Dear Editor,
It is something we are used to seeing in Guyana which would be unacceptable elsewhere in the world – bald tyres on vehicles, especially minibuses. It is widely known and common sense to see that a worn tyre can fail, causing an accident, injury and death. That is why the law in the UK says you must have at least 1.0 mm throughout a continuous band across at least 3/4 of the breadth of the tread and around the entire circumference for passenger vehicles. It also states it must be fit for purpose meaning a tyre:
- must be compatible with the types of tyres fitted to the other wheels;
- must not have any lump, bulge or tear caused by separation or partial failure of the structure;
- must not have a cut or tear in excess of 25mm or 10% of the sectional width of the tyre, whichever is the greater, and which is deep enough to reach the ply or cord;
- must not have any part of the ply or cord exposed.
There are also rules about pressures.
It is quite clear that the importation of second-hand tyres, along with the lack of training and enforcement of the above safety rules, is a major contributor to the accidents, injuries and deaths on our roads.
So why does the government have a duty of 30% on new tyres and only 5% on second-hand tyres? Shouldn’t it be the other way round?
This is something our new government needs to take in hand and urgently if we are to be serious about road safety.
Yours faithfully,
Peter Bouchard