A new mobile tyre management station is now available on loan to major fleet operators to help tackle the issue of tyre failure.
One in five breakdowns on the strategic road network (SRN) is caused by tyre failure: that’s 50,000 tyre-related breakdowns every year. And 30% of those involve commercial vehicles.
Analysis by National Highways has found that a major cause of tyre failure is under-inflation – a problem that increases friction, creating higher temperatures and causing structural damage, premature wear and a high risk of tread separation. With under-inflated tyres, the vehicle handles less precisely, needs much longer stopping distances, and uses more fuel.
The Mobile Tyre Safety Station (see footage here) can help tackle this for vehicles up to 7.5 tonnes.
The tyre technology is installed at any point in a site where vehicles cross, such as entrances and exits. It combines sensors with vision technology and sophisticated software algorithms to read tyre pressure, tread depths and axle weight for vehicles driven over the station. The device can inspect up to 1,000 vehicles a day and readings take less than 10 seconds, with any unsafe readings immediately flagged to the transport manager for fixing.
It’s already proved a valuable resource in spotlighting potential problems.
Anthony Thorpe, assistant project manager at National Highways’ CV Incident Prevention Team, said: “The mobile tyre safety station has tested more than 28,000 vehicles, and 112,000 individual tyres. 12,000 of the vehicles inspected had a tyre inflation issue, with over 4,000 severely under-inflated. 23,000 individual tyres needed attention, and 7,500 required urgent attention.”
These figures are likely just the tip of the iceberg too; all of the vehicles tested so far belong to operators with excellent tyre management policies.
“It’s clear that vehicles benefit from being checked day-by-day because tyre pressure can alter quickly between even frequent inspections,” added Thorpe.
Data from the Driving for Better Business government-backed risk management programme reveals that correct inflation and tyre management can deliver major benefits to fleets, including cutting fuel consumption by 5%, prolonging the life of the tyre by 25%, reducing the need for emergency roadside support by 75%, lowering the environmental impact of commercial vehicles, and cutting the risk of collision.
“For depots to install the tyre technology is not an inconsiderable investment but it is extremely effective in identifying tyre safety issues and we encourage major fleets to consider this,” added Anthony Thorpe. “They could see huge benefits and a substantial return on investment. We have a long line of operators which have already requested the use of the mobile tyre safety station.”
Fleets can also learn more about the mobile tyre safety station, and the importance of tyre management, by signing up for the Driving for Better Business programme. It’s free to access and supports those who manage drivers to reduce road risk in their organisation. For more details, click here.
