The EU Parliament and Commission agree: Sweden does not need to raise the age limit for driving an A-tractor.
At the same time, the EU agreement stipulates that the speed limit for these vehicles will increase from the current 30 kilometers per hour to 45.
The National Traffic Safety Association (NTF) understands the rationale behind considering a higher speed. The risk of other road users becoming frustrated and dangerously overtaking slow-moving vehicles could be mitigated with an increased speed limit.
– But it could also mean increased risks. The higher the speed, the greater the crash force in an accident, says Cecilia Friis, operations developer at NTF West.
Tuning (or removing the speed limiter) remains a significant problem.
It is therefore crucial to make vehicles more difficult to modify. It is difficult to predict whether a higher speed limit will reduce the incentive to tune them, according to Friis.
– We fear that it might not make much of a difference. More needs to be done. Speed is the most important factor in reducing accidents.
With the new EU agreement, there will also be requirements for both practical and theoretical driving tests. Friis views this as a positive step.
It is vital that the training and tests are conducted with the type of vehicle the young driver will actually use. Currently, the same training applies to both mopeds and A-tractors.
– Driving a two-wheeled moped is completely different from driving an A-tractor.
A 16-year age limit was proposed.
Susanne Wallhagen, an investigator at the Swedish National Road and Transport Research Institute, agrees that the new training requirements are a positive development, though the exact implementation remains unclear.
– But we are somewhat doubtful about the decision not to raise the age limit, she says.
– Every year is important at a young age. A 16-year-old should be more mature than a 15-year-old when driving.