Vol. 143, No. 4 — February 18, 2009

Registration

SOR/2009-34 February 5, 2009

MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY ACT

Regulations Amending the Motor Vehicle Safety Regulations (Door Locks and Door Retention Components)

P.C. 2009-168 February 5, 2009

Whereas the proposed Regulations Amending the Motor Vehicle Safety Regulations (Door Locks and Door Retention Components) make no substantive change to existing regulations and are therefore, by virtue of subsection 11(4) of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act (see footnote a), not required to be published under subsection 11(3) of that Act;

Therefore, Her Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities, pursuant to subsection 11(1) of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act (see footnote b), hereby makes the annexed Regulations Amending the Motor Vehicle Safety Regulations (Door Locks and Door Retention Components).

REGULATIONS AMENDING THE MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY REGULATIONS (DOOR LOCKS AND DOOR RETENTION COMPONENTS)

AMENDMENT

1. Section 206 of Schedule IV to the Motor Vehicle Safety Regulations (see footnote 1) is replaced by the following:

206. (1) Subject to subsection (2), every enclosed motorcycle, multi-purpose passenger vehicle, three-wheeled vehicle, passenger car and truck that is equipped with side doors or back doors shall be so equipped in accordance with either

(a) the requirements of Technical Standards Document No. 206, Door Locks and Door Retention Components (TSD 206), as amended from time to time; or

(b) the general requirements, performance requirements and test procedures set out in ECE Regulation No. 11, entitled Uniform Provisions Concerning the Approval of Vehicles with regard to Door Latches and Door Retention Components, in the version dated June 11, 2007, as amended from time to time after that date by any amendment in the 03 series of amendments.

(2) Subject to subsection (5), until August 31, 2011, every enclosed motorcycle, multi-purpose passenger vehicle, three-wheeled vehicle, passenger car and truck that is equipped with side doors or back doors may be so equipped in accordance with the requirements of TSD 206 as it read on August 23, 1996, instead of in accordance with subsection (1).

(3) Beginning on September 1, 2011, every bus with a GVWR of 4 536 kg or less that is equipped with side doors or back doors shall be so equipped in accordance with subsection (1).

(4) For the purposes of paragraph 6.3.2 of ECE Regulation No. 11, the locking device shall be the device referred to in paragraph 6.3.2.1(a) or (b) of that Regulation.

(5) Despite sections S5.1.1.2 and S5.4.1.2 of TSD 206 as it read on August 23, 1996, compliance with sections S4.1.1.3 and S4.4.1.4 of that document shall be demonstrated in accordance with paragraph S5.1.1.4(a) or (b) of the document referred to in paragraph (1)(a).

(6) This section expires on June 1, 2013.

COMING INTO FORCE

2. These Regulations come into force on the day on which they are published in the Canada Gazette, Part II.

REGULATORY IMPACT
ANALYSIS STATEMENT

(This statement is not part of the Regulations.)

Issue and objectives

This amendment of the Motor Vehicle Safety Regulations, section 206 Door Locks and Door Retention Components (the Canadian safety standard) will delay by two years, from September 1, 2009 to September 1, 2011, the mandatory compliance date for recently incorporated testing requirements. This delay will minimize the impact on manufacturers of these new testing requirements.

Subsection 12(4) of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act requires that sections of the regulations that incorporate Technical Standards Documents expire five years after the day on which they come into force to allow for a review of the safety requirements. The section 206 is set to expire on January 1, 2010. As a result, it is also necessary to reintroduce the Canadian safety standard to clarify to manufacturers that this safety standard will continue to apply to current and future vehicles.

Description and rationale

Auto manufacturers have requested that the mandatory compliance date of September 1, 2009 for amendments to the Canadian safety standard that were published in the Canada Gazette, Part II on April 2, 2008 be delayed. This amendment will grant a delay in the mandatory compliance date for a period of two years, thus allowing manufacturers to follow the existing testing requirements until August 31, 2011. This delay is required by manufacturers to accommodate their design and production cycles. Several manufacturers have noted that they have vehicles, which are near the end of their design life, that have not been tested to the new testing procedures. Introducing the new testing procedures as originally intended would result in substantial vehicle redesigns for these vehicles that are nearing the end of their production cycle.

This amendment will also extend the expiration date of the Canadian safety standard for a further five years, until June 1, 2013. This will ensure that the safety requirements it contains, through incorporation by reference of the Technical Standard Document, will not cease to have the force and effect of law. As this amendment is aligned with similar requirements in the United States, it will not introduce any technical barriers to trade.

Under the Government’s Strategic Environmental Assessment policy, a preliminary evaluation of the possible effects of the amendment was done. It was determined that the amendment would have no impact on the environment.

Consultation

The intent to move forward with this amendment was included in the Department of Transport’s Regulation Plan that is distributed to the automotive industry and other stakeholders, either directly or through various industry and consumer associations on a quarterly basis. This gives them the opportunity to comment on these changes by letter or email. The Department also consults regularly, in face-to-face meetings or teleconferences, with the automotive industry, public safety organizations, the provinces and the territories.

Regarding the need to delay the introduction of the new testing procedures, the Government has been approached by several vehicle manufacturers who have presented information noting that it would be cost prohibitive for them to redesign their vehicles, which are near the end of their production life. The automotive industry has also petitioned the government of the United States to delay the introduction of similar requirements in that country. That amendment will allow two additional years before the introduction of the new requirements in order to provide the vehicle manufacturers sufficient time to introduce the new testing procedures. The delay in the introduction of the testing procedures in the Canadian safety standard will thus ensure that the tests required in Canada and the United States will continue to be aligned with each other.

No additional consultation has been held on this amendment, but the amendment to renew the expiration date of the Canadian safety standard was discussed at several of the meetings with affected stakeholders and the proposal was fully supported by the vehicle manufacturers.

Implementation, enforcement and service standards

Motor vehicle manufacturers and importers are responsible for ensuring that their products conform to the requirements of the Motor Vehicle Safety Regulations. The Department of Transport monitors self-certification programs of manufacturers and importers by reviewing their test documentation, inspecting vehicles, and testing vehicles obtained in the open market. In addition, when a defect in a vehicle or equipment is identified, the manufacturer or importer must issue a Notice of Defect to the owners and to the Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities. If a vehicle does not comply with a Canadian safety standard, the manufacturer or importer is liable to prosecution and, if found guilty, may be fined as prescribed in the Motor Vehicle Safety Act.

Contact

Ghislain Lalime
Regulatory Development Officer
Road Safety and Motor Vehicle Regulation Directorate
Transport Canada
275 Slater Street, 17th floor
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0N5
Email: ghislain.lalime@tc.gc.ca

Footnote a
S.C., 1993, c. 16

Footnote b
S.C., 1993, c. 16

Footnote 1
C.R.C., c. 1038