High cost and time pressure, long separations from family, weekends in barren parking lots – truckers in cross-border transport can tell you a thing or two about this. To make life easier for them, to ensure fairer competition and safer roads, the EU created the Mobility Package I.

To enable the authorities to monitor compliance with the package, all newly registered vehicles over 3.5 tons must be equipped with a new 2nd generation tachograph (Gen2) in its 2nd version since August 21, 2023. The DTCO® 4.1 from Conti subsidiary VDO is one such tachograph that meets all the requirements. And there’s more: the new VDO Fleet Services additionally offer fleets in cross-border traffic a range of innovative services that allow you to maximize the potential of the precision device.

Intelligent and connected to the outside world, the tachograph helps solve tasks that require trustworthy and unique data. Photo: Continental.

These services are available to you

• VDO Fleet Tachograph Management takes into account the different national working time regulations within Europe, such as night work requirements. With automatically generated letters, you can inform your drivers about remaining operating times.
• With just two mouse clicks, the VDO Fleet Scorecard (ERRU) shows you an overview of all violations in the fleet and per driver. You can see immediately whether certain limits are about to be exceeded and whether planning errors or the misconduct of individual drivers are responsible for this. This allows you to react in a timely and targeted manner.
• The VDO Fleet fines catalog combines the data from the DTCO^® with the type of violation and the respective country-specific fine amount. This means that after each data download from the tachograph, you can determine the current fine risk for your fleet and also for individual drivers.
• The DTCO^® 4.1 also makes it much easier for driving personnel to document the crossing of national borders.
• VDO Fleet Tachograph Management also supports fleet management in incorporating the various country regulations into dispatching and, in the future, into wage calculations.

Since August 19, 2025, all older vehicles still operating in international traffic with a 1st version intelligent tachograph (Gen2) must also be equipped with the new 2nd version tachograph.  

Action is already required for all latecomers who are still driving with an analog or older digital tachograph (Gen1). This is because they must upgrade their vehicles to the latest tachograph in the 2nd version by the end of 2024 if they are to drive in cross-border traffic.

Attention – deadline congestion!

Because workshops are likely to experience scheduling bottlenecks, retrofit projects should be carefully planned today. The best thing to do is to schedule retrofit appointments together with due maintenance appointments or periodic inspections. This saves unproductive downtime. You’re in good hands with one of our more than 9,000 VDO partner workshops. Use our Partner Finder to quickly find a reliable workshop near you.

Mobility Package I strengthens the role of the tachograph in achieving transportation policy goals. Photo: Continental.

This is what Mobility Package I regulates

The Mobility Package I regulates driving and rest periods, cartage and the delegation of drivers:

• It prescribes proper, safe accommodations where drivers can spend their weekly rest periods.
• Their working hours can now be arranged more flexibly.
• Higher social standards become applicable.
• Three carbotage trips are followed by a four-day cooling-off period, during which further carbotage transportation is prohibited.
• Drivers must return to their place of residence or company location every four weeks.
• Drivers are entitled to the same working conditions and minimum wage as locals in their country of assignment.

Schedule at a glance

August 2023
All newly registered vehicles with a gross vehicle weight of more than 3.5 tons must be equipped with 2nd version smart tachographs (Gen2).

End of 2024
The old analog or digital tachographs (Gen1) must be replaced by a 2nd version intelligent tachograph (Gen2) in all vehicles in cross-border traffic with a permissible total weight of more than 3.5 tons.

August 2025
Vehicles in cross-border traffic with a permissible total weight of more than 3.5 tons and a 1st version intelligent tachograph (Gen2) must have a 2nd version intelligent tachograph retrofitted.

July 2026
Commercial vehicles in cross-border traffic with a gross vehicle weight of more than 2.5 tons must also be equipped with intelligent tachographs (Gen2) in the 2nd version.

Have you already made a workshop appointment for the retrofit? Tell us how it went!