Geneva, Switzerland, March 6, 2012 – Goodyear will be unveiling an innovative electric vehicle concept tire at this year’s Geneva International Motor Show. The tire is part of an ongoing European Union project, which seeks to reduce the impact of noise in cities throughout the EU.

As part of the project, engineers from the Goodyear Innovation Center Luxembourg are looking at how new tire technology can contribute to a quieter inner city and are developing a prototype tire specifically designed to fulfill the requirements of future electric vehicles.

The EU’s CityHush project is proposing quiet zones, so called Q-Zones where only electric vehicles will be allowed, defined by a maximum noise level. As a result, noise levels are expected to be reduced by about 15 dB. There will also be a special focus on parks embedded within the Q-zone, where the aim is to achieve a 10-20 dB noise reduction.

The project will look at improved indoor and outdoor noise score rating models, the impact of vehicles, tires and road surfaces as well as building design and noise barriers. This should lead to a park environment with a greatly reduced noise level, a better acoustic environment, additional health benefits and a more useable and relaxing recreational space.

One of the components of traffic noise is generated by the interaction between motor vehicle tires and the road surface. The amplitude and frequency content of this noise is a function of many parameters, including the road surface texture, tire dimensions, tire materials, and construction and the tread pattern design.

Jean Pierre Jeusette, General Director of the Goodyear Innovation Center Luxembourg explains: "We are the only tire manufacturer part of the CityHush project. The concept tire for this project highlights our enormous research and development efforts in the production of tires for current and future electric vehicles, focused on continuously minimizing vehicle’s impact on the environment."

CityHush will implement Q-zones in five European cities – Bratislava (Slovakia), Bristol (UK), Essen (Germany), Gothenburg (Sweden) and Stockholm (Sweden) – through modeling, using input from traffic and noise mapping models available for the different cities.

About CityHush
CityHush is a three-year research project co-funded by the European Commission, under the 7th Framework Programme.  Partners of the CityHush project include ACCON, ACL, Alfa Products & Technologies, Dynamics, Structures and Systems International, Goodyear, Head Acoustics, Kungliga Tekniska Hogskolan, Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research, Promotion of Operational Links with Integrated Services, Stockholm Environmental Protection Agency, Traffic and Transportation Consultants, Traffic & Public Transport Authority, University of Cambridge.  This activity supports European noise policy to eliminate harmful effects of noise exposure and decrease levels of transport noise creation, especially in urban areas, deriving solutions that will ensure compliance with the constraints of legislative limits. If you wish to subscribe to this newsletter, please visit www.cityhush.eu/newsletter.html or www.cityhush.eu

About Goodyear
Goodyear is one of the world’s largest tire companies. It employs approximately 73,000 people and manufactures its products in 53 facilities in 22 countries around the world. Its two Innovation Centers in Akron, Ohio and Colmar-Berg, Luxembourg strive to develop state-of-the-art products and services that set the technology and performance standard for the industry. For more information on Goodyear and its products, visit www.goodyear.com.