The Official State Gazette (BOE) has published the updated version of the Agreement concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road (ADR 2025), incorporating the amendments adopted during the 111th to 115th sessions of the Working Party on the Transport of Dangerous Goods of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE).
This update, which replaces the text in force since 2023, has been adapted to harmonize the conditions for the transport of dangerous goods in the European Union, following Directive 2008/68/EC and its subsequent amendments. ADR 2025 comes into effect on January 1, 2025, establishing new regulations for both pre-transport preparation (Annex A) and actual transport operations (Annex B).
The publication reinforces Spain’s commitment to international regulation in the field of dangerous goods transport safety, an area regulated since its accession to ADR in 1972. The full text can be consulted in BOE number 3, dated January 3, 2025.
Amended text of Annexes A and B of the Agreement concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road (ADR 2025) with the Amendments adopted during the 111th, 112th, 113th, 114th, and 115th sessions of the Working Party on the Transport of Dangerous Goods of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE). Published in: «BOE» No. 3, dated January 3, 2025, pages 1068 to 2259 (1192 pages) Section: I. General Provisions Department: Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation Reference: BOE-A-2025-77
https://www.boe.es/boe/dias/2025/01/03/pdfs/BOE-A-2025-77.pdf
ORIGINAL TEXT The Agreement concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road (ADR), was made in Geneva on September 30, 1957, under the aegis of UNECE and entered into force on January 29, 1968.
Spain’s accession to ADR occurred on November 22, 1972, and, based on the provisions of Article 7.2, it came into effect for our country on December 22, 1972 (BOE number 163, dated July 9, 1973).
Article 14.3 of ADR was amended by a Protocol of Amendment made in New York on August 21, 1975. This protocol entered into force, both generally and for Spain, on April 19, 1985 (BOE number 180, dated July 29, 1985).
The title of the agreement, from which the word «European» was removed, was amended by a Protocol of Amendment made in Geneva on May 13, 2019. This protocol came into effect, both generally and for Spain, on January 1, 2021 (BOE number 101, dated April 28, 2021).
The text of ADR consists of 17 articles and two annexes, A and B. Annex A contains all the necessary actions to dispatch goods before actual transport: classification of the goods, selection of containers, generation of required documentation, pre-dispatch inspections, etc. Annex B contains all the conditions to consider during the actual transport: circulation, driving, vehicle selection, driver selection, equipment, etc.
Annexes A and B of ADR are updated through amendments every two years.
The last amended text of these annexes to ADR (ADR 2023), in force since January 1, 2023, was published in BOE number 65, dated March 17, 2023 (with a correction of errors in BOE number 137, dated June 9, 2023).
The ADR 2025 now published is the amended text of ADR 2023, to which the amendments approved by the UNECE Working Party on the Transport of Dangerous Goods during its 111th, 112th, 113th, 114th, and 115th sessions have been added.
Regarding ADR within the European context, in order to harmonize the conditions for the transport of dangerous goods in the European Union and ensure the proper functioning of the common transport market, ADR is also applied to domestic transport in Member States. This regulatory harmonization at the community level was carried out through Directive 2008/68/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council, dated September 24, 2008, on the inland transport of dangerous goods (OJ L 260/13, dated September 30, 2008).
By Commission Delegated Directive (EU) 2022/2407, dated September 20, 2022 (OJ L 317/64, dated December 9, 2022), the annexes to Directive 2008/68/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council have been amended to adapt to scientific and technical progress. Consequently, in Annex I, section I.1 of the latter Directive is replaced by the following text: «I.1 ADR: annexes A and B of ADR, as applicable from January 1, 2025, with ‘Contracting Party’ replaced by ‘Member State’ as appropriate.»