Air saves CO2
Meanwhile, a study by the Bridgestone tyre company says European motorists are emitting an unnecessary 18 million tonnes of CO2 and wasting €15 billion a year, all because they do not have enough air in their tyres.
[mailchimp_signup][/mailchimp_signup]As part of an initiative with the international car federation FIA, Bridgestone conducted free safety checks on 20,300 cars last year, and found that only 6.5% had the correct amount of air. Underinflated tyres are dangerous, and the increase in rolling resistance means they force the car to use more fuel and wear out more quickly.
54% had some degree of low inflation, while 39.5% had at least one tyre 1.5 bar or more below the recommended minimum. Bridgestone said the increased fuel consumption of 8.1 billion litres means 18.4 million tonnes of CO2, or 6.9 g/km for every car on Europe’s roads.
These findings will reinforce pressure on the Commission to propose mandatory fitting of tyre pressure monitoring systems, one of the actions proposed in February’s strategy on CO2 from cars.
This news story is taken from the April 2007 edition of T&E Bulletin.
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