As a trucking company working to ensure you operate with a safer, more effective fleet, you are likely constantly asking yourself questions about the habits of your truck drivers, safety, and solutions available to ensure they are not victims of distracted driving or other unsafe habits. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
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As a fleet manager wanting to do his or her best job, you\nare constantly trying to get to the bottom of why truck drivers drive\ndistracted and why so many of your prior strategies at addressing the issue are\nsimply ineffective. The problem always lies in truck drive behavior. Operators\nwork in routines and the only way unsafe habits change is through behavioral\nchange. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Mobile Device Daily Crush<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n This is where technology comes in. And in this case,\ntechnology can be a blessing, not a curse. The fact is we all have some sort of\ntechnological addiction. Studies have consistently shown that we reach for and\nactively look\nat our mobile devices<\/a> nearly 100 times per day. That is an insane number,\nif you stop to think about it. And here\u2019s where the problem lies \u2013 we don\u2019t\nsimply stop doing it when we aren\u2019t driving. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n But why do we do it? Well, there is on simple word for it:\nDopamine. When we hear the tone of our smartphones or catch someone commenting\nabout us on social media, it gives us a slight dopamine rush. This is the same\nchemical \u2013 along with serotonin \u2013 that regulate addiction and pain and pleasure\nresponses. <\/p>\n\n\n\n It has been well proven that our proclivity to constantly be\nlooking at our mobile devices is a huge distraction. And let\u2019s face it, it\u2019s a\ndistraction both on the road and elsewhere. How many times have you been\nhanging out with a friend or family member only to find them spending more time\nwith their mobile device than they spend with you?<\/p>\n\n\n\n And it is even worse when we drive distracted. Mobile\ndevices are all too often the reason people, whether truck drivers or not, get\ninto accidents. So, what\u2019s a fleet manager to do? You need to invest in a\nsolution that helps you change the behavior at its root. There is one simple\nquestion you need to ask yourself. Is your fleet\u2019s mobile device and cell phone\npolicy actually preventing distracted driving?<\/p>\n\n\n\n What\u2019s in Your Policy?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n A defining distracted driving and cell phone policy is\ncritical for any organization operating at least one commercial motor vehicle.\nOf course, a policy by itself is not always a deterrent, but having it in place\nsets a clear precedent and provides a blueprint that your operators can follow.\nIt is important that those operating your vehicles understand the consequences\nof distracted driving and take efforts to avoid it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n It is important, however, to not take your policy too far.\nTruck drivers still want to be able to stay in touch while on the road. You\nsimply cannot eliminate all calls, podcasts, or apps. You must enact a policy\nthat is reasonable and can be followed. The key is to co-opt the devices.\nCreate a policy that includes practices and tools with the ability to prevent\nthe behavior before it becomes a problem. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Fortunately, you can use technology to your advantage. There\nare plenty of tools available to help truck drivers limit their texting, video\nwatching, and use of distracting apps while on the road. Distracted driving\nprevention apps are all the rage in the trucking telematics sector these days,\nand fleets can seamlessly integrate hands-free calling across their fleet. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Monitoring is not Prevention<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n If there is one thing you must remember, it is this: Monitoring bad behavior does not inherently prevent it. Sure, you can have a clearly worded policy, in-cab cameras, and clear consequences for distracted driving, but policies and equipment themselves will not stop someone from engaging in a distracted driving incident. <\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n Instead, what you need to do is implement a system \u2013 an\neffective enforcement policy \u2013 to prevent and, in many cases, even predict\ntruck driver behavior. This is how you nip distracted driving in the bud before\nit becomes a widespread problem across the fleet. You may want to focus on\nrewarding good behavior and opt for less restrictions. You want to avoid\npolicies that do nothing other than punish a truck driver for bad behavior.\nIncentivizing good behavior is very often an effective tactic. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Also consider that your policy is probably easily\noutsmarted. Never assume you have written an ironclad policy that determined\ntruckers cannot break or ignore. You must have a seamless, comprehensive system\nfor monitoring and reporting bad behavior and policies that are both\ninformative and actionable. Make sure you have clear statements in place about\nsmart watches, cell phones, tablets, Bluetooth communication devices, and\nwearables. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Also make sure our policy clearly outlines what to do about\nunauthorized, or \u201crogue\u201d devices. This is how your operators get around\nclear-cut policies. Fortunately, there are plenty of apps out there to help you\nprevent such a problem. One such app actually uses your smartphone to detect\nother rogue devices your truck drivers may have in the cab. But not all apps or\ncameras are created equal. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Cameras Aren\u2019t the Only Answer<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Far too many fleet managers view cameras as the ultimate\nanswer to all their driver behavior questions. Just don\u2019t get caught up\nthinking in-cab cameras are the only <\/em>answer. Sure, they are great at\nrecording events that happen in the cab, including those that happen just\nbefore or after a distracted driving-related event, but all they do is record\nthe incident, they do not prevent it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In-cab video cameras certainly reveal when a truck driver\nuses a rogue device while driving, but the problem is that once the problem has\noccurred and is caught on video, you must act against the individual who was\ncaught. It could very well be that this action leads to an individual\u2019s\ntermination. As a result, your attrition numbers go up, you experience higher\ntruck driver turnover, and your organization as whole suffers from a\nproductivity standpoint. <\/p>\n\n\n\n On the other hand, if a driver commits an infraction and\naction is not taken, that same operator could wind up getting into an accident.\nGet ready for potential tragedy and almost certainly a lawsuit. Imagine if the\nevidence in a follow up trial that the fleet manager knew of evidence showing\ndistracted driving but did nothing to act on it. We\u2019ve talked about nuclear\nverdicts before. They put fleets out of business. <\/p>\n\n\n\n When you combine cameras with apps and other technologies,\nthen you can prevent, rather than report on, potentially devastating incidents\ninvolving distracted driving. To succeed in these efforts, you must go to the\nroot of the problem, our ever-increasing technology addiction. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Technology Addiction is the Problem<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Look, even when truck drivers know a camera is watching them\nin the cab while they are operating a big rig, many times they inevitably reach\nfor a mobile device anyway! The compulsion is sometimes a stronger motivator\nthan the consequence. Adopting a separate tool to address the addiction may be\nthe only way to curb distracted driving. <\/p>\n\n\n\n If you combine your in-cab camera technologies with mobile\napps and other devices, the driver themselves can be alerted if they begin\nengaging in a behavior they may not even realize is happening. Still, don\u2019t\nexpect people to be automatically okay with putting an app on their phone. Some\nmay have legitimate concerns around privacy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Fortunately, there are options on the market that provide\nclear-cut terms and can be integrated with your current fleet management\nsystems. If your truck drivers are already used to working with an in-house\nfleet management system, connecting up an app designed to prevent distracted\ndriving might come with easy buy-in among your fleet drivers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Explain the Benefits<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The best way to ensure your truck drivers buy into new\ntechnologies designed to help them. You might hear one of your people say they\nwill quit if they must put one of these apps on their mobile device. Consider\nthat they may be using this as the reason, but there could be other reasons,\nsuch as a desire to spend more time at home or earn more money somewhere else. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Mobile apps designed to help reduce an individual\u2019s dependence on technology might actually improve retention if it is positioned properly. If you can demonstrate to your drivers that the technology will actually reduce the chances of them making a mistake, they may not even realize they are about to make, it will be a lot easier to get their buy-in. <\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n In the end, the entire organization is on the line when\ntruck drivers make the mistake of distracted driving. It is up to the entire\nfleet to take it upon themselves to make safety a priority. Fortunately, in-cab\ncameras and new apps and devices can help them do just that. All it takes it a\nlittle due diligence. It\u2019s what separates the good fleets from the great\nfleets<\/a>. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"