Features of the highway road network that generate or retain tyre wear particles

The environmental accumulation of microplastics poses a formidable global challenge, with tyre wear particles (TWPs) emerging as major and potentially harmful contributors to this particulate pollution. A critical pathway for TWPs to aquatic environments is via road drainage. While drainage assets are employed worldwide, their effectiveness in retaining microplastics of highly variable densities (TWP ~ 1–2.5 g cm³) remains unknown. This study examines their ability to impede the transfer of TWPs from the UK Strategic Road Network (SRN) to aquatic ecosystems. Samples were collected from the influent, effluent and sediments of three retention ponds and three wetlands. The rate of TWP generation is known to vary in response to vehicle speed and direction. To ascertain the significance of this variability, we further compared the mass of TWPs in drainage from curved and straight sections of the SRN across eight drainage outfalls. Pyrolysis gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (Py-GC–MS) was used to quantify tyre wear using benzothiazole as a molecular marker for TWPs (with an internal standard benzothiazole-D4). Tyre wear was present in drainage from the SRN at concentrations of 2.86 ± 6 mg/L and was found within every sample analysed. Drainage from curved sections of the SRN contained on average a 40% greater TWP mass than straight sections but this was not significant. The presence of wetlands and retention ponds generally led to a reduction in TWP mass (74.9% ± 8.2). This effect was significant for retention ponds but not for wetlands; most probably due to variability among sites and sampling occasions. Similar drainage assets are used on a global scale; hence our results are of broad relevance to the management of TWP pollution.