Caravaners warned of ‘death trap’ roads (From Mid Devon Star)

Caravaners warned of ‘death trap’ roads

11:12am Monday 20th August 2007

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FOLLOWING more warnings of rain lashed roads and flash floods in the region from the Met Office, a leading tyre expert has given a stark warning to people driving with caravans.

"With no quick return to summer in sight, we're going to see a dreadful payback from years of chronic under-investment in roads maintenance. As busy roads dry out, many road surfaces will become death traps," said Tony Bowman, MD of the online retailer, etyres.

"The Government's own figures show that one in three roads in Metropolitan areas already have inadequate skidding resistance. In London it's one in two. These latest downpours are going to make an already worrying problem even worse," said Mr Bowman.

"While the Government's failure to maintain roads properly is inexcusable, any responsible caravaner must ensure that their car and caravan have correctly inflated tyres as under inflation increases stopping distances significantly. Motorists forget that in wet weather, stopping distances are twice that for dry, but the crunch factor is that stopping distances are three times more on badly maintained roads with slippery surfaces," said Mr Bowman.

Mr Bowman points out another sobering fact - one in eight drivers is risking tyre failure due to the stress and heat build-up from sidewall bending from under-inflation, which he blames largely on inaccurate forecourt air gauges. For a car towing a caravan, that's six or eight wheels that could fail.

Mr Bowman's advice is to invest in a decent pressure gauge. "Then you must check each wheel every two weeks, especially during the current danger time. 44% of cars and caravans are losing 21% of tyre life due to unnecessary wear, so if you want a motivation, think of it this way - the combined effect of higher rolling resistance on fuel consumption and shorter tyre life would be costing you £63 a year."

"Save that money and you might also potentially save a life," he added.

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