Tyred welcomes 10-year old tyre ban, but warns of twin configuration loophole

Following the announcement that tyres aged 10 years and older will be banned from lorries, buses and coaches on roads in England, Scotland and Wales, campaign group Tyred – which led efforts to achieve a ban – has welcomed the news as “a positive step forward”. However, the group also warned of twin tyre fitment configuration loophole.

Commenting in a statement, Tyred representatives said: “Firstly, we would like to state that the latest government announcement is a positive step forward for the Tyred campaign and road safety. It is a significant milestone in our seven year campaign, which is largely due to the overwhelming public support we have received.”

However, Tyred also warned of a potential loophole in the draft legislation: “We were informed today that old tyres in twin configuration on vehicles will not be included in this ban. This has come as a surprise and a disappointment as a total ban makes much more sense given the significant risks that old tyres present on our roads.”

Quite apart from the fact that a partial ban leaves dangerously old tyres on the road, Tyre pointed out that such an approach sends the wrong message: “Our concern remains that not implementing a total ban on old tyres still leaves a loophole for operations who do not have safety as their number one priority. We are also clear that no having a complete ban on old tyres still presents a significant risk on our roads”

The statement also confirmed that the new date for legislation to be passed has been confirmed as January 2021: “As a campaign team we will continue to we will continue to monitor the progress government makes to pass legislation, in accordance with the revised timescale for this legislation, as this will already be more than a year later than the original date of December 2019.”