Latvian Television also joined the State Police and the CSDD raid at around 2 PM. Only a few minutes later, a taxi driver was stopped for tire control. The tire tread was less than 3 millimeters, which means that his license plates are suspended and that further movement is prohibited, and the roadworthiness of the cars will have to be re-tested.
The taxi driver even tried to replace the tires in front of the police, but the police did not allow it. The driver had to search for an evacuator.
After a few checked cars, a BMW brand car parked in the parking lot. This vehicle had been inspected less than a month ago. The depth of rear tire treads was critically low. This car also got its number plates suspended and the roadworthiness label stripped, but the driver had to search for an auto-evacuator.
The CSDD said that the statistics are very concerning this year – one in four stopped cars has an inadequate depth of the tire tread.
The head of the CSDD Rīga customer service center Uldis Zandbergs explained: “If it is 4 millimeters at the moment, December 1, depending on how many daily drives are being made, two weeks or up to a month, and it is clear that it will no longer be adequate. Repair shops are mostly to blame – because I put on [tires] last week, they didn't say anything, I bought used tires yesterday and they were indicated as 4.5 millimeters, but in reality, they were not.”
Zandbergs noted that drivers should be more self-critical: “But the condition of the tires needs to be looked at, because when the accident happens, blaming the repair shop will not help. Each is responsible for the means of transport they use to move down the street."
CSDD inspections in Latvian cities are scheduled to be carried out daily.
