Article 4
For the purposes of this document, the following definitions apply:
1. “Reflective device”: An object used to indicate the presence of a vehicle by reflecting light that does not originate from that vehicle.
2. “Empty vehicle weight”: The weight of the vehicle without a crew, passengers, or cargo, but with the fuel tank filled to ninety percent (90%) of its capacity, with coolant, lubricants, the tools normally carried, and the spare tire.
3. “Vehicle curb weight in operational readiness”: The curb weight of the empty vehicle plus the weight of the crew.
4. “Car or motor vehicle”: A motor vehicle used primarily for the transport of persons or goods, or for towing on roads vehicles used for the transport of persons or goods. This term does not include vehicles, such as agricultural tractors, which are used only incidentally for the road transport of persons or goods or for towing, on roads, of vehicles used to transport people or goods.
5. “Public-use vehicle”: A motor vehicle used to transport passengers or goods, or both, on a full- or partial-hire basis or for a fare per passenger.
6. “Passenger car”: A motor vehicle intended primarily for the transport of persons, with a maximum of nine (9) seats, including the driver’s seat.
7. “Private-use vehicle”: A motor vehicle used to transport passengers without charge and to transport goods belonging to its owner or operator.
8. “Bus”: A motor vehicle intended primarily for the transport of passengers and having at least ten (10) seats, including the driver’s seat.
9. “Truck”: A motor vehicle intended primarily for the transport of goods.
10. “Racetrack”: A special track or area suitably configured for speed, agility, demonstrations, or endurance races involving cars or motorcycles, driving exercises and recreational activities, as well as tests of motor vehicles for the purpose of verifying their proper operation.
11. “Highway”: A road specially designed and constructed for the traffic of motor vehicles and motorcycles, which does not serve the properties bordering it and which:
a) has, except at specific points or temporarily, separate carriageways for the two directions of traffic, distinguished from one another either by median strips or, exceptionally, by other means,
(b) does not intersect at grade with another road, trail, railway or tram line, and
c) has been designated by decision of the Minister of Infrastructure and Transportation and is specifically marked with signs as a highway.
12. “Right-hand traffic”: Traffic on a two-way road, such that oncoming vehicles travel on the driver’s left side.
13. “Public traffic”: The unrestricted and indeterminate movement, in advance, of vehicles or animals on public or private roads or in pedestrian areas.
14. “Crosswalk”: The section of the roadway designated by special signs, markings, or traffic signals for the crossing of pedestrians.
15. “Stopping”: A brief pause in the vehicle’s motion, either to avoid a collision with an obstacle or a collision with another vehicle, a pedestrian, or an animal using the road, or to comply with traffic regulations.
16. “Median”: A raised or otherwise defined section of a road, which separates traffic lanes or roadways traveling in the same or opposite directions and on which traffic is prohibited, except for pedestrians crossing where permitted.
17. “Light Electric Personal Vehicle (LEPV)”: A vehicle powered by an electric motor that does not fall within the scope of Regulation 858/2018/ EU, Regulation 168/2013/EU, Directive 2009/48/EC, and Directive 2007/46/EC.
a) These vehicles include those powered by an electric motor:
aa) e-scooters,
ab) roller skates and skateboards,
(ac) self-balancing personal vehicles, i.e., motorized unicycles or motorized two-wheeled vehicles with dual tracks, which rely on an inherently unstable balance and require an auxiliary control system to maintain their balance,
(ad) Personal Mobility Devices (PMDs) that do not fall into any of the above categories, including electric wheelchairs for people with disabilities—both powered and non-powered— scooters and handbikes for people with disabilities.
b) EPHO vehicles are classified according to their design speed as follows:
ba) vehicles whose maximum design speed does not exceed six (6) kilometers per hour. These vehicles are considered and treated as pedestrians,
(bb) vehicles whose maximum design speed exceeds six (6) kilometers per hour but does not exceed twenty-five (25) kilometers per hour. They are considered and treated as bicycles, subject to compliance with the rules regarding signage and traffic signals and the requirements for bicycles, unless otherwise specified in the individual articles.
18. “Light trailer”: A trailer with a maximum permissible weight of up to seven hundred fifty (750 kg) kilograms.
19. “Public-use passenger vehicles (E.D.X.)”: Passenger cars that are manufactured with up to nine (9) seats, including the driver’s seat, and transport passengers in accordance with their category. They are classified as follows:
a) Five (5)-seat taxis or multi-purpose (single-body) vehicles equipped with a meter (TAXI). Multipurpose (single-body) taxis, provided they can transport a wheelchair, must be equipped with a ramp and straps for securing the wheelchair, as well as any technical device that facilitates access for people with disabilities to the taxi, and they are permitted to transport people with disabilities,
b) Special-Purpose Rental Vehicles (EIDMISTH) with six (6) to nine (9) seats, without a meter. EIDMISTH vehicles intended for the transportation of persons with disabilities must be specially adapted for this purpose (EIDMISTH for People with Disabilities) and must charge a fare as determined by decision of the Minister of Infrastructure and Transportation and
c) Special-purpose vehicles with five (5) to seven (7) seats (EIDMET) without a meter.
20. “Shoulder”: The outer lane of the road beyond the roadway.
21. “Animals”: Pets and farm animals.
22. “Electric bus (trolleybus)”: A motor bus powered by an overhead wire, equipped with an electric motor but not running on rails.
23. “Semi-trailer (semi-trailer)”: A trailer designed to be coupled to a towing vehicle in such a way that part of it rests on the towing vehicle, onto which a large portion of its weight and load is transferred.
24. “At-grade intersection”: Any at-grade junction, fork, or crossroads, including the open spaces formed by them.
25. “At-grade railroad or tramway crossing”: Any at-grade intersection between a road and a railroad or tramway track, where the road and track are at the same level.
26. “Residential area”: An area marked with signs designating it as a residential area at its entrances and exits.
27. “Bus lane”: A street or section of a street reserved exclusively for bus traffic.
28. “Port”: a land and sea area, together with facilities and equipment, primarily designed to accommodate all types of watercraft and recreational vessels, to load and unload, storage, receipt, and forwarding of their cargo, the servicing of passengers and vehicles, and the development of business activities directly or indirectly related to maritime transport.
29. “Emergency Lane (EL)”: The lane on a highway located between the solid right-hand lane marking and the edge of the road.
30. “Traffic lane”: One of the longitudinal zones into which the roadway is divided, with or without lane markings or other appropriate means of separation, wide enough to accommodate a single file of road vehicles.
31. “Maximum Permitted Weight”: The maximum weight of a loaded vehicle, as specified in its registration certificate.
32. “Maximum Permissible Mass of the Loaded Vehicle (M.P.M.L.V.)”: The maximum mass of the loaded vehicle permitted for operation, which is indicated as M.A.M.F.O. on its registration certificate.
33. “Agricultural machine”: A motor vehicle intended primarily for performing agricultural work (such as on farms, in forests, on livestock, horticultural, and floricultural holdings), the transport of products or persons on the agricultural holding of the owner of the agricultural machinery, or the transport of supplies or tools, either independently or by operating mounted or towed machinery, tools, and trailers. This term includes:
a) agricultural tractors of all types and
b) self-propelled machines used for agricultural work. The weights and dimensions of the agricultural machine must be indicated on the registration certificates.
34. “Construction machinery”: A motor vehicle intended for the construction and maintenance of roads or other engineering works. This term also includes vehicles intended for restoring traffic flow, cleaning, and marking roads. The following are not classified as construction machinery, but are considered automobiles: motor vehicles that also transport passengers or goods on the country’s roads, as well as Special-Purpose Vehicles.
35. “Gross weight”: The actual weight of the vehicle at any given time, including the weight of the cargo, the crew, and the passengers.
36. “Moped”: a light motorized two-wheeled, three-wheeled, or four-wheeled vehicle with a maximum design speed of forty-five (45) kilometers per hour. These vehicles are as follows:
a) the two-wheeled moped (L1e-B) with an engine displacement of less than or equal to fifty cubic centimeters (50 cm³), if the vehicle’s propulsion system includes an internal combustion engine with forced ignition (positive ignition, PI) or an engine with a maximum continuous rated or net power of less than or equal to four kilowatts (4 kW),
(b) the three-wheeled moped (L2e): three-wheeled vehicles with an engine displacement of 50 cubic centimeters (50 cm³) or less, with an engine displacement of 50 cubic centimeters (50 cm³) for a spark-ignition (PI) engine or an engine with a displacement of 500 cubic centimeters (500 cm³) or less for a compression-ignition (CI) engine (compression ignition, CI) or with an engine having a maximum continuous rated or net power of four kilowatts (4 kW) and a mass in running order of less than two hundred seventy (270) kilograms (kg) and which have up to two (2) seats, including the driver’s seat,
(c) motorized two-wheeled (L1e-A), three-wheeled, or four-wheeled bicycles: bicycles designed for cycling, equipped with an auxiliary motor to assist pedaling, with a maximum continuous rated or net power of less than or equal to one kilowatt (1 kW) and whose power is cut off at vehicle speeds of twenty-five (25) kilometers per hour or less,
(d) the light quadricycle (L6e), with a mass in running order of less than or equal to four hundred twenty-five kilograms (425 kg) with an engine displacement of 50 cubic centimeters (50 cm³) or less for a PI engine, or 500 cubic centimeters (500 cm³) for a CI engine, and having up to two (2) seats, including the driver’s seat. “Net power” is defined as the maximum continuous rated power for electric vehicles and the maximum net power for vehicles with internal combustion engines.
37. “Motorcycle”: Any two-wheeled motor vehicle, with or without a sidecar, whose maximum design speed exceeds forty-five (45) kilometers per hour or, if equipped with an internal combustion engine, has an engine displacement greater than fifty cubic centimeters (50 cm³).
38. “Safety island”: The raised section of the roadway intended either as a refuge for pedestrians or for passengers to board or alight from public transportation vehicles.
39. “Night”: The period of time that begins half an hour after sunset and ends half an hour before sunrise. The provisions of the Code that impose specific obligations at night apply accordingly in cases where visibility is insufficient due to specific conditions (such as fog, snowfall, and heavy rain, or inside tunnels).
40. “Driver”: A person who drives any type of vehicle or animals, whether individually or in herds or flocks, or animals used for pulling, for the transport of persons or goods, or for riding.
41. “Road”: the entire area designated for public traffic.
42. “Access road for adjacent properties”: a road used exclusively to provide access to adjacent properties.
43. “Priority road”: a road that is specifically designated and marked, on which road vehicles have the right of way over vehicles entering it from other roads.
44. “Expressway”: a road specifically designed and constructed for the traffic of motor vehicles and motorcycles, which does not serve the properties bordering it except through side streets and interchanges, and which:
a) is connected to the rest of the main road network only via specially designed at-grade or grade-separated interchanges,
b) does not intersect at grade with any other road, trail, railway or tram line, and
c) has been designated by decision of the Minister of Infrastructure and Transportation and is specially marked with signs as an expressway.
45. “Roadway”: The portion of a road intended for vehicle traffic.
46. “Roadway edge line”: The line that marks the end of the roadway. On roadways with one or more outer traffic lanes or zones designated for the use of certain categories of vehicles, pedestrians, or animals, the roadway edge line, for other road users, is the end of the remaining roadway.
47. “Articulated vehicle”: a combination of vehicles consisting of one (1) tractor and one (1) semi-trailer (semi) coupled to it.
48. “Special-Purpose Vehicle”: A motor vehicle or trailer that has specific technical characteristics enabling it to perform a function that requires special modifications and/or equipment.
49. “Animal-drawn vehicle”: A wheeled vehicle pulled by animals.
50. “Kart”: A small four-wheeled vehicle, with or without a body, having four non-aligned wheels that are in constant contact with the ground, two of which provide steering and the other two provide propulsion (movement). Its main parts are: the frame or chassis, the body, the tires, and the engine.
51. “Road vehicle”: A vehicle used for transportation or other purposes that travels on the roads and in the areas referred to in Article 3, regarding the scope of application, and is driven by a person, with the exception of vehicles used to transport infants and persons with disabilities. Vehicles that travel on rails are not considered road vehicles; however, the traffic rules of the Code apply to them.
52. “Motor vehicle”: A self-propelled road vehicle, excluding mopeds and light motor vehicles.
53. “Manually operated vehicle”: A vehicle that is pushed or pulled by hand.
54. “Yielding the right of way”: The obligation of a vehicle driver not to continue or resume movement or maneuvers if, by doing so, might force the drivers of other vehicles to suddenly change the direction or speed of their vehicles.
55. “Sidewalk”: The elevated or otherwise separated portion of the road intended for pedestrians.
56. “Pedestrian Street”: A street used exclusively by pedestrians and for vehicle access to and from parking areas of properties and establishments located along the street, in accordance with the permitted land uses of the area or parking areas that have been granted an operating permit by way of derogation from existing land uses pursuant to paragraph 1 of Article 19 of Law 4313/2014 (A’ 261), unless otherwise specified in their operating regulations, as well as for supply or emergency vehicles. Bicycles and non-motorized personal mobility devices (EPIO) may be used in accordance with paragraph 3 of Article 55, concerning traffic regulation measures.
57. “Pedestrians”:
(a) persons who push or drag:
(aa) baby strollers,
(ab) patient chairs or wheelchairs for people with disabilities,
(ag) any small vehicle without an engine, or a two- or three-wheeled motor vehicle that is not in operation,
(ad) bicycles,
b) persons traveling on:
ba) motorized or non-motorized wheelchairs for patients or persons with disabilities whose speed does not exceed that of a pedestrian,
(bb) non-motorized wheeled seats, roller skates, skateboards, and rollerblades whose speed does not exceed that of a pedestrian,
(bc) EPHO vehicles with a maximum design speed not exceeding six (6) kilometers per hour.
58. “Low-traffic zone”: A residential area or urban center that has been designated and marked as a low-traffic zone.
59. “Bicycle”: A vehicle with at least two wheels that is propelled by the muscular power of its riders and may be assisted by an auxiliary electric motor with a maximum continuous rated power ofpoint twenty-five kilowatts (0.25 kW), and whose power gradually decreases and eventually drops to zero when the vehicle’s speed reaches twenty-five (25) kilometers per hour, or sooner if pedaling stops.
60. “Bicycle lane”: A street or section of a street reserved exclusively for bicycles and electric personal mobility devices. On bike lanes that occupy the entire width of the street (bike streets), the following are permitted: – and exit of vehicles and pedestrian traffic in accordance with paragraph 7 of Article 44, concerning special rules for riders of bicycles, mopeds, motorcycles, three-wheeled vehicles, and electric personal mobility devices.
61. “Tow truck”: A motor vehicle used solely for towing other vehicles.
62. “Trailer”: A vehicle that lacks its own propulsion and is designed to be towed by another motor vehicle. This category of vehicles also includes semi-trailers. Trailers do not include wheeled equipment for transporting cargo that is pulled or towed using special equipment exclusively within an enclosed space, and consists of a rigid, horizontal, flat body mounted on solid wheels of small diameter without an inner tube.
63. “Parking”: The stationary condition of a vehicle for any reason, except to avoid a collision with another vehicle using the road, a collision with an obstacle, or to comply with traffic regulations, provided that the duration of the vehicle’s standstill is not limited to the time required for passengers to board or alight or for goods to be loaded or unloaded.
64. “Stop”: The period during which a vehicle remains stationary for the time required to allow passengers to board or alight, or to load or unload goods.
65. “Combined vehicles (train)”: Vehicles that are coupled together and move as a single unit.
66. “Recreational boat marina”: The land and water area intended primarily to serve recreational vessels, either for mooring, for long-term or temporary storage on land, or for servicing passing vessels (paragraph 1 of Article 29 of Law 2160/1993, A’ 118).
67. “Three-wheeled vehicle”: A motor vehicle with three (3) symmetrical wheels, either whose maximum design speed exceeds forty-five (45) kilometers per hour, or whose engine displacement exceeds fifty cubic centimeters (50 cm³), if it is equipped with an internal combustion engine. In addition, a four-wheeled vehicle is also considered a three-wheeled vehicle, with the exception of light four-wheeled vehicles in the moped category, whose unladen curb weight, excluding the weight of fuel or the fuel-oil mixture or the batteries of electric vehicles, does not exceed four hundred kilograms (400 kg) when the vehicle is intended for passenger transport, or five hundred fifty kilograms (550 kg) when intended for the transport of goods, and whose maximum net power does not exceed fifteen kilowatts (15 kW).
68. “Tram”: A vehicle that runs on rails along streets, powered by an electric motor supplied by an overhead wire, and intended for the transport of people or goods.
69. “Motorhome”: Special-use, special-purpose vehicle, classified as follows:
a) Motorized motorhome: A vehicle for transporting passengers with a living area that includes at least the following equipment:
aa) seats and a table (the table may be designed to be easily removed),
(ab) a sleeping area, which may be created by converting the seats,
(ac) a galley area,
(ad) storage space. The above equipment must be permanently affixed to the living quarters.
b) Trailer-type motorhome: A towed vehicle designed for road use that provides mobile accommodations and appropriate equipment, such as that mentioned above for passenger accommodation, when parked.
70. “Turn signal lights (turn signals)”: The vehicle’s lights used to warn other road users that the driver is about to turn right or left.
71. “Intersection lights (center)”: The vehicle’s lights used to illuminate the road ahead of the vehicle and which do not cause glare or difficulty for oncoming drivers or other road users.
72. “Emergency lights (lighted warning system)”: The vehicle’s flashing lights that are used when the vehicle is stationary and its immobility poses a danger to third parties.
73. “Front position lights (low beam)”: The vehicle’s lights used to make the vehicle and its width visible from the front.
74. “Rear position lights (small)”: The vehicle’s lights used to make the vehicle and its width visible from the rear.
75. “Parking lights”: Lights used to indicate the presence of a parked vehicle. These may replace the front and rear position lights.
76. “Fog lights”: The vehicle’s lights used to improve road illumination in cases of fog, snowfall, heavy rain, clouds, smoke, or dust.
77. “Reverse lights”: The vehicle’s lights used to illuminate the road behind the vehicle and to warn that the vehicle is about to move or is moving backward.
78. “Brake lights”: The vehicle’s lights used to alert those traveling behind the vehicle that the driver is braking.
79. “High beams”: The vehicle’s headlights used to illuminate the road a long distance ahead.
80. “Body lights”: Lights installed on certain motor vehicles and certain trailers near the outermost point of the width and as close as possible to the highest point of the vehicle, used to clearly the vehicle’s outline clearly.
81. “Side lights”: Lights mounted on the sides of the vehicle to indicate its presence from the side.
82. “Special lights”: Lights used to indicate either a vehicle that has the right of way or a vehicle or group of vehicles, whose presence on the road requires other road users to take special precautions, and specifically for signaling convoys of vehicles, oversized vehicles, as well as road construction or maintenance vehicles.
83. “Rear license plate lighting device”: The device that ensures the area designated for the rear license plate is illuminated and that may consist of various optical components.
84. “Daytime running lights”: Lights used during the day to make a vehicle more visible from the front while it is in motion.
85. “Illuminating surface”: In the case of lights, the visible surface from which the light emanates; in the case of reflective devices, the visible surface from which the light is reflected.