2 of the European Agreement supplementing the Convention on Road Signs and Signals opened for signature at Vienna on 8 November 1968, are not in keeping with the principle that multilateral international treaties whose aim and purpose affect the international community as a whole should be opened to universal participation.

Declaration made upon signature and confirmed upon ratification:

c. The Council of State of the Socialist Republic of Romania feels that the maintenance of a dependent status for certain territories to which reference is made by the provisions of article 3 of the European Agreement supplementing the Convention on Road Traffic opened for signature at Vienna on 8 November 1968, is not in keeping with the Charter of the United Nations or with the documents adopted by the United Nations concerning the granting of independence to colonial countries and peoples, including the Declaration on Principles of International Law concerning Friendly Relations and Co-operation among States in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations, which was unanimously adopted in General Assembly resolution 2625 (XXV) of 24 October 1970 and which solemnly proclaims the duty of States to promote realization of the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples in order to bring a speedy end to colonialism.

Russian Federation

Declaration:

The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics considers it necessary to state that the provisions of article 3 of the European Agreement supplementing the Vienna Convention on Road Traffic of 1968 and of article 3 of the European Agreement supplementing the Vienna Convention on Road Signs and Signals of 1968, under which States may extend the applicability of the Agreements to territories for the international relations of which they are responsible, are anachronistic and contrary to the Declaration of the United Nations General Assembly on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples (General Assembly resolution 1514 (XV) of 14 December 1960), which solemnly proclaims the necessity of bringing to a speedy and unconditional end colonialism in all its forms and manifestations.

Reservation:

The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics does not consider itself bound by the provisions of article 9 of the European Agreement supplementing the Vienna Convention on Road Traffic of 1968 or of article 9 of the European Agreement supplementing the Vienna Convention on Road Signs and Signals of 1968 under which disputes relating to the interpretation or application of the Agreements shall be referred to arbitration if any of the Parties in dispute so requests.

Slovakia ³

Slovakia3

Sweden

"The reservations of Sweden to the Convention on Road Traffic also apply to this Agreement."

Reservation concerning article 9:

“Sweden opposes that disputes in which it is involved shall be referred to arbitration."

Switzerland

[See under chapter XI.B.19.]

Ukraine

The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic considers it necessary to state that the provisions of article 3 of the European Agreement supplementing the Vienna Convention on Road Traffic of 1968 and of article 3 of the European Agreement supplementing the Vienna Convention on Road Signs and Signals of 1968, under which States may extend the applicability of the Agreements to territories for the international relations of which they are responsible, are anachronistic and contrary to the Declaration of the United Nations General Assembly on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples (General Assembly resolution 1514 (XV) of 14 December 1960), which proclaims the necessity of bringing to a speedy and unconditional end colonialism in all its forms and manifestations.

The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic does not consider itself bound by the provisions of article 9 of the European Agreement supplementing the Vienna Convention on Road Traffic of 1968 or of article 9 of the European Agreement supplementing the Vienna Convention on Road Signs and Signals of 1968, under which disputes relating to the interpretation or application of the Agreements shall be referred to arbitration if any of the Parties in dispute so requests.

Notifications

(Unless otherwise indicated, the notifications were made upon ratification, accession or succession.)

Liechtenstein

Notification with regard to Art. 6, paragraph 8

"The administration competent in the matter of agreement as contemplated in paragraph 7 of Article 6 shall be:

National Road Office

Gewerbeweg 2

9490 Vaduz

info.asv@llv.li"

End Note

1Amendments to the Agreement, proposed by the Government of Poland, were circulated by the Secretary-General on 28 February 1992. In this regard, a notification made under article 6 (1) (a) was received from the Government of Ukraine on 5 August 1992. Entry into force on 28 August 1993 for all Contracting Parties, except for the following Parties, with respect to which only those amendments which these Parties have not rejected, will enter into force:

Denmark (26 February 1993):

"The Government of Denmark can accept the proposed amendments except what regards article 11, paragraph 11 (a) of item 10, which has to be rejected."

Finland (26 February 1993):

"Finland accepts the proposed amendments to the European Agreement Supplementing the Convention on Road Traffic, but wishes to inform the Depositary and the Contracting Parties, that if the amendments are deemed accepted, Finland will make the following reservations pursuant to article 11, paragraph 2, of the Agreement."

1. Finland does not consider itself to be bound by the first sentence of subparagraph (a) of the proposed amendment to paragraph 10 of the Annex to the European Agreement (ad article 11 of the Convention.)

2. Finland does not consider itself to be bound by subparagraph (f) of the proposed new paragraph 20 bis of the Annex to the European Agreement (ad article 27 bis of the Convention).

Germany (26 February 1993) :

The Federal Republic of Germany can accept the amendments proposed by Poland to the European Agreement of 1 May 1971 supplementing the Convention of 8 November 1968 on Road Traffic with the following reservations:

1. The Federal Republic of Germany does not consider itself bound, as to certain vehicle categories, by paragraph 10 of the annex to article 11 of the Convention (overtaking and movement of traffic in lines).

2. The Federal Republic of Germany does not consider itself bound by paragraph 18 (b) of the annex to article 23 of the Convention (standing and parking) to the extent that the paragraph in question requires the document to bear the holder's name.

3. The Federal Republic of Germany does not consider itself bound, in respect of motorways and similar roads, by paragraph 19 (b) of the annex to article 25 additional paragraph to be inserted immediately after paragraph 3."

Other amendments were proposed by various States and adopted as follows:

3
Object of the amendment:	Proposed by:	Date of circulation and date of entry into force:
Agreement*	Inland Transport Committee	27 July 1999 - EIF: 27 January 2001
Agreement**	Russian Federation	28 September 2004 - EIF: 28 March 2006

*In this regard, the Secretary-General received communications from the following States, on the dates indicated hereinafter:

Germany (26 July 2000) :

The amendments proposed by Austria in document ECE/RCTE/CONF./6/FINAL require, under German law, the approval of the competent legislative bodies. Moreover, they refer to the Agreement concerning the Adoption of Uniform Conditions for Periodic Technical Inspections of Wheeled Vehicles and the Reciprocal Recognition of Such Inspections, done at Vienna on 13 November 1997 (Vienna Agreement of 1997). Germany accepts Austria's proposed amendments, subject to the approval by its legislative bodies. Germany reserves the right not to apply paragraph 4 of the Annex to the European Agreement of 1 May 1971 supplementing the Convention on Road Traffic of 8 November 1968, which amends article 3 of the Convention on Road Traffic, paragraph 26 (bis) of the Annex to the European Agreement supplementing the Convention on Road Traffic, which amends article 39 of the Convention, and paragraph 26 (ter) of the Annex to the European Agreement, which amends article 40 of the Convention, in so far as these provisions refer to the abovementioned Vienna Areement of 1997 and as long as the latter Agreement has not been rated either by its competent legislative bodies or by the European Union with effect for Germany.

Switzerland (26 July 2000):

Switzerland has no objection to the amendments proposed by Austria

Switzerland will apply the provisions contained in paragraphs 4, 26 bis and 26 ter of the Annex to the European Agreement supplementing the 1968 Convention on Road Traffic insofar as they relate to the Agreement concerning the Adoption of Uniform Conditions for Periodic Technical Inspections of Wheeled Vehicles and the Reciprocal Recognition of Such Inspections, done at Vienna on 13 November 1997, only if the latter Agreement is ratified.

** In this regard, communications were received by the following States ont the dates indicated hereinafter:

Switzerland (26 September 2005):

“... Switzerland has no objection to the proposed amendments transmitted on 28 September 2004.”

Finland (28 September 2005):

“... Finland has no objection to the proposed amendments transmitted on 28 September 2004.

The Government of Finland furthermore informed the Secretary-General of the following:

"... the Government of Finland wishes to recall that the acceptance of the amendments shall not affect the reservations made by the Government of Finland to the said Agreement".

2The former Yugoslavia had acceeded to the Agreement on 1 October 1976. See also note 1 under “Bosnia and Herzegovina”, “Croatia”, “former Yugoslavia”, “Slovenia”, “The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia” and “Yugoslavia” in the “Historical Information” section in the front matter of this volume.

3Czechoslovakia had acceded to the Convention on 7 June 1978, with a reservation and a declaration. For the text of the reservation and the declaration, see United Nations, Treaty Series , 1137, p. 415. See also note 1 under “Czech Republic” and note 1 under “Slovakia” in the “Historical Information” section in the front matter of this volume.

4See note 1 under “Germany” regarding Berlin (West) in the “Historical Information” section in the front matter of this volume.

5The German Democratic Republic had acceded to the Agreement on 18 August 1975 with a reservation and declarations. For the text of the reservation and declarations, see United Nations, Treaty Series , vol. 1137, p. 417. See also note 2 under “Germany” in the “Historical Information” section in the front matter of this volume.

6See note 1 under "Montenegro" in the "Historical Information" section in the front matter of this volume.

7For the Kingdom in Europe.

8In a communication received on 30 October 1980, the Government of France notified the Secretary-General that it withdrew its reservation with regard to article 20, paragraph 5 of the Agreement. For the text of the said reservation, see United Nations, Treaty Series , vol. 1137, p. 416.

9On 16 October 1997, the Government of Poland notified the Secretary-General that it had decided to withdraw its reservation with regard to article 9 of the Agreement made upon accession. For the text of the reservation see United Nations, Treaty Series , vol. 1365, p. 350.

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