69. Concerning the proposal under item 4.7.3., WP.29 took note that the technical provisions were proposed to WP.29 and AC.1 on the basis of a consensus by GRRF. The Chair of GRRF informed WP.29 that GRRF did not conclude their discussion on the dates of the transitional provisions, necessary for the introduction of the technical requirements as the 02 series of amendments to Regulation No. 79. WP.29, with the exception of Japan, agreed that this policy matter should be decided during this session. The representative from OICA introduced WP.29-171-28 proposing to align the transitional provisions on those in the guidelines proposed in ECE/TRANS/WP.29/2017/53 as well as proposing alternative transitional provisions dates. The representative from Japan introduced WP.29-171-34 expressing concerns that the application date of the new technical requirements for all types of vehicles was decided without an ad hoc meeting of GRRF and that the application date could have some influence for existing models equipped with these functions being beneficial for safety that would need to be modified to comply with the 02 series of amendments to UN Regulation No.79. He proposed to discuss this issue before next June session and introduce a footnote in the Regulation stating that the date mentioned in para. 12.3 (“[2021/2024]”) may be reassessed at the 172nd session of WP.29. The representative of OICA welcomed the statements by the representative of Japan and explained that the proposed 02 series of amendments to UN Regulation No. 79 entailed far more than software changes and that the implications were far-reaching, as detailed in WP.29-171-28. The secretariat mentioned that the proposed footnote (if adopted) would not take effect before the potential entry into force of this 02 series, expected in January 2018 and proposed instead to insert the corresponding information in the session report, recalling the wish of Japan to reassess para. 12.3. at the June 2017 session of WP.29. The representative of EU mentioned that fatalities occurred in the past related to the misuse of these advanced technologies and informed about their mandate to vote in favour of the current proposed text at this session on the basis of the year 2021 as an application date.

70. Agenda item 4.7.3, Regulation No. 79, ECE/TRANS/WP.29/2017/10, amend the document as reproduced in Annex IV to the session report.