TYRE SAFETY
With the May half term almost upon us, Bridgestone has issued a road safety plea to address a recent survey that indicates over a third of UK drivers neglect to check their tyres. Half may even be unaware of the legal tread limit.
Ring has partnered with TyreSafe and the West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue service to conduct tyre pressure and tyre tread depth checks, with what the company describes as “concerning results”. To raise awareness of tyre safety, Tyre Safe has organised a several trial events throughout the UK alongside various Fire Services in West Yorkshire, automotive accessories giant, Ring is working alongside the West Yorkshire Fire Service checking tyres. In West Yorkshire, the Fire and Rescue Service has been hosting regular car washes for a charitable donation, while Ring checks the tyres of the vehicles that come through.
UK tyre safety charity TyreSafe found that almost 18 per cent of van tyres were replaced with less than the legal minimum 1.6mm of tread depth in the 2023 Tread Depth Survey. Recognising the importance of vans as a critical asset to many business operations, tyre supplier Continental Tyres describes itself as a “passionate advocate for tyre safety” with “a longstanding legacy of helping to educate owners and operators about responsible tyre maintenance.” General manager – technical services, Steve Howat has answered a series of frequently asked questions to address important tyre maintenance topics amongst LCV operators.
UK road safety charity TyreSafe has reminded owners of vehicles emerging from winter storage that there is a heightened risk of tyre degradation for vehicles that have been off the road for an extended period. Typically spring is when vehicles such as trailers, motorcycles, caravans, and motorhomes are taken out of storage, and these vehicles are therefore prone to having tyres that have developed cracks, bulges, or other signs of wear, making them unsafe for road use.
Translogik reports that it has helped TyreSafe improve its tyre maintenance information campaigns across the UK by providing them with the latest Translogik tyre inspection tools, which TyreSafe will use to rapidly inspect and capture tyre condition information during 2024.
TyreSafe is encouraging electric vehicle drivers to use charging breaks to conduct vital tyre checks. Charging an EV presents a natural opportunity for using the tyre safety organisation’s A.C.T acronym, Air, Condition, Tread, to guide drivers through checks that can be done without specialist equipment. By taking just a few minutes to inspect their tyres, drivers can significantly reduce the risk of accidents and breakdowns. EVs, with their greater, instant torque and heavier loads, can mean tyres are susceptible to wear, making regular checks particularly vital. The latest initiative is part of a partnership between TyreSafe and PCL.
The UK’s vehicles and tyres need some more TLC, according to Bridgestone, with 73 per cent of motorists not even checking their tyres. A survey of 2000 drivers conducted by Bridgestone revealed that nearly three-quarters of drivers don’t check their treads or pressures themselves, either never thinking about it, leaving it to the garage to do or asking their partners to check instead.
Just over half of UK motorists check their tyre pressures at least once per month, according to research commissioned by Apollo Tyres. Of the 1,000 motorists polled, 15 per cent say they check their tyre pressures weekly, 11 per cent say once a fortnight, and 29 per cent once per month.
TyreSafe has started 2024 with a new social media campaign targeting a habitual change for improved road safety. Organised around the #DriveJanuary hashtag, a play on the famous #DryJanuary health and wellbeing initiative, the organisation is using the opportunity of people setting resolutions for the New Year to ask drivers to add monthly tyre checks to their list of behavioural changes. TyreSafe’s 2023 Tread Depth Survey reveals that almost half the UK cars on the road have low or illegal tread. For more detail, see our sister site for consumers, WhatTyre.
Driving home for Christmas is more than an indispensable addition to the festive season playlist, it is something many of us will soon do. That worries Bridgestone after finding out that more than half the motorists making the drive home fail to recognise an ‘extremely serious’ risk associated with illegal tyre usage. Research carried out on Bridgestone’s behalf suggests that 54% of motorists don’t regard driving on illegal tyres as potentially life threatening.
An estimated 6 million tyres on the road have illegal tread, according to TyreSafe’s recent Tread Depth Survey, meaning many drivers risk three penalty points and a fine, which can be up to a maximum of £2,500, for each defective or illegal tyre. As well as the risks posed by illegal tread on tyres, almost 542,287 drivers are just two tyres away from an automatic driving ban and almost 100,000 who have nine points are just a single tyre away, according to a recent IAM RoadSmart report. These numbers have risen recently – the number of drivers with nine points on their licence has risen 8 per cent in the last year – indicating an urgent need for drivers to pay closer attention to road safety both in their driving behaviour and attention to vehicle maintenance.
TyreSafe and the National Motorcyclists Council (NMC) have entered a new partnership to promote safe and sustainable biking. The mutual support between the organisations focuses on the need for extra emphasis on vehicle maintenance and a reduction in the number of avoidable defects identified by the rate of motorcycle MOT failures, surprisingly comparable with that of cars; a third fail their first inspection according to DVSA data. Of all the defects leading to an initial MOT failure, the largest proportion of those classified as ‘dangerous’ are tyres at 29 per cent.
A landmark new study by TyreSafe, Imperial College, London, and National Highways has revealed that more than half of tyres replaced in the UK have illegal or borderline tread depth. The tyre safety charity said the eye-opening data underscores the urgent need for increased awareness and action. TyreSafe published the report on tyre maintenance and safety practices among motorists, which is available to download now, ahead of the country’s Road Safety Week.
TyreSafe has partnered with Brake ahead of Road Safety Week 2023 (week commencing 19 November). TyreSafe said the partnership aims to support Brake’s ‘Let’s talk about speed’ campaign, which challenges drivers and passengers to be open about issues related to speeding. TyreSafe describes the week as a significant platform to raise awareness about the critical importance of safe driving practices and the devastating consequences of speeding. Brake’s 2023 campaign highlights the risks associated with driving too fast and on defective tyres.
Bridgestone spread the tyre safety message to hundreds of motorists across October with free tyre safety checks and postcards at two events during Tyre Safety Month. Bridgestone said it communicated the messages to hundreds of motorists at Roadchef’s Norton Canes Services on the M6 Toll in Staffordshire on 19 October, carrying out free safety checks throughout the day. The company repeated these activities at Ireland’s Japfest in Mondello Park, where it encouraged young drivers to get into the habit of checking their tyres regularly.
If you would like the latest news from the Chinese tyre industry in Chinese, visit our partner site TyrepressChina.com. Or click below to continue on Tyrepress.
TyreSafe
TyreSafe
TyreSafe
TyreSafe
TyreSafe
Bridgestone