END this tyre mix reg chaos say operators
Page 18
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URGENT changes to the new tyre mixing regulations (CM June 18) have been called for by the Freight Transport Association.
Some operators have found themselves breaking the rules with combinations of cross-ply and radial tyres which they have used for years. The FTA has therefore taken the problem up with the Department of Environment.
According to the FTA one vehicle type where difficulties crop up is a normal three-axle rigid. Operators for reasons of adhesion and tyre life prefer the single-steering axle fitted with radials, the second (driven) axle with cross-plies and the trailing axle with radials.
But the recent Construction and Use changes make this illegal, even though operators have used this configuration for some years with no history of accidents.
A similar situation arises with eight-wheelers where the FTA has pointed out that it does not know of one single case where stability has been jeopardised by using radials on the first and second axle and cross-plies on the third and fourth.
"In the case of certain vehicles it would be scarcely sensible to change tyres simply to comply with the detail of the law in the absence of any safety advantages," said the FTA.