Tyre burst crashes in bus and lorry fleets: what operators can do

A tyre failure on a bus or lorry puts more than one vehicle at risk. A December 2024 crash on the PLUS highway and a run of lorry crashes in 2026 show how one failed tyre can involve other road users. Most of the risk can be managed with a routine: pressure checks on cold tyres, regular inspections, careful wheel work, written records and a clear plan for what drivers do when a tyre fails.

What recent incidents show

KM204, PLUS highway near Ayer Keroh, December 2024. On the night of 23 December 2024, a crash at KM204.0 near Ayer Keroh killed seven people, Malay Mail reported. Alor Gajah district police chief Supt Ashari Abu Samah said the front right tyre of a Foton lorry came loose and landed in the middle lane. A southbound tour bus hit it, and the driver lost control and swerved into the opposite lane. Police said the bus hit a northbound trailer, which then crashed into the road barrier before hitting a Perodua Bezza and a Toyota Estima MPV carrying a family. Those killed included the MPV driver, members of his family, the bus driver and a bus passenger. Police impounded all the vehicles for inspection and said the case was being investigated under Section 41(1) of the Road Transport Act 1987.

Five vehicles were involved, and police traced the start of the chain to a single tyre that came off a lorry.

2026 so far. Heavy vehicles appear again and again in this year's reports:

• February, Rembau. A trailer heading from Seremban to a factory in Rembau is believed to have had its front right tyre burst. Two siblings were killed, Kosmo reported.
• May, Sebuyau. Police said a premix lorry's front tyre burst at around 5am and the driver lost control before the lorry skidded into a muddy ditch. The driver was found dead, Malay Mail reported.
• October, Tanjong Karang. A lorry stopped on the left shoulder after a tyre burst. An MPV crashed into its rear and three members of one family were killed, the New Straits Times reported.
• October, North-South Expressway, Hulu Selangor. A lorry carrying fresh chicken overturned after its rear left tyre was believed to have burst, and a car crashed into it, Red Ping reported.
• November, Batu Pahat. A tar-laden lorry is believed to have lost control after a tyre burst, and it crushed an MPV on Jalan Yong Peng–Muar. A husband and wife were killed, the New Straits Times reported.

In Tanjong Karang the lorry had already stopped, so the danger did not end when the vehicle came to rest. Every case is listed with its source in the Tyre Burst Tracker.

Operators cannot control other vehicles on the road. They can control their own tyres and wheels, and how their drivers respond.

Why heavy-vehicle tyres fail

Low pressure and heat. Michelin says low pressure causes an abnormal rise in running temperature, which may damage the tyre's internal components. That damage cannot be reversed, and it can lead to sudden deflation.

Too much pressure. Over-inflation is not a safe margin. Michelin says it can cause rapid, irregular wear and makes the tyre more sensitive to impacts.

Road hazards. Michelin says most damage comes from impacts with objects on the road, such as stones, scrap metal or kerbs. Screws are a common cause of punctures, and some punctures cannot be repaired.

Overloading. Michelin says tyres are vulnerable to damage from overloading. Uneven weight distribution can overload some axles and damage their tyres.

Mismatched twin tyres. On twin wheels, Michelin says that if one tyre is properly inflated and the other is not, the under-inflated one slips more and wears faster.

Maintenance. In the Malay Mail report on retreaded tyres, Wong Jin How, president of the Malaysian Retreaded Tyre Manufacturers Association, said most heavy vehicle accidents caused by tyre issues stem from poor maintenance rather than tyre quality. He also said that under JPJ regulations front tyres must be new, not retreaded, and that retreaded tyres must meet the MS 224:2019 standard.

The inspection standard has tightened

From 1 June 2025, JPJ requires commercial vehicles, both goods and public service vehicles, to have a tread depth of at least 1.6 mm across the entire surface of the tyre in contact with the road, The Vibes reported. Before that, Puspakom checked only 75% of the surface. A vehicle that fails the requirement does not pass inspection. Worn patches on a tyre now matter as much as the average depth.

A maintenance routine for fleets

The UK's Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) publishes a guide to keeping goods and passenger vehicles roadworthy. It is not Malaysian law, but it is a useful model. Combined with Michelin's tyre advice, a fleet routine looks like this.

1. Check pressures on cold tyres. Michelin says to check cold tyres regularly, or when the vehicle is serviced, with a calibrated gauge. Include the spare.
2. Never let air out of a hot tyre. Pressure rises in use, so Michelin advises against reducing it while the tyre is hot.
3. Act on low readings. Michelin says a cold tyre more than 0.6 bar (8 psi) below the suggested pressure must be corrected immediately. Do not re-inflate an under-inflated tyre until it has been inspected inside and out.
4. Remove and inspect suspect tyres. Michelin advises removing any hot tyre that reads below the suggested pressure, or that runs noticeably hotter than the others. If you notice a pressure drop of 20%, have the inside of the tyre inspected.
5. Look at every tyre. Michelin says a visual inspection finds nails, cracks, cuts, deformations and embedded objects. A visual check does not tell you the pressure, so use a gauge as well.
6. Check wheel nut torque after wheel work. DVSA's guide recommends checking wheel nut torque after a wheel has been removed and refitted, and says every re-torque check must be recorded.
7. Record pressures and tread depths at inspections. DVSA says safety inspections must report all tyre defects and record tyre pressures and tread depths.
8. Make defect reporting easy. DVSA says drivers must report defects promptly, in writing, to someone with the authority to act, including taking the vehicle out of service. It says defect reports should be kept for at least 15 months.
9. Check load and axle weights. Overloading and uneven loading both damage tyres.

Planning for a failure

Even a well-maintained tyre can be damaged by debris, and the KM204 crash shows that the debris can come from someone else's vehicle. So plan for the moment a tyre fails, not only for preventing it.

• Driver procedure. Brief drivers on how to keep control and where to stop. Our guide on what to do when a tyre bursts covers the method and what to do once stopped.
• Passengers. For buses, decide who leads passengers away from traffic and where they wait.
• Who to call. PLUS lists PLUSLine on 1-800-88-0000 for emergencies. Put it, your depot number and your recovery provider in every cab.
• After the event. Treat the failed tyre and wheel as evidence. Record what happened, keep the tyre for inspection and check the other tyres on that axle.
• Records. If a tyre fails, your inspection, pressure and re-torque records show what was done before it.

Where the Tyron Multiband fits

The Tyron Multiband is a band fitted in the wheel well, under a normal tyre. It locks the tyre to the wheel, which helps the driver keep steering, cornering and braking control in a high-speed blowout or puncture. The vehicle can then cover a medium distance at reduced speed to a safe stop, even with two or more deflated tyres.

For commercial fleets, Multibands fit wheels from 17.5 to 22.5 inch, which covers almost all commercial trucks, plus buses and trailers on the same wheel sizes. Fitting adds about 5 minutes per tyre to a normal tyre change, so it can be done at a routine tyre service. It works with the tyres you already buy, and any tyre fitter can fit and refit it, with Tyron certified workshops recommended. In a filmed test, a 49-tonne truck had blowouts at 60 and 80 km/h and the driver stayed in control.

Its limits belong in your plan too. It does not prevent punctures or blowouts, and it does not replace any of the checks above.

See the commercial fleet range, or send us your fleet details to discuss your vehicles.