Category: Safety

April was Distracted Driving Awareness month. It was a somber reminder of a tragedy that occurred a few days prior.

In March 2017, members of a church in Texas attended an annual retreat. They enjoyed the weekend together. The adult choir group sang and socialized. Some of the attendants decided to return home by bus. This was a fatal decision.

The bus collided with a pick-up truck. 13 people died in the crash. 13 people – all with real names, real lives, and real families. Murray, Howard, Rhonda, Harold, Margaret, Cristie, Donna, Avis, Mildred, Addie, Sue, Martha, Dorothy. All gone.

A witness to the crash confronted the driver of the pick-up truck, who was driving erratically and survived the crash. The witness asked, “Son, do you know what you just did?”

The driver responded, “I’m sorry, I was texting.”

This was, unfortunately, one story out of many. A lot of stories do not make their way to the news.

Distracted driving is recognized as a risk equivalent, or perhaps more dangerous, than intoxicated driving. It goes beyond just texting or calling – distracted driving includes talking to passengers, or skipping that annoying song on a music playlist.

In fact, on Canadian roads, distracted driving contributes to 80% of collisions. Drivers are 4x more likely to be in a collision by talking on the phone while driving and are 23x more likely to be involved in a collision by texting.

How can safety managers create an effective distracted driving policy?

Companies must:

1. Create a policy. Managers must create different levels of infraction severity and identify a suitable consequence.
2. Educate drivers & managers. Employees will buy-in to the policy with education. This goes beyond explaining new policy changes. Employees should be taught about the hazards of distracted driving. A suggestion is to set up a meeting and share powerful statistics and videos.
3. Track and enforce. Managers should observe their drivers. This includes reviewing call logs, responding to complaints & tickets, observing camera footage, and installing cell control software.

Let’s end distracted driving.
We’ll reduce accidents and could save one, thirteen, and maybe even more lives.

Sources:
KXAN: Victums of New Braunfels Church Bus Crash
Dallas News: Man Killed in Bus Crash Seeks Testing and Driving Ban
IBC: Distracted Driving Management
Automotive Fleet: 6 Keys to an Effective Cell Phone Policy
Rates.ca: Distrtacted Driving Infographic
Toronto Sun: Distracted Driving Deaths Set to Double Drunk Driving
NHTSA: Distracted Driving

Employers have a very important role — and responsibility — to help reduce the number of injuries and deaths related to vehicle collisions. Putting a stop to speeding requires action. Employers can positively influence driver safety both on and off the job through safety-focused leadership.

Speeding is not a more efficient way to get from point A to point B, in fact, it has been mathematically proven. For example, on a trip in the city, any time saved can be easily added back if you run into traffic or get a string of red lights. Therefore, allowing your drivers to speed is a false economy — any time saved is marginal as compared to the indirect accident costs and increased risks. Additionally, speeding is illegal and the related fines are highly expensive for companies. For everyone’s safety, there is no need to speed. Getting to your destination safely, without breaking the law or being involved in a crash is the best goal.

Companies need to take a stand on whether or not speeding is worth the increased risk of crash and the related potential for legal cost and bodily injury. Launching a company safe driving campaign for employees is highly recommended by the Network of Employers for Traffic Safety (NETS) and others.

 

The Opportunity for Employers: Reduce Speed and Save

 

Employers can significantly save (on fuel, other related costs, and most importantly save lives) by introducing an initiative to reduce speeding in their company. A speed reduction campaign can support a company’s overall fleet safety program and enhances driver protection and productivity. Additionally, the U.S. Department of Labor reports that a safe driving program can “protect your organization’s human and financial resources” and ward off “potential company and personal liabilities.”

With many companies, fleet costs take up a large portion of the total operating budget. A safe driving campaign presents a new avenue for cost savings, and is a win-win for everyone.

 

 

Three Reasons to Launch a Driver Safety Program for Speeders

 

Reason 1: Fuel and Emission Savings

These fast fuel facts below make a convincing argument for a no speeding campaign:

• Gas mileage decreases rapidly at speeds above 50 mph (U.S. Department of Energy).
• For every 5 mph you drive over 50 mph, you are paying an extra $0.16 – $0.32 per gallon for gas (U.S. Department of Energy).
• Driving the speed limit and maintaining a steady speed while driving can reduce CO2 emissions by more than a ton per year (Carbonfund.org).

 

Reason 2: Cost Savings Opportunities (per 100 vehicles)

Reducing speed can add up to significant cost savings for employers — money which could be redirected to more important areas.

• Using 118 gallons of fuel per year at an additional cost of $.70 per gallon = $100 extra per vehicle per year, plus wear/tear and risk. $100 over 500 vehicles = $50,000 annual savings opportunity!
• Total fleet average collision repair cost is $2,300 = $230,000 annual savings opportunity, just for physical damage (BusinessFleet.com/NETS).
• If we use half ($8,250) of the industry average ($16,500) which includes liability, workers comp, etc., = $825,000 annual savings opportunity (NHTSA).

 

Reason 3: Reducing the Cost of Crashes

• In the U.S., traffic crashes cost employers $47.4 billion in direct crash-related expenses including medical care, liability, productivity losses, and property damage (NETS).
• Speeding alone resulted in $8.4 billion in crash-related expenses for employers. Distracted driving resulted in $8.2 billion (NHTSA).
• Speeding is a top contributing factor to traffic crashes. In 2013, speeding was linked to 29% of all fatal crashes, and 9,613 lives were lost in speeding-related crashes (NHTSA).

Here’s how it can be done.

 

How to Launch a Successful Driver Safety Campaign

 

1. Set a goal.
2. Identify a campaign manager and find a sponsor.
3. Create a plan.
4. Promote your campaign.
5. Evaluate the impact.

In this case, the goal would be to reduce the upward trend of speed violations and vehicle accidents. Assemble a team of people who will champion the initiative. Be sure to include employees on the campaign committee. Plan activities and communications to promote the campaign. Posters with facts and visuals can be very effective. Communicate regularly throughout the campaign to keep interest and enthusiasm going.

 

Using Telematics Data to Manage Speeders

 

A telematics-based speeding report can tell fleet managers who has been speeding and how often. For example, the Top 5 Speeding Violations report displays the top 5 drivers or vehicles with the highest number of speeding events by day, week, or month. Whether the fleet manager has received complaints about speeding drivers or simply wants to improve overall fleet safety, this report helps identify which fleet drivers have the most dangerous driving habits.

Sample telematics based speeding report

 

Stop Speeding and Save Money

Speeding is one of the most prevalent factors contributing to traffic crashes. In addition, speeding increases fuel expense. Therefore, targeting driver speeding is a truly worthwhile effort for employers.

Implementing a “No Need to Speed!” initiative can save a company thousands of dollars (and that’s a conservative estimate). Protecting employees from motor vehicle crash injury can be a profitable investment of resources and time. Also, it helps companies underscore that they truly care about the well-being of their employees.

Your life can change in seconds — and someone wants you home tonight, so why wouldn’t you choose safety?

 

 

Original Article: https://www.geotab.com/blog/driver-safety-for-speeders/
Written By: Susan Miller, Senior Fleet Account Manager at Geotab

Mobileye is an Israeli company launched in 1999 from academic research that was building collision avoidance technology using cameras and software algorithms to sense other vehicles on the road to make driving easier and safer. Today, the company has its technology in 15 million vehicles around the world and it is helping make autonomous driving a reality. Mobileye says that autonomous driving has three “pillars,” and that is where the company is focusing its efforts. First, the company produces software that fuses data from both cameras and radar to detect objects ahead with over 99% accuracy. Second, Mobileye uses crowd-sourcing to maintain rapidly-updated, high-definition maps. And finally, Mobileye has developed software with driving “policies” that controls how vehicles will behave on the open road alongside human drivers.

 

What is Mobileye’s Collision Avoidance Technology?

 

Until fully-autonomous vehicles becomes a reality, Mobileye’s technology is being used to help make human drivers be more safe with collision avoidance technology. Fleet managers can utilize Mobileye to help their drivers avoid collisions. One of its most popular products is the 5 Series. The product includes a strategically-placed camera on a vehicle’s windshield that faces forward and acts as the driver’s “third eye.” The devices uses Mobileye’s sensing technology to recognize vehicles, pedestrians, and cyclists around the vehicle. The system also has a display called an “EyeWatch.” This gives visual warnings as well as measurements to the obstacles ahead. In a way, this is similar to the “heads up display” setups that fighter pilots use.

 

How Does Mobileye Work?

 

The Mobileye system will provide drivers with warnings about impending collisions. This is incredibly important because a driver’s reaction time is a huge factor in car crashes. Studies have found that drivers with faster reaction times may have a better track record of avoiding crashes. It follows that one way to dramatically improve the safety of a fleet of vehicles is to equip each one with technology that can improve driver reaction time. The Mobileye 5 Series can improve reaction time by warning drivers of problems before drivers can detect the situation on their own. The collision avoidance technology warns drivers about potential collisions with cars, pedestrians, and bikers. Drivers can also get a warning when they are drifting out of their own lane (lane detection system) or getting too close to the car in front of them. The display can also warn drivers about their speed and automatically control headlight high beams.

Mobileye’s collision avoidance system integrates with our fleet management technology. In addition to providing drivers with immediate warning, longer-term safety can be improved by providing drivers with feedback on how often they had near collisions, got too close to the car in front of them, or drifted out of their own lane. If necessary, the system can even be set up to be tamper proof and track any attempts to disable or alter it. This data can be used to coach drivers for better fleet safety, or if necessary the reports can be used to take action against an unsafe driver.

 

Fleet managers often struggle with thinking proactively about fleet safety. When an accident occurs, most fleet managers wish they could be safer; but it’s hard to define exactly what fleet safety is or how to improve it.

What is Fleet Safety?

As the New York Times recently reported, traffic deaths are actually on the rise after years of decline. The suspected culprit: distracted driving. The problem has moved from phone calls and texts to now drivers using various smartphone apps while behind the wheel. Insurance companies have called it “a serious public safety concern for the nation” and say they are trying to figure out what to do.

For fleet managers, the challenge is establishing a culture where drivers are focused on doing their job and following proper procedures. It is important for fleet managers to take an active role in driver behavior. That means investing in driver training, communicating openly about expectations, and rewarding good drivers. A strong telematics system is vital to these components for improving driver safety.

How to Improve Fleet Safety

Step one is to get good data on what your drivers are doing. We provide fleet managers with Driver ID Keys so that every time a vehicle starts up they know who is driving it and what that driver does. You can then track seat belt usage, vehicle speed, acceleration, harsh braking, and aggressive cornering for each of your drivers.

The next step is to use this data to effectively coach your drivers. Real-time driver feedback can be set-up through our spoken-word GoTalk alerts; for example, warning a driver about speeding or failing to put on a seat belt. These verbal warnings, like “you are currently driving 80 miles per hour,” can often be more useful than the traditional safety “beeps”.

We also suggest our clients set up safety-focused Driver Scorecard Reports that show drivers exactly where they need to improve. Drivers can be ranked against each other and given recognition for good performance or penalized for unsafe events. If an accident does occur, our software can provide an accident report; time, speed, and g-force data is automatically uploaded for first responders and later accident reconstruction. Having good information about what happened can drastically reduce the cost of accident claims to a fleet.

ZenduCAM Takes Safety to the Next Level

While standard GPS monitoring and real-time coaching will undoubtedly improve safety, a full camera monitoring system can take it to the next level. ZenduCAM cameras look out from the dashboard and in at your driver’s cab. These cameras can be monitored in real time from a desktop or smartphone. The cameras can also be set to record footage around certain events. This can be used to show exactly what happened in an accident, either to exonerate or retrain a driver. The ZenduCAM system can also be set to record exactly what the driver was seeing while speeding or braking suddenly.

One Step Further
Mobileye can also be integrated with GoFleet to help prevent accidents with real-time collision warnings.

A risky driver can be a ticking time bomb for any company if not handled quickly and effectively. Let’s take a look at some best practices when using telematics to deal with a risky driver.

 

• Identify the Problem
  Take a look at the data and identify the risky driving behaviour. Is it speeding? Is it failed seatbelt use? Is it harsh braking? All of the above? Whatever it is, you want to be sure you are aware of it before bringing it up to your drivers. This way, you can describe the problem and why it is harming not only the company but likely putting drivers in danger as well.

 

 

• Offer Group Training
  Instead of alienating a driver, it’s often better to start out by reviewing the overall findings with your entire team of drivers and setting targets. Present the data in a way that’s easy to understand and review what some of the consequences could be for both the company and the driver.

 

 

• Enable In-Vehicle Driver Coaching
  In-vehicle driver coaching is a feature offered by some telematics companies that allows you to essentially train your drivers while they’re on the road. You can usually customize the rules and enable alerts for poor driving habits like speeding, harsh braking, seatbelt use, and more.

 

 

• Monitor the Driver’s Habits
  It’s now up to your drivers, give them a little time to adjust to the new policies and monitor how their habits change. Hopefully, you will notice a decrease in the risky behaviour.

 

4.1 Consult with the Driver Directly (Optional)
If you notice after the group training and in-vehicle driver coaching you still have a high-risk driver, it’s time to address the concern with them directly. Show the driver their reports in comparison with the rest of the company, and point out specifically what they are doing wrong. Make it clear that you are looking out for both their best interest and what is best for the company. If necessary, you may also want to add a consequence, such as a write-up, if the behaviour continues to persist.

 

• Offer Safety Incentives
  A little competition never hurt anyone, right? So why not reward employees for making significant improvements. Some solutions offer great reports, like our driver scorecard, which shows each driver’s overall score (using speeding, harsh braking, seat-belt-use, etc.) for the time period selected. What many of our customers do is post this up in their lunchroom at the end of each month for drivers to see how they compare to their colleagues. Then at the end of each quarter the driver with the best score is rewarded with a gift card or extra vacation day.

 

If you still have questions on how to effectively improve the habits of a risky driver, we are more than happy to help. We’ve seen tons of different scenarios and are well versed in different ways to handle high-risk drivers. Feel free to reach out!

 

Buckle up it’s National Safety Month!

 

Some of us have learned the importance of safe driving while others have experienced it first hand; in every way we understand the importance of safety and the benefits of using defensive driving practices. National Safety Month reinforces positive driver habits that we often forget as we become experienced drivers. Initiated to educate, the program aims to increase awareness, promote defensive driving, and keep driver distractions to a minimum.

Along with the safety basics such as wearing a seat-belt, reduced speeding and appropriate signalling, there are other factors that aid in road safety.

1. Understanding road responsibilities
2. Continuous vehicle maintenance
3. Defensive driving courses
4. Keeping Distractions to a minimum

 

Road Safety is Everyone’s Responsibility

 

The number of vehicles on the road only grows each year resulting in busy streets and more traffic than ever. This requires a lot of patience and the need to follow safety laws to ensure all vehicles move in order. It is essential to understand your road responsibilities either as a motorist or as a pedestrian; when working together traffic will not only sail smoothly but will keep all the commotion organized. Making eye contact is often a good way to quickly communicate your intentions, reducing room for error and accidents.

 

Vehicle Maintenance

 

A large number of accidents occur due to factors that are out of our control such as vehicle breakdowns. Having regular maintenance to ensure your vehicle is in safe working conditions will not only extend the life of your vehicle but also keep you safe. Regular vehicle maintenance is financially more resourceful than having to make one large investment when your vehicle breaks down. This will hamper your pockets and also cause traffic to build on the roads.

Defensive DrivingDefensive driving courses are available and essential to learn how to handle your vehicles in all situations. These courses are offered to new and existing drivers to help lower risks behind the wheel. Sometimes you might not be “the bad driver” but being aware of aggressive driving helps to keep you safe. As dull as an in-class instructional lecture might seem you might just gain a few insights to best driving practices! And as an employer of drivers – it’s crucial to make sure your team is well versed in defensive driving.

 

Keep Distractions to a Minimum

 

We live in the day and age of technology hence, keeping distractions to a minimum while driving is often encouraged as a safety precaution. Many of us are guilty of shooting a quick text while at the lights but a few seconds can sometimes have a huge impact. It is challenging to minimize distractions but it is also important to do so.

 

Positive behaviours & defensive driving minimize many risks.
Start your stride towards safer roads today!

Read how Airtel Kenya uses vehicle GPS tracking devices to improve road safety.

 

431,000.

 

According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, this number represents how many people were injured in motor vehicle crashes involving distracted drivers in 2014. Over 3,000 people were killed in crashes related to distracted driving in that same year.

 

It’s estimated that 25% of crashes involve cell phones
(phone conversations or text messaging) by the National Safety Council.

The Cost is High: Distracted Driving Policy and Employer Responsibilities

Costs associated with distracted driving for companies is high, considering potential costs related to injuries and liability. Therefore, it is the employers responsibility for maintaining worker safety, and setting up an effective distracted driving policy is part of this. Simply creating a policy document is not enough; it has to be followed up with education, monitoring, and enforcement.

In honor of National Safety Month, we have compiled a list of our top blog posts on preventing distracted and dangerous driving. Fleet safety is a key part of our fleet management solution. Telematics can help to support a company’s safety program and distracted driving policy with in-vehicle driver coaching, instant accident notification, and risk and safety reporting.

 

Ask us how we can help prevent bad driving behaviors.
Tweet your questions to @GoFleet OR contact our support team.

Distracted Driving: Texting & Road Rage While Driving

 

Texting while driving is unacceptable. The road was dangerous before cell phones were introduced; road rage is still a major issue. Stop distracted driving.

How to Prevent Dangerous Driving

 

Worried about dangerous driving? Wondering what can you do about the way your drivers behave on the road? GPS fleet management software is here to help.

5 Simple Ways to Improve Your Driving

 

Find busy roads and then avoid them, lighten your lead foot, find where you’ve parked and so much more thanks to the GO6 Geotab GPS tracking device.

Driver Fatigue and the Underestimated Dangers

 

Driver fatigue is an underestimated danger; companies rely on their drivers for so much and should ensure they and others on the road are kept safe.

Source:
Original Article Written by: Melanie Serr, Content Marketing Specilaist at Geotab
https://www.geotab.com/blog/distracted-driving-policy/

 

Driver Coaching: Real-Time Feedback For Drivers

 

Two of the biggest reasons many company’s come to us looking for a GPS tracking solution, is to increase safety & lower fuel costs, both of which can be greatly impacted through driver coaching. While other GPS tracking companies provide safety reports (which we also provide on top of the driver coaching feature), these reports do not offer the real-time correction capabilities of driver coaching.

What is Driver Coaching
GPS tracking systems have come a long way since being used to simply track your vehicles whereabouts. With the capabilities now available there are many different ways you can get a ROI while increasing the safety of your drivers and those they share the road with; driver coaching (also known as audible alerts) is something you definitely want to look for in a GPS solution.

Driver coaching provides alerts that occur inside the vehicle when drivers are driving in a way that wastes excessive fuel or puts them at risk. These alerts are commonly used for speeding, hard braking or accelerating, harsh cornering and excessive idling. The driver coaching alerts usually work as a beeping function inside the vehicle in real-time so your drivers can correct the inappropriate behaviour immediately. One of the best elements of the driver coaching feature is the ability to customize. You can set specific parameters that best suit your company and focus on the things your drivers need to improve on:

Our driver coaching not only helps improve safety, it also helps improve productivity:

We have also recently introduced GOTALK, a new product that takes driver coaching to a whole new level. It allows you to program specific alerts that instead of beeping, actually speak to your drivers. For example, if a driver is speeding, you can program your GOTALK device to say “slow down” to your drivers in real-time.

What are Safety Reports?
Safety reports, or a Driver Scorecard Report as we refer to ours, is an easy to read report showcasing the incidents of each driver. It’s also a useful tool because it allows you to compare your drivers in one place and see their main problem. Unfortunately, it does not offer the ability to correct poor driving habits in real-time. Check out this sample report below:

As you can see from this example above, it is clear the main issue for this fleet is speeding. These reports can be great to sit down with your drivers and discuss any issues at hand. You can also use these reports to offer an incentive to your drivers. For example, this fleet clearly has a speeding problem which is not only putting the lives of themselves and others in danger, it is also wasting the fuel you pay for. Try offering your employees an extra vacation day or a gift card incentive to the person with the lowest number of speeding incidents each quarter; you would be surprised how well a little friendly competition may work in your favour.

Overall, both of these elements can be utilized for running a safer and more efficient fleet. Driver coaching helps to remind your drivers in real-time to correct behaviour without having to wait for a report to be created and review with the drivers. The safety reports give you an overview of your entire fleet all in one place, allowing you to see if any specific driver is being very unsafe or if your fleet as a whole needs to work towards safer practices.

 

To learn more about Driver Coaching and GOTALK, check out the video below.