Brussels – The European Tyre and Rubber Manufacturers’ Association (ETRMA) has called for progress in tire technology as well as strict and effective market surveillance to reduce CO2 emissions.

The call was made in a 14 Dec statement in which the Brussels-based association posted its position on the European Commission’s (EC) low emissions mobility strategy.

Published in July, the EC’s strategy had a particular a focus on freight transport.

Reductions in CO2 emissions, said ETRMA, could be achieved via “progress on tire technology together with a full deployment of the existing measures as well as the compulsory fitment of tire pressure monitoring systems (TPMS) on commercial vehicles.”

In addition, the ETRMA called for “strict and effective market surveillance” in line with other EU transport policies including road safety features such as TPMS and wet grip.

The tire industry, it insisted, is “committed to further reduce the rolling resistance coefficient of its tires by an average of 1% each year until 2030.”

This, said secretary general Fazilet Cinaralp, would result in a reduction of 8.7 million tonnes of CO2 through tire technology. The figure is equal to removing 81.000 40-tonne-trucks every year from European roads.

The ETRMA, however, stressed that the overall performance of tires was achieved through a careful balance of conflicting requirements and that it was essential to make sure that existing safety standards were not compromised.