Russia opts for Morpho

22 July 2010

 

Russia is set to introduce digital tachographs from Safran group’s Morpho company.

The rollout of the cards ensures Russia complies with the European Agreement Concerning the Work of Crews of Vehicles Engaged in International Road Transport (AETR), which stipulates the times at which drivers can be behind the wheel or have to rest.

Morpho is producing the digital tachograph cards at its plant in Flintbek in northern Germany. According to the company, Type approval for the cards is carried out by the German Federal Office for Motor Traffic and all necessary certificates are examined there. The cards’ security and interoperability with various digital tachographs have been independently confirmed by the German Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) and the EU laboratory in Ispra, Italy. The cards are personalised at the company’s Russian subsidiary in Zelenograd.

Digital tachograph systems have been introduced to increase safety on Europe’s roads and harmonise working conditions for truck drivers across the continent. The move to digital technology was agreed by the European Commission which decided to replace the paper-based system for commercial vehicles with a total weight in excess of 3.5 tons and buses with more than nine seats. Digital tachographs reliably record speeds and the times at which drivers are behind the wheel or resting. The digital tachograph system comprises two components: the vehicle unit (VU) and four different smart cards. The tachograph is based on interoperable technology that enables all system components to be used Europe-wide. Apart from the driver card, there is also a smart card for the police and supervisory authorities, a company card for logistics firms and a service card for workshops.