See what changes on federal highways with the project that requires new safety items

The Traffic and Transport Commission of the Chamber of Deputies approved, on Thursday (16), a bill that makes the inclusion of new safety devices mandatory in future federal highway concession contracts. The proposal provides for the adoption of lane sounders, plastic fenders on poles and emergency setbacks in stretches that do not have a shoulder.

In practice, the measure seeks to ensure that the next concessions incorporate technological solutions aimed at reducing the severity of accidents. The auditors warn the driver who leaves the lane involuntarily; plastic fenders help absorb impact in collisions against rigid obstacles such as poles; and emergency setbacks offer safe points for stopping vehicles and for helping on roads without shoulders.

The approved text is a substitute presented by the rapporteur, deputy Cezinha de Madureira (PL-SP), who brought together in a single proposal three projects that were being processed together. The main one is Bill 1,894/2023, by Deputy Bruno Ganem (Pode-SP), to which two other proposals on the subject were attached.

According to the rapporteur, the initiative increases safety on the highways granted without removing the technical autonomy of the regulatory agency in the preparation of contracts. “This solution preserves the purpose of the propositions, strengthens safety on the federal highways granted,” said Cezinha de Madureira, for whom the design also safeguards the technical and regulatory flexibility of the public administration.

The proposal is being processed in a conclusive manner, which means that it can move forward without going through the Plenary of the Chamber, unless there is an appeal in this regard. Before that, however, the text will still be analyzed by the Commission on Constitution and Justice and Citizenship (CCJ). To become law, it will need to be approved by the House and Senate and, subsequently, sent for presidential sanction.