25.11.2005 Official Journal of the European Union L 309/37 DIRECTIVE 2005/66/EC OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 26 October 2005 relating to the use of frontal protection systems on motor vehicles and amending Council Directive 70/156/EEC THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Com- munity, and in particular Article 95 thereof, Having regard to the proposal from the Commission, Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee ('), Acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 251 of the Treaty (%), Whereas: (1) Systems providing additional frontal protection for motor vehicles have been increasingly used in recent years. Some of these systems constitute a risk to the safety of pedestrians and other road users in the event of a collision. Measures are therefore required in order to safeguard the public against such risks. Frontal protection systems can be provided as original equipment fitted to a vehicle or marketed as separate technical units. The technical requirements for the type approval of motor vehicles with regard to any frontal protection systems that might be fitted to the vehicle should be harmonised in order to prevent the adoption of requirements that vary from one Member State to another and to ensure the proper functioning of the internal market. For the same reasons, it is necessary to harmonise the technical requirements for the type approval of frontal protection systems as separate tech- nical units within the meaning of 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 (%). It is necessary to control the use of frontal protection systems and to establish the test, construction and instal- lation requirements to be complied with by any frontal protection system either supplied as original equipment fitted to a vehicle or placed on the market as a separate technical unit. Tests should require that frontal protec- tion systems are designed in a way that improves pedes- trian safety and reduces the number of injuries. () OJ C 112, 30.4.2004, p. 18. (*) Opinion of the European Parliament of 26 May 2005 (not yet published in the Official Journal) and Council Decision of 11 October 2005. () OJ L 42, 23.2.1970, p. 1. Directive as last amended by Commission Directive 2005/49/EC (O] L 194, 26.7.2005, p. 12). ) These requirements should also be regarded in the context of the protection of pedestrians and other vulnerable road users and with reference to Directive 2003/102/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 November 2003 relating to the protection of pedestrians and other vulnerable road users before and in the event of a collision with a motor vehicle (¥. The present Directive should be reviewed in the light of further research and experience gained during the first four years of its application. This Directive is one of the separate Directives within the framework of the EC type-approval procedure estab- lished by Directive 70/156/EEC. The Commission should monitor the impact of this Directive and report to the European Parliament and the Council. If it is deemed necessary to achieve further improvements in pedestrian protection, the Commission should make proposals to amend this Directive in accordance with technical progress. It is recognised, however, that certain vehicles included in the scope of this Directive, and to which frontal protection systems may be fitted, will not be subject to Directive 2003/102/EC. For such vehicles it is consid- ered that the upper leg test requirements of this Direc- tive may be technically unfeasible. To facilitate an improvement in pedestrian safety, with respect to head injury, it may be necessary to allow alternative require- ments for the upper leg test, for application to those vehicles only, whilst ensuring that the installation of any frontal protection system does not increase the risk of leg injury to pedestrians or other vulnerable road users. The measures necessary for the implementation of this Directive and for its adaptation to scientific and technical progress should be adopted in accordance with Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down the procedures for the exercise of implementing powers conferred on the Commission (). ( OJ L 321, 6.12.2003, p. 15. () OJ L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23.