Citation and commencement

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Public Service Vehicles Accessibility (Amendment) Regulations 2005 and shall come into force on 12th December 2005.

Modification

2. For regulation 5 of the Public Service Vehicles Accessibility Regulations 2000( 2 ) there shall be substituted—

“ Recognition of compliance with EC and EEA equivalent requirements

5. —(1) The requirements of these Regulations specified in Schedule 1, or Schedule 2 (but not paragraph 8 of Schedule 2), shall not apply to a bus of Class I for which a Certificate of Conformity has been issued on the basis that the bus complies with Article 3 to the 2001 Directive and in such a case the vehicle examiner may issue an accessibility certificate in respect of the bus as though the bus had complied with those requirements of these Regulations.

(2) In the case of a bus which has not been issued with an accessibility certificate pursuant to paragraph (1), the requirements of these Regulations specified in Schedule 1, or Schedule 2 (but not paragraph 8 of Schedule 2), shall not apply if the bus satisfies—

(a) the requirements of such of Annexes I to VI and VIII and IX to the 2001 Directive as apply to it; and

(b) the requirements of Annex VII to the 2001 Directive,

and in such a case the vehicle examiner may issue an accessibility certificate in respect of the bus as though the bus had complied with those requirements of these Regulations.

(3) The requirements of these Regulations specified in Schedule 1, or Schedule 3 (but not paragraph 7 of Schedule 3), shall not apply to a coach which satisfies—

(a) the requirements of such of Annexes I to VI and VIII and IX to the 2001 Directive as apply to it; and

(b) the requirements of Annex VII to the 2001 Directive,

and in such a case the vehicle examiner may issue an accessibility certificate in respect of the coach as though the coach had complied with those requirements of these Regulations.

(4) Where there is produced to the Secretary of State evidence that satisfies him that a regulated public service vehicle has been found by the competent authority of another EEA State to conform with requirements that are equivalent to all, or some of, the requirements prescribed for that vehicle under these Regulations (including the requirements of the 2001 Directive mentioned in paragraphs (1) to (3) above), that vehicle shall, by virtue of that evidence, be regarded as conforming with those (and only those) requirements for the purposes of these Regulations.

(5) In this Regulation—

(a) “the 2001 Directive” means Directive 2001/85/EC of the European Parliament and Council of 20th November 2001 relating to special provisions for vehicles used for the carriage of passengers comprising more than eight seats in addition to the driver’s seat and amending Directives 70/156/ EEC and ( 97/27/EC 3 ) ;

(b) “a bus of Class I” means a bus constructed with areas for free standing passengers, to allow frequent passenger movement; and

(c) “a Certificate of Conformity” means a certificate issued by a manufacturer—

(i) pursuant to regulation 5 of the Motor Vehicles (EC Type Approval) Regulations 1998 ( 4 ) , or

(ii) under any provision of law of a Member State other than the United Kingdom giving effect to Council Directive 70/156/EEC of 6 February 1970 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to the type-approval of motor vehicles and their trailers ( 5 ) . ” .