UN: New UN Regulation for identification and snow performance of studded tyres

 

The World Forum for Harmonization of Vehicle Regulations has published a proposal for a new UN Regulation [164] on studded tyres.

It will apply to new studded pneumatic tyres of Classes C1, C2, and C3 with regard to their snow performance.

So far, winter tyres had to pass a special snow grip test and be type approved according to UN Regulation No. 117.   However, studded tyres (the ones equipped with studs of hard material, e.g. metal, to improve traction properties on ice surfaces and packed snow) are not in scope of UN Regulation No. 117.  As a result, they are not allowed to be marked with the snow grip symbol, in spite of their good performance. This has created problems in some countries where studded tyres were not accepted as winter tyres.

Therefore, to fill this gap, the World Forum for Harmonization of Vehicle Regulations (WP.29) adopted a proposal for a new UN Regulation 164 to cover performance requirements and marking of studded tyres.

The new Regulation will increase road safety by introducing harmonized snow grip requirements for studded tyres. It will equally simplify the legislative situation in countries that allow the usage of studded tyres on public roads, such as Finland, Sweden, Norway, Estonia, Russian Federation, and in several other European countries

The new Regulation covers studded tyres for passenger cars, buses and trucks and introduces strict requirements and procedures for testing their snow grip.

Source: https://unece.org/media/press/365695