New technology is helping the move towards greater safety but drivers still play the primary role in making the roads safer for everyone.
In a recent IdeaXchange blog, Jane Clark, Vice President of Member Services for NationaLease talked about this issue as an ongoing concern for everyone in the trucking industry. Citing the new National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) 2017-2018 Most Wanted List of Transportation Safety Improvements, Jane noted that although not all of the NTSB’s recommendations pertain to trucking, there are some that are common to all transportation modes, including reducing fatigue-related accidents, greater use collision avoidance technology, and eliminating driver distractions.
Jane notes that everyone involved in the trucking industry has a responsibility to make safety their first concern. OEMs need to ensure that the vehicles they are producing meet, if not exceed, all safety regulations; suppliers need to continue investing money in R&D for better safety technology, including collision avoidance systems, lane departure warnings, etc.; and fleets need to spec all of their vehicles to ensure their readiness for the road.
But the most important person is still the driver. Fleets need to ensure that they train all drivers to properly use the new technology; however, a driver committed to safety is still the best insurance that any fleet can have. Ongoing safety training should be practices by every fleet and Jane provides some tips that fleets can follow to reinforce safety.
Check out Jane’s 4 valuable tips.