Effects of Studded Tires on Pavements and Traffic Safety in Minnesota

Increasing winter abrasion of pavement surfaces led the 1969 Minnesota Legislature to order the Minnesota Highway Department to conduct an in-depth study of studded tire effects relating to pavement wear and safety.

In the laboratory, studded tires without sand and salt abraded pavement specimens 100 times faster than unstudded tires with sand and salt. Laboratory wear rates correlated with those found on highway pavements. If pavement wear should continue to increase at the same rate, premature repairs would become necessary at great cost.

Accident studies indicated that on icy and snowy roads studded tires provide slight advantage over snow tires, but it was considered unlikely that discontinuance of studded tires would make an appreciable change in traffic safety in Minnesota.