"Tire Pressure Special Study: Methodology" is the first in a series of research notes pertaining to the Tire Pressure Special Study (TPSS) conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Upcoming research notes will highlight driver profile data, interview data, vehicle profile data and tire data. This research note describes the methodology NHTSA's National Centre for Statistics and Analysis used in the TPSS including sampling design, data collection methodology, and estimation procedures. In 2000, Congress passed the Transportation Recall Enhancement, Accountability, and Documentation (TREAD) Act. Section 12 of this act directed the Department of Transportation to complete a rulemaking within one year. This rulemaking requires implementation of a warning system in new motor vehicles indicating under-inflated tires. In response to Section 12 of the TREAD Act, NHTSA's National Centre for Statistics and Analysis (NCSA) conducted the TPSS. The TPSS was designed to assess to what extent passenger vehicle operators are aware of the recommended tire pressures for their vehicles, the frequency and the means they use to measure their tire pressure, and how significantly the actual measured tire pressure differed from the manufacturer's recommended tire pressure. The data collected will be used in support of various rulemaking actions. These include an upgrade to the placement and contents of the vehicle placard and the development of an onboard tire pressure measuring sensor. (Author/publisher) This research note may be accessed by Internet users at http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/ncsa/ResearchNotes/809-315.pdf.
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