Seasonality of wheeled vehicle tires: technical requirements and legal regulations

Abstract

The article is devoted to the study of technical requirements and legal regulation of the use of tires on wheeled vehicles, the type of which corresponds to the season. The current legislation of Ukraine in the field of ensuring road traffic safety, which defines the requirements for the technical condition of vehicles and their equipment, as well as legal acts concerning the rules for operating pneumatic tires of certain categories of wheeled vehicles, in particular, the orders of the Ministry of Infrastructure of Ukraine "About approval of the Rules for the technical operation of wheels and pneumatic tires of wheeled vehicles of categories L, M, N, O and special machines made on their chassis" dated 07.26.2013 No. 549 and "On Approval of the Rules for the Operation of Wheeled Vehicles" dated 07.26.2013 No. 550. The need to enforce the obligation to use winter/all-season tires on wheeled vehicles of certain categories at the legislative level and to establish administrative liability for the person driving the vehicle for non-compliance with technical requirements, including when tires out of season. The project of the Law of Ukraine "On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine on the Safety of Vehicles" dated 19.01.2023 No. 8369 was analyzed, based on which it is proposed to amend Article 37 of the Law of Ukraine "On Road Traffic" regarding the need to install tires on the vehicle, type which corresponds to the season; to Sections 1 and 31 of the Road Traffic Rules, approved by Resolution No. 1306 of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine dated 10.10.2001 regarding the establishment at the legislative level of the definitions of winter and summer seasons, the minimum permissible height of the tire tread pattern in the winter season and the obligation to install winter/all-season tires in the specified period for a certain category of vehicles; to the first part of Article 121 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses regarding the establishment of liability for non-compliance with the requirements, according to which the established rules prohibit the operation of a vehicle, including the use of tires, the type of which corresponds to the season.