Department for Transport Archives - Page 11 of 11

Asleep At The Wheel” Research Reveals Worrying Results

One in ten people who drive for work have admitted falling asleep at the wheel in the past year, according to new research by road safety charity Brake and Green Flag. The shocking figure is more than twice as high as the number of drivers who don’t drive for work but who say they have fallen asleep in the past year, which is still an alarmingly high one in 25 drivers. Nodding off for just a second or two at the wheel can kill: travelling at 60mph on a motorway (one of the main types of road where fatigue commonly occurs), a driver covers 27 metres (88 feet) per second.

One of the main causes of nodding off at the wheel is insufficient sleep the night before. The research has found that people who drive for work are more likely to drive after insufficient sleep. Half of the people who drive for work who were surveyed say they sometimes drive after less than five hours’ sleep, compared to just over a third (35 per cent) of people who drive only outside work. Research shows that if you drive after less than five hours’ sleep, you have just a one in ten chance of staying fully awake on a lengthy journey.

4th January 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Keep Safe Over Winter with Kwik-Fit

Product News

As more people are killed and injured on Britain’s roads in the final months of each year than at any other time it is imperative that vehicles are maintained in tip-top condition in the winter months. With the onset of freezing driving conditions, fog and wet roads, Kwik-Fit Fleet has once again launched its annual free five-point vehicle check.

The free winter safety checks are available at Kwik-Fit centres nationwide and they cover:
Tyre check – pressures, tread depth and general condition (including spare)
Battery check – using electronic test equipment
Exhaust check – condition and fitment including hangers and brackets
Tracking check – visual check to determine if the tyres show related wear
Glass/wipers check – condition of vehicle glass and wipers

Road casualty figures from the Department for Transport reveal that last year a total of 303 people were killed on the UK’s roads in October, 279 people in November and 310 people in December – the worst month for road deaths in 2006. Together with road deaths in January and February last year – 242 and 250 respectively – the five months accounted for 43 per cent of all fatalities. In addition, the last three months of the year traditionally account for more people being injured in road traffic accidents than in any other three-month period. In 2006, a total of 68,225 people were injured in the last three months of the year – 27 per cent of the total number of people injured on Britain’s roads last year.

23rd October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Drivers Under Pressure to Pump Up

Product News

Company car and van drivers are being urged by ATS Euromaster to take advantage of a free tyre pressure check at any of its centres nationwide, in support of the Department for Transport’s new ‘Act on CO²’ initiative. The campaign, launched in March, highlights the amount of CO² emitted by cars and vans in the UK, and targets an eight per cent reduction over 5.5 million tonnes of CO² a year.

The free tyre inspection includes checking the pressure, tread depth and general condition of each tyre and is available at any of ATS Euromaster’s 500 service centres nationwide. It takes approximately five to ten minutes per vehicle and motorists receive a written report showing the exact status of each tyre.

16th April 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

NTDA Supports Drive Smarter Campaign

Product News

The NTDA has pledged its support to the government’s most recent effort to reduce CO2 emissions. The Drive Smarter campaign will encourage motorists to check their tyre pressures, amongst other things.

Commenting on the Drive Smarter Campaign NTDA Chairman John Tarbox said today: “We are fully supportive of any initiative to reduce CO2 emissions and especially drawing motorists attention to their tyres – all our research shows that motorists do not check their tyres as often as they should.

16th March 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Safety Groups Team Up to Target Motorists

Product News

TyreSafe has become the latest organisation to work in conjunction with RoadSafe, a road safety partnership of companies and road safety professionals. This is not the first time the two groups have worked together – the Tyre Industry Council, as TyreSafe was then known, has conducted various initiatives with RoadSafe, and in 2001 the TIC gained a Prince Michael International Road Safety Award for its practical work promoting the dangers of driving on defective or badly worn tyres, a contributory factor in many accidents.

14th March 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Govt Urges Motorists to Check Tyre Pressure

Product News

The UK government has introduced a campaign encouraging motorists to reduce CO2 emissions through adhering to a number of simple principles, including regularly checking tyre pressure. The ‘Drive Smarter’ campaign, promoted by the Department for Transport, began on March 11 and states that CO2 emissions could be reduced by 8 per cent if all drivers in the UK followed the campaign’s smarter driving tips – this equals 5.5 million tonnes of CO2 a year, or more than £2billion in fuel costs.

12th March 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Kwik-Fit Offers Winter Checks

Product News

With the onset of freezing driving conditions, fog and wet roads, Kwik-Fit Fleet has once again launched its annual free five-point vehicle check. The free winter safety checks are available at Kwik-Fit centres nationwide and they cover: Batteries – cell strength and terminal connections; Exhausts – condition and fitment including hangers and brackets; Tyres – pressures, tread depth and general condition (including spare); Tracking – to see if tyres show tracking-related wear; Glass/wipers -condition of vehicle glass and wipers.

10th November 2006/by Tyrepress Editors

Trade Angry at MOT Fee Delay

Product News

A long-awaited £6.20 increase in the MoT test fee has been put back more than six weeks by the Department for Transport. Testers expected the increase to be brought in on 1 October, but have now learned it has been put back until 24 November. Some now fear this deadline will slip even further back into December, the NTDA website reported. The traditional date for an MoT fee increase is 1 August.

31st October 2006/by Tyrepress Editors

Superdrive Tyre to Launch at IAA Show

Product News

September’s IAA International Commercial Vehicle Show 2006 will feature the official launch of Continental Truck Tyres’ fuel and weight-saving HDL1 Superdrive drive-axle tyre. In the UK Conti, along with other tyre makers, is planning to lobby legislators to get wide single tyres like Superdrive made legal for 44 tonne GVW roadtrains on British roads.

11th August 2006/by Tyrepress Editors

Getting the Message Across

Product News

“The UK aftermarket industry must play a key role in bringing the findings of new research into tyre performance to motorists’ attention” – this was RoadSafe’s message at its recent ‘safety in the wet demonstration,’ a message it successfully managed to impress on guests.

MIRA (Motor Industry Research Association) and RoadSafe welcomed both journalists and ‘opinion formers,’ including representatives from the AA, police and RoSPA, to the association’s test grounds in Nuneaton last month, to host comparative tyre tread depth tests and to promote the industry’s 3mm tyre replacement cause.

Guests were offered the opportunity to take part in a practical demonstration that aimed to further impact the tyre safety message. Four cars, each with one of the specified tread depths, 8mm, 4mm, 3mm or 1.6mm were available for guests to complete wet braking tests. The results were strikingly clear, the lower the tread depth the longer and further it took to stop the vehicle. A simple exercise, a simple message; yet despite the simplicity a large percentage of motorists drive on illegal levels of tyre tread. What the 3mm working group says is that it’s up to the UK tyre industry to do something about this and promote change.

1st June 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

Motorcycle Registrations Continue to Grow

Product News

As high-street retailers report a wet August and rising interest rates hit consumer sales generally, the Motor Cycle Industry Association (MCI) today released figures indicating a rise in new bikes sales.

9th September 2004/by Tyrepress Editors

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