Originally Posted by
squirtdad
Search in commuting forum, there have been a ton of threads on airless tires (not to be confused with tubeless tires) over the years Bottom line is that they don't flat but they are difficult to put on, have poor ride and even poorer traction to the point of being dangerous. People try them and then say no way.
so far a cool idea that has not had a truly workable implementation.
The traction issue might be solvable with this implementation, though. The big problem with airless tire traction is the compound the tires are made from. With this structure, you could feasibly use a standard tread compound on the outer "tire" section while using a harder durometer compound for the body of the tire and the compressible spokes.
I agree with Beans that the ride would likely still suck in comparison to a pneumatic tire, but it could be workable.