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Public Safety Standards
Bundesrepublik Deutschland

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Document Title: Mountain-bicycles - Safety requirements and test methods

German Designator: DIN EN 14781

Date: March 2006

National Foreword Designations:

This standard includes safety requirements within the meaning of the Geräte- und Produktsicherheitsgesetz (German Equipment and Product Safety Law)

This standard has been prepared by CEN/TC 333 ‘Cycles’ (Secretariat: Italy).

The responsible German body involved in its preparation was the Normenausschuss Sport- und Freizeitgerät (Sports Equipment Standards Committee), Technical Committee 112-06-01 AA Fahrräder für allgemeine und sportliche Benutzung SpA ISO/TC 149 and SC 1; CEN/TC 333, WG 1, WG 2 and WG 3.

City and trekking bicycles as specified in this standard fall within the scope of the Geräte- und Produktsicherheitsgesetz. Once compliance with the safety requirements specified therein has been verified by an accredited test house designated by the Bundesminister für Wirtschaft und Arbeit (German Federal Ministry of Labour and Economics), the city and trekking bicycles may be marked with the symbol GS (= geprüfte Sicherheit, safety tested).

The DIN Standard corresponding to the International Standard referred to in clause 2 of the EN is as follows: ISO 1101 is DIN ISO 1101 and ISO 7636 is DIN ISO 7636.

Mandate: Prepared Under European Commission Mandate 508

Purchase From DIN: DIN EN 14781

View Standard: Documents have been removed from view until resolution of pending litigation. Currently available standards are listed in Table 01.


Analysis

EN 14781 is a 2005 standard for the safety of racing bicycles. It is one of a family of standards including EN 14765 (bicycles for young children), EN 14764 (city and trekking bicycles), and EN 14766 (mountain bicycles).

The standard is an 85-page document with extremely detailed safety and testing specifications all components of the bicycle. The brake tests, for example, cover 11 pages and cover the security of screws, how to conduct strength tests, crack detection methods, specification of maximum protrusions, brake-lever position and dimensions, adjustment mechanisms, and braking distances.

The standard was formally endorsed by the Commission in Decision 2006/514/EC on July 20, 2006. By publishing in this manner, the Commission establishes that the standard meets the general safety standards set out by the Commission and should be “presumed” to be safe.

The Commission went further than simply endorsing the 2006 standard. Bicycle safety is so important in Europe that it issued Decision 2011/786/EU on November 29, 2011. That decision reaffirmed the 2006 Decision that the earlier standards, “even without a Commission mandate,” should be entered into force in the Official Journal of the European Union “provided that the standards ensure compliance with the general safety requirement laid down in that Directive.”

The 2011 reaffirms the importance of the standards and is a reaction to a CEN announcement that it was considering revision of the documents. The Commission ordered a Mandate to be issued which would drive the revision process, laying out specific safety and testing requirements. The annex to the Decision lays out a number of specific criteria including braking systems, sharp edges, protrusions and entrapment, mechanical and chemical properties, and product safety information.

The 2011 Decision then resulted in Mandate 508 to CEN, laying out specific criteria for public participation in order to meet the Commission requirements. The Mandate requires that CEN involve the participation of the the European Association for the Co-ordination of Consumer Representation in Standardisation ( ANEC ), the European Environmental Citizens Organisation for Standardisation ( ECOS ), the European Trade Union Institute for Research, Education, Health and Safety ( ETUI ) and the European Office of Crafts, Trades and Small and Medium sized Enterprises for Standardisation ( NORMAPME ) to take part in the standardisation work.

In addition to the formal consultation process with the above-mentioned Quasi Non Governmental Organizations (QUANGOs), the Mandate specifies that CEN should also “coordinate with the European Commission Directorate-General Joint Research Centre in order to explore if the Commission's research institutes dispose of specific competence to support the standardisation work” and to perform liaison functions with the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), ISO and other regulatory agencies to “ensure coherence.”

Bicycle safety is a subject of great importance in Europe and elsewhere. In Europe, a strong consumer voice is represented by groups such as the European Cyclists’ Federation and by groups such as the European Transport Safety Council (ETSC), a group formed in 1993 “response to the persistent and unacceptably high European road casualty toll and public concern about individual transport tragedies.” A recent study by ETSC, “ Pedalling Towards Safety ,” details the attention paid to this crucial issue throughout the European Union.

In the United States, bicycle safety is covered by an openly available federal regulation, 16 CFR 1512 , “Requirements for Bicycles.” The topic is also of great concern in other regions of the world. New Zealand, for example, governs the area under Council Regulation SR 2000/167 , Product Safety Standards (Pedal Bicycles) Regulations, and has mandated the promulgation of key standards such as AS-NZS 1927 , “Pedal bicycles - Safety requirements,” and AS-NZS 2063 , “Bicycle Helmets.”

Likewise, the subject has received a great deal of attention in India, where the Transport Engineering Division has promulgated 30 detailed standards governing bicycle safety. In Japan, a series of mandated standards have been promulgated including JIS D 9301 , “Bicycle for general use,” JIS D 9302 , “Bicycles for young children,” JIS D9401 , “Frame -- Assembly for Bicycles,” and JIS D 9414 , “Bicycles --Brakes.”

Bicycles are not an obscure product where safety standards only matter to a few manufacturers. Bicycle owners have a direct and daily interaction with their bicycles. Parents, enthusiasts, local regulators, and many others care deeply about the safety of their vehicles. Over 7% of EU citizens use a bicycle as their main mode of transport according to a 2010 EU study. Over 20 million bicycles are sold per year in Europe according to COLIPED’s 2013 survey.

The European Commission has clearly endorsed increased use of the bicycle and increased bicycle safety measures as part of an ambitious Road Safety Program for 2011-2020. The policy goals for this program state that “for many potential cyclists, real or perceived road safety risks remain a decisive obstacle.” One the most important steps one can take to increasing safety is to make sure that safety information is more widely available.


Last Updated: May 15, 2014


Published by Public.Resource.Org