21.12.2012 Official Journal of the European Union L 353/31 COMMISSION REGULATION (EU) No 1230/2012 of 12 December 2012 implementing Regulation (EC) No 661/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council with regard to type-approval requirements for masses and dimensions of motor vehicles and their trailers and amending Directive 2007/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (Text with EEA relevance) THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION, Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, Having regard to Regulation (EC) No 661/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 July 2009 concerning type- approval requirements for the general safety of motor vehicles, their trailers and systems, components and separate technical units intended therefor ('), and in particular Article 14(1)(a) thereof, Having regard to Directive 2007/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 September 2007 estab- lishing a framework for the approval of motor vehicles and their trailers, and of systems, components and separate technical units intended for such vehicles (Framework Direc- tive) (), and in particular Article 39(2), (3) and (5) thereof, Whereas: (1) Regulation (EC) No 661/2009 is a separate Regulation for the purposes of type-approval provided for in Directive 2007/46/EC. (2)  Regulation (EC) No 661/2009 repeals Council Directive 92/21/EEC of 31 March 1992 on the masses and dimensions of motor vehicles of category M; (%) as well as Directive 97/27[EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 July 1997 relating to the masses and dimensions of certain categories of motor vehicles and their trailers and amending Directive 70/156/EEC (*). The requirements relating to the masses and dimensions of motor vehicles and their trailers set out in those Directives should be carried over to this Regulation and where necessary, amended in order to adapt them to the development of technical and scientific knowledge. (3)  Regulation (EC) No 661/2009 lays down fundamental provisions on requirements for the type-approval of () O] L 200, 31.7.2009, p. 1. () O] L 263, 9.10.2007, p. 1. () O] L 129, 14.5.1992, p. 1. (4 O] L 233, 25.8.1997, p. 1. motor vehicles and their trailers with regard to their masses and dimensions. Therefore, it is necessary to also set out the specific procedures, tests and requirements for such type-approval. 4)  Council Directive 96/53/EC of 25 July 1996 laying down for certain road vehicles circulating within the Community the maximum authorised dimensions in national and international traffic and the maximum auth- orised weights in international traffic (°) lays down certain  maximum authorised dimensions for both national and international traffic in the Member States. It is therefore important to take into account, for the purposes of the construction of vehicles, the dimensions which have already been harmonised in the Union in order to foster and ensure the free circulation of goods. (5)  Directive 97/27EC allowed Members States to grant EC type-approval for vehicles the outermost dimensions of which did not match the maximum authorised dimensions provided for in that Directive. It also allowed Member States to refuse registration of vehicles that had been granted EC type-approval when their outermost dimensions did not meet the requirements of their national law. It is important to maintain the possibility to allow under certain conditions the type- approval of vehicles which exceed the authorised limits where this proves to be advantageous for road traffic and for the environment in the Member States where the road infrastructure is adapted to that situation. Therefore, the possibility to approve such vehicles under small series type-approval or individual approval schemes should be ensured, provided that the quantity of vehicles that may benefit from a derogation pursuant to Article 23 of Directive 2007/46/EC as regards the maximum auth- orised dimensions is limited to what is necessary for the purposes of this Regulation. Annex XII to Directive 2007/46/EC should therefore be amended to include such quantitative limits. (6)  Directive 96/53/EC lays down maximum authorised masses that are applicable only to international traffic. However, that Directive allows the Member States to continue to apply their national legislation for national traffic. As a consequence, the harmonisation of the tech- nically permissible maximum laden mass and the tech- nically permissible maximum mass on the axles or on a group of axles for the purposes of circulation in the Member States does not appear to be feasible in the short term. Nevertheless, due to the existence of non- harmonised rules on the construction of the road infra- structure, it is appropriate to require Member States to () OJ L 235, 17.9.1996, p. 59.