In our Newsletter of September 2019, you read ICTS was taking part in a pilot project to measure tire pressure on the A16 motorway near Dordrecht, in the Netherlands.

In our Newsletter of September 2019, you read ICTS was taking part in a pilot project to measure tire pressure on the A16 motorway near Dordrecht, in the Netherlands.

Rijkswaterstaat (the executive agency of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management of the Netherlands) wrapped up the project early since sensors in the asphalt became exposed at the end of January 2021.
 
Rijkswaterstaat started this pilot project in May 2018, together with the Rotterdam Port Authority and the Verkeersonderneming (a Dutch traffic solution-oriented organization). As of December 2018 more than 250 participating companies, representing about 46,000 license plates, received a notification if one of their trucks’ tires’ pressure that was too low, so they could take appropriate action and prevent tire failure and traffic disruptions.
 
The trial was evaluated at the end of December 2020. The system detected around 40,000 deviations. Over the entire evaluation period, the system measured a deviation in 1.1% of passing vehicles.
 
The evaluation yielded striking results:

• In the participant survey, 92% indicated the notifications were usually or (almost) always justified.
• More than 90% were satisfied with the pilot and took action almost immediately after each notification.
• Although difficult to quantify, the research shows the pilot resulted in fewer tire incidents, probably not only in the Rotterdam region but beyond, a view shared by participating companies.

To maintain awareness and further prevent tire incidents, Rijkswaterstaat and the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management are considering possible follow-up actions. Rijkswaterstaat will also further discuss the results with the participants.