TPMS now mandatory on truck and bus tyres

Tyre pressure monitoring systems (TPMS) have long been legally required in many vehicle categories: they first made their way into legislation in the US in 2008, followed shortly thereafter by Japan, South Korea, and, in 2012, the EU.

Now, for the first time, truck and bus tyres are legally required to have TPMS under the EU’s new ‘vehicle general safety’ regulation, which came into force on 6th July.

The legislation will be implemented in two parts: As of this month, it applies to all new vehicle type approvals; from July 2024, tyre pressure monitoring systems will be required for all newly registered trailers.

A total of 11 active safety features are required for HGVs as part of the EU’s new vehicle general safety regulation. Eight of them will become mandatory on new trucks from July 2024. The remaining three will follow in 2026 and 2029.

The mandatory features from July 2024 include: TPMS; emergency stop signals; reversing cameras or sensors; intelligent speed assistance; blind spot information system; moving off information system; in-vehicle breathalysers; and drowsiness and attention detection.

A distraction recognition and prevention warning system will roll out from 2026, while an accident data recorder and specific requirements to improve what drivers can see directly through the windows of their vehicle to remove blind spots will be mandatory from 2029.