Barnes has been an HGV driver for more than 20 years and says he is very aware of the impact underinflated tyre pressures can have on road safety.
"But checking tyre pressures isn't an easy task on an HGV because there are so many of them," he says.
"The inner tyres in particular are difficult to access, which makes pressure checks a real chore. Typically, these are checked by a visual review or by kicking the tyres but that definitely isn't the best way to ensure they're safe."
No surprise then that a recent study by WheelRight in association with Highways England reveals that HGVs are typically running with at least one tyre under-inflated at any one time.
But at Keele Services, following the installation of the WheelRight under a pilot scheme – also with Highways England – things are different.
"You simply drive over the system, as if you were using a weighbridge, to receive a print-out revealing the pressure of each tyre. This takes all the guess work out of your checks," says Barnes.
WheelRight has installed two tyre pressure monitoring systems at Keele Services, M6 south-bound, one for HGVs and another for private motorists.
To get a free tyre pressure reading, drivers just need to drive over the embedded WheelRight instrument.
Their results are available in seconds either on a touch screen or paper print-out. Drivers can immediately inflate any problem tyres identified using the nearby air compressors.
"I'd love this technology to be installed at all motorway service stations," says Barnes.
"This is a great bit of kit. I've already told my manager about this, and I've shared the story on several HGV pages on Facebook. I'll be making regular stop-offs in the future to keep my tyre pressures on track."
Currently, the UK sees approximately 25 deaths and nearly 1,500 serious accidents* every year attributed to poorly inflated or defective tyres.
