School Districts Save Money with Retread Tires

New bus tires can be a very expensive investment for school districts, costing as much as $400 apiece. That said, there is a solution that could save school districts a lot of money for other endeavors. The answer is investing in retread tires instead of paying exorbitant amounts of money for brand new ones. School districts can purchase retread tires at half the cost of brand new tires and will allow them to invest the money saved elsewhere.

Safety Concerns

Investing in retread tires comes with questions though. For example, Are they as safe as new tires? After all, the number one goal for any school district is to keep kids safe. Retread tires have been in question for years but no study has ever proven that retread tires fail at a higher rate than new tires. In fact, many retreaders across the country believe that retread tires are actually a perfect fit for school buses.

Why Retread Tires are Perfect for Buses

Many school districts across the country are faced with tight budgets and the challenge of how to spend their money while keeping kids safe. Retread tires offer school districts a cheaper alternative than new tires when it comes to regular bus maintenance and the work load buses go through makes them a perfect fit. School buses carry light loads on easy roads and the tires are generally replaced about every two years. With this workload and the fact bus tires are replaced so often provides an ideal situation for school buses while keeping kids safe during bus routes.

Effects On Taxpayers

If more school districts choose to switch to retread tires, taxpayers will save money as well.. Everyone likes to have a little more money in their pocket, which is what could happen if school districts make this change.. It’s a win-win situation according to many in the industry.

Rules And Regulations

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) who sets Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards, there are no regulations that limit the number of times a tire can be retreaded. There are also no age limits for retreaded tires, however, regulations prohibit the use of retread tires on the front steering axles of school buses. Title 49, Part 393.75 (d) of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations states “No bus shall be operated with regrooved, recapped or retreaded tires on the front wheels.” This is the only regulation on retread tires for bus use however. They are not prohibited for drive tire use. Retread tires are commonly used for commercial vehicles as well as for airplane tires.

Many school districts have already made the switch to retread tires, but not all have, imagine if they all do in the future. For more information on the benefits of retread tires, check out this article that explains why retread tires could be a great alternative for you too.