News
School bus operators appear reluctant to embrace new low rolling resistant tires until they absolutely have to, that being a federal mandate in 2018.
beginning with model year 2018. Michelin, Hankook, Goodyear and Continental Tire currently manufac- ture LRRTs. Continental announced in October 2015 that it would supply all IC Bus models with LRRTs as standard equipment. Several transportation directors spoken to for this article
had little or no knowledge of the capabilities of the LRRTs and exhibited little or no awareness of NHTSA plans. Bruce Miles is director of government specifications and
Rubber, Meet Road Survey results indicate school districts show little eagerness, knowledge about low rolling resistance tires and NHTSA plan to reduce fuel consumption
WRITTEN BY ART GISSENDANER M
any school districts apparently have yet to catch on to low rolling resistance tires, or LRRTs, in order to comply with a pending federal mandate to improve fuel efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, if the results of a recent STN survey
are any indication. According to the reader survey conducted in September and October, more
than 80 percent of 227 respondents said they did not currently have LRRTs on their buses, even though some indicated that when they purchase new buses, fuel efficiency is a factor in their decision making.Te districts’ fleets ranged in size from five to more than 2,000 buses. Tire makers and school bus manufacturers expressed little surprise at the
percentages. “Tat (80 percent) sounds about right,” said Chris Bantrup, Mi- chelin’s key account manager, adding that the aerodynamics of a school bus work against improving mileage significantly. “When you talk about school buses, you’re basically talking about something that resembles a shoebox. It’s tough to improve the aerodynamics of a shoebox.” LRRTs are but one of several technologies suggested by the NHTSA as
part of new Phase 2 rules to address environmental concerns, in partnership with the EPA’s efforts to reduce greenhouse gases. Also included are aero- dynamic technologies, tire pressure monitoring systems, idle reduction and retrofit technologies. Te new standards are intended to save $1.7 trillion at the pump, reduce the U.S. consumption of oil by 12 billion barrels and cut greenhouse gas emissions by six billion metric tons over the course of the program, according to EPA’s website. Te plan calls for all new school buses to come equipped with LRRTs
18School Transportation News • NOVEMBER 2016
product validation for Blue Bird. He said Michelin, Han- kook and Goodyear LRRTs are available to the OEM’s customers. He added that variety helps districts comply with agreements they have with certain tire companies. Some industry experts said school districts won’t make the switch to LRRTs until they have to because they don’t want to throw away tires with remaining tread life for even newer, more expensive ones. Transportation Director George Sontag said his district, Centerville Schools in Ohio, has used LRRTs for several years in concert with other technology. “We experiment with different technologies and if it works we use it,” Sontag said. “We get awful good fuel mileage because we upgrade our engines and rear axle ratio.” LRRTs originally were developed for line haul trucks
that travel cross country. Bautrup said the school bus ap- plication could be problematic. “We build tires for school buses that can stand up to starting and stopping, the po- tential curbing and rural application on gravel roads,” he explained. “What can happen is you will have a tire that would wear out so fact that you create another problem.” Linda Beale doubles as the transportation supervisor
and superintendent’s secretary for the remote Waelder ISD in rural Texas. She said LRRTs are currently installed on three older buses that are used infrequently. Beale said Waelder has several hazardous routes, the most grueling being a 50-mile route on an all-dirt road. She said two buses purchased in 2014 and 2015 will probably be outfitted with the new LRRTs when the regular tires wear out, but she expressed concern about the tires’ durability. Another requirement called for in Phase 2 is that
LRRTs have a tire management system to monitor tire pressure. “It all goes hand in hand to improve fuel efficien- cy,” said Frank Sonzala, former executive vice president of Pressure Systems International. “School buses get treated the same. When they buy new buses, they must include specifications for rolling resistance tires and a tire manage- ment system. When they buy new buses they will have to include specifications for low rolling resistance tires.” ●
CELEBRATING25YEARS
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