Information On The Tire Industry Safety Council

Each year traffic fatalities in the United States number well into the tens of thousands. This makes automobile safety a chief concern of every area of society, including those companies who manufacture automobiles and their constituent parts. Since 1969, the Tire Industry Safety Council has addressed concerns about automobile safety by focusing on educating the public about tire safety and proper tire care.

The Tire Industry Council was originally formed to address congressional concerns about automobile and tire safety. During the 1960s, consumer advocate Ralph Nader and Senator Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin made public several concerns about the safety of the cars then being produced in the United States. To help assuage consumer fears and help people make their driving even safer, the tire-producing members of the Rubber Manufacturers Association, including such well-known companies as Bridgestone and Goodyear, established the non-profit Tire Industry Safety Council. Since that time, the council has been instrumental in helping people learn what kind of tires to buy and how to care for them, which is vital for safe driving.

Today, the name of the Tire Industry Safety Council is not as prominent on the printed brochures and other publications it produces. In fact, the council homepage is now the tire safety section of the website for the Rubber Manufacturers Association. Nevertheless, the goal for the council in promoting tire safety remains the same. Among its current initiatives is a free tire safety curriculum that can be used as a supplement to drivers education courses all over the United States. They also strive to keep drivers up to date on the tire regulations in force in each state. For example, they have a listing as to which states allow for metal-studded snow tires. Numerous other brochures on the proper inflation of tires, tread measurement, and more are also produced each year. Since studies show that an average of eleven percent of cars have at least one bald tire in the United States, this education must continue to make drivers aware of the dangers of not maintaining their tires.

One of the most important initiatives of the National Tire Safety Council is the annual National Tire Safety Week. Working in partnership with other automobile-safety related groups, manufacturers, and retailers, several events are planned each year to highlight the importance of tire safety and to remind drivers that poorly maintained tires are one of the chief contributors to auto accidents.

In providing information to the public about auto safety, the Tire Industry Safety Council performs an essential community service and helps keep people safe when they are out on the road. This concern for driver safety is not limited to the Tire Industry Safety Council alone but is shared by a variety of other groups and public advocacy organizations. Working together, the work of these groups and the education they provide can help drastically reduce the number of automobile fatalities each year and educate drivers to be more responsible when they are driving each day.

For more information on the Tire Industry Safety Council and other organizations/companies devoted to vehicle safety, please consult the following:

• Tire Industry Safety Council — official website for the Tire Industry Safety Council, which is hosted at the Rubber Manufacturers Association website

• AARP Driver Safety Program — resources for safe driving designed for older drivers

• Center for Auto Safety — organization concerned to disseminate safety records for all kinds of vehicles

• Federal Highway Administration: Safety — government agency’s page on motorist safety

• IIHS—HLDI — two organizations devoted to reducing property lose, injury, and death on the roads

• Motorcycle Safety Foundation — motorcyclists will find this site valuable for learning all about operating their bikes safely

• National Highway Traffic Safety Administration — government organization dedicated to promoting drivers safety

• National Road Safety Foundation — free programs are offered here regarding safe driving and other things to remember on the road

• RV and Car Safety — KOA campground page on operating RVs safety in and out of their camping sites