Council looks to roll out winter tyres08 November 2013

Lancashire County Council is looking at introducing a winter tyre policy, after a successful trial last year when Goodyear's UltraGrip tyres were fitted to its winter gritting vehicles.

The aim was to see if the Ultragrip tyres could improve safety and stability while the vehicles applied salt to the county's 2,500km road network.

"Before last winter, we had never looked at the option of using winter tyres, but since testing them we have been really impressed with the performance they have delivered," states LCC principal fleet engineer Chris Grime, former president of the SOE, the umbrella organisation for the IRTE (Institute of Road Transport Engineers).

"Although we have always previously fitted an M+S [mud and snow] marked tyre, we have found the specifically designed winter tyre to be better," he continues.

"It took the steering and stability to the next level, removing a lot of the difficulty associated with winter driving."

Winter tyres are claimed to ensure that vehicle performance is optimised when temperatures are low and when road conditions are affected by snow and ice.

Special rubber compounds and tread patterns are required for such conditions: winter tyres are designed for optimum performance below 7 C.

Author
Laura Cork

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