Skip to main content

Researching vehicle tyre safety

For the last two years a team of European partners has been examining the interaction between vehicle tyres and road surfaces. According to the UK's TRL, one of the partners in the European project Tyrosafe (Tyre and Road Surface Optimisation for Skid resistance And Further Effects), devices to measure skid resistance were developed at the forerunner of the UK's TRL in the 1930s.
February 15, 2012 Read time: 3 mins
The European Tyrosafe project has been examining the interaction between vehicle tyres and road surfaces
For the last two years a team of European partners has been examining the interaction between vehicle tyres and road surfaces.

According to the UK's 777 TRL, one of the partners in the European project Tyrosafe (Tyre and Road Surface Optimisation for Skid resistance And Further Effects), devices to measure skid resistance were developed at the forerunner of the UK's TRL in the 1930s.

"Now there are lots of different types of equipment in use across Europe and around the world. Unfortunately, they operate on different principles and give different results because of the large number of variables affecting road/tyre friction," says the TRL.

The results of Tyrosafe will encourage public authorities of EU Member States to use existing and new research knowledge, to reduce fatalities, and promote environmental compatibility of road surfaces.

"The main objectives of the project were to raise awareness, to coordinate and prepare for European harmonisation, and to optimise the assessment and management of essential tyre/road interaction parameters, in order to increase safety and support greening of European road transport," says Tyrosafe, which completed its two-year project at the end of June.

The project is a coordination action funded by the European Community's Seventh Framework Programme and it consists of seven European partners (coordinator, the 2682 Austrian Institute of Technology; Bundesanstalt für Straßenwesen (1369 BASt), Germany; 2686 Rijkswaterstaat Dienst Verkeer en Scheepvaart - Ministry of Transport and Navigation, The Netherlands; 2687 Slovenian National Building and Civil Engineering Institute; 1364 Forum of European National Highway Research Laboratories, Belgium; Laboratoire Central des Ponts et Chaussées (1368 LCPC), France, and TRL.

"The most significant project outcomes are the recommendations for future policies concerning road surface properties, the Roadmap and Implementation Plan for Harmonisation of Skid Resistance Measurement Techniques, and the report on influences of road surface properties on skid resistance, rolling resistance, noise emissions, their interdependencies, and the investigation of their interaction with climatic change," says Tyrosafe.

"Environmental questions concerning noise pollution, air quality, and consumption of energy are becoming more and more important. Research has shown that road surface properties can be used to achieve increased safety and reduced environmental impact of road traffic. Drivers need sufficient grip between tyres and the road to accelerate, decelerate or change direction.

"With a sufficiently high level of skid resistance, the safety of roads can be improved and the number of accidents can be reduced."

The winners of the Tyrosafe video competition to produce a short video conveying the importance and raising awareness about the interactions among tyres, roads and safety were Gregor Salobir, Alma Muminovi?, Teja Pišek, Anamarija Repuši?, Karmen Vesenjak who produced TyroSafe-CARO Your Car and Road Science Lab.

Related Content

  • Electro-fragmentation offers new recycling solution for fibre-reinforced concrete
    July 12, 2018
    A pan-European research project is investigating the use of electro-fragmentation to help recycle fibre-reinforced concrete (FRC). Increasingly used in civil applications such as tunnels and bridge decks, FRC can be challenging to recycle because of the difficulty in separating the tiny fibres from the concrete material. “Most of the research into FRC is about the formulation or the application of the material,” said Kathy Bru, a process engineer at research organisation BRGM. “We are looking ahead 20 or 3
  • Further co-operation between ASECAP and GSA
    May 30, 2012
    An extension to the existing collaboration between ASECAP and the European GNSS Agency (GSA) will increase efficiency. The aim is to exchange knowledge and experience and to examine together the potential and the use of GNSS applications in highway operations. This arrangement follows on from the 40th ASECAP Study and Information Days, which took place in Turin, Italy recently. The GSA supports the use of European GNSS in road transport to improve traffic management and road safety and reduce CO2 emissions.
  • ERF urges greater maintenance of Europe’s road signs to save lives
    March 21, 2016
    ERF has launched a position paper to advocate better maintenance of Europe’s traffic signs. Vertical signage is an essential element not only of a modern and well-maintained road infrastructure, but also of a safe and functional road network. Road signs help regulate traffic, provide crucial visual guidance and give drivers important preview especially during night-time conditions. Well maintained and efficient signage becomes even more necessary when taking into account the ageing population of Europe, in
  • Workzone safety protects workforce and drivers
    May 3, 2012
    Highway construction work zones are dangerous places, and anything that can improve safety is welcomed as Patrick Smith reports. The safe and efficient flow of traffic through work zones is a major concern to transportation officials, industry, the public, businesses, and commercial motor carriers. This is the view of the US Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), which has developed the Highway Work Zone Safety Program to reduce the fatalities and injurious crashes in work zones, and to enhance traffic oper