Note: This is the fifth in a multi-part series that will publish in advance of this year’s Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) International Roadcheck blitz from June 4-6. Previous coverage can be found here.
While brake issues land more trucks with out of service violations than any other component, tires and wheels are close behind.
During last year’s Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) International Roadcheck blitz, 19 percent of the 11,910 vehicles placed out of service had received tire and wheel violations.
Homer Hogg, director of technical service at TA/Petro, says that proper maintenance is key in avoiding citations.
“One of the most important tire maintenance practices is to ensure the air pressure in tires matches the load being hauled,” Hogg explains. “This can be determined with load matching charts, which indicate the proper range of air pressure relative to the amount of weight the vehicle is hauling. A large part of this best practice is to check pressure levels daily to ensure they’re properly inflated. Many fleets today use tire monitoring and inflation systems to help notify drivers when tires need to be inflated.”
Auto inflators and PSI sensors can certainly play a key role in a fleet’s tire maintenance program.
