EFFECTS OF STUDDED TIRES

AN INDEPTH STUDY WAS MADE TO DETERMINE THE EFFECTS OF STUDDED TIRES ON PAVEMENT WEAR AND HIGHWAY SAFETY. RESULTS FROM THE TEST TRACK SHOWED THAT STUDDED TIRES ABRADED THE PAVEMENT SPECIMENS MORE THAN 100 TIMES AS RAPIDLY AS UNSTUDDED TIRES WITH SAND AND SALT. WHEN USED IN COMBINATION WITH STUDDED TIRES, SAND AND SALT DID CONTRIBUTE SOMEWHAT TO THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF ABRASION. A GOOD CORRELATION WAS FOUND BETWEEN RATE OF PAVEMENT WEAR AT THE TEST TRACK AND ON TRUNK HIGHWAY SURFACES. THEREFORE, ESTIMATES COULD BE MADE OF THE NUMBER OF STUDDED TIRE PASSES TO WHICH VARIOUS TYPES OF HIGHWAY SURFACES COULD BE SUBJECTED BEFORE REPAIRS WOULD BE NECESSARY. THE COST TO REPAIR TRUNK HIGHWAY SURFACES AND BRIDGE DECKS DAMAGED BY STUDDED TIRES IS CALCULATED TO BE $12.6 MILLION ANNUALLY BY 1980. THE OVERALL EFFECT OF STUDDED TIRES ON HIGHWAY SAFETY WAS DIFFICULT TO EVALUATE. THE CAL STUDY SHOWED A LOWER INVOLVEMENT OF STUDDED TIRE VEHICLES IN SLIDING ACCIDENTS ON ICY ROADS. HOWEVER, THIS BENEFIT MUST BE WEIGHED AGAINST THE POTENTIAL DETRIMENTAL EFFECTS OF STUDDED TIRES ON YEAR-ROUND SAFETY SUCH AS LOSS OF PAVEMENT SAFETY GROOVING, PREMATURE LOSS OF PAVEMENT LANE MARKINGS, AND VARIOUS PROBLEMS CAUSED BY THE RUTTED WHEEL PATHS. IT APPEARS THAT THE DISCONTINUED USE OF STUDDED TIRES WOULD HAVE LITTLE CHANGE IN TRAFFIC SAFETY IN MINNESOTA. /AUTHOR/

• Corporate Authors:

  Minnesota Department of Highways

  ,    
• Publication Date: 1971-3

Media Info

• Pagination: 52 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Costs; Defects; Maintenance; Pavement distress; Pavements; Safety; Studded tires; Wear
• Subject Areas: Finance; Highways; Maintenance and Preservation; Pavements; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00222024
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: National Technical Information Service
• Report/Paper Numbers: Res Rept
• Files: TRIS, STATEDOT
• Created Date: Jul 8 1973 12:00AM