Passenger tire having low rolling resistance with improved wet traction and treadwear

A pneumatic tire comprising:

• an outer circumferential tread having an outer tread layer in direct and continuous contact with an inner tread layer, the outer and inner tread layers together defining the tread thickness, and a tread pattern having tire grooves extending through the outer tread layer and into the inner tread layer to define valleys, the valleys of the tire grooves being devoid of the outer tread layer,
• the inner tread layer having a maximum thickness near a central region of the tread and comprising a first elastomeric compound;
• and
• the outer tread layer comprising a second elastomeric compound having lower rolling resistance and greater resistance to treadwear than the first elastomeric compound, the outer tread layer increasing in thickness across at least a widthwise portion of the outer tread layer from near the central region of the tread to a maximum thickness near at least one of a first shoulder and a second shoulder of the tread to provide longer lasting wear resistance for the tire at the at least one shoulder, whereby as the tread wears, the inner tread layer defines a greater proportion of a running surface of the tread.