DANGER ON THE ROAD CAN TECHNOLOGY REDUCE THE RISK OF TRUCKING ACCIDENTS?
A ccidents caused by large commercial trucks are on the rise. Data from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) shows that in 2010, the number of people injured in a large truck or bus crash was 106,000. By 2017, that number had risen to 170,000. The number of deaths from these crashes is also increasing, from 3,597 in 2010 to 5,005 in 2017. Experts suspect the increase in the number of accidents is a result of an increase in congestion. Drivers in the United States are traveling twice as many miles in their vehicles now than they were a decade ago. There are also more truck drivers on the road. The FMCSA reports that between 2010 and 2017, the number of registered large trucks and buses increased by about 30%. Trucking companies and businesses that rely on delivery drivers must develop a serious approach to assessing the risk of accidents and take steps to reduce these risks. Unfortunately, traditional loss-control measures, like safety and training programs, aren’t as effective in the trucking industry as they could be. This has to do with the high turnover rate of long-haul truck drivers, which account for up to 25% of employed truck drivers. The American Trucking Association has been reporting a labor shortage in the trucking industry since 2005. When the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) looked into the matter, they noted that there was a 94% turnover rate in long-haul trucking for large motor carriers and 79.2% for small ones. On average, a driver for a long-haul trucking company will move on to a new occupation after about a year. This is a stark contrast to local trucking companies where the turnover rate is 12.7% and drivers tend to last eight years. It isn’t just that there aren’t many drivers in the trucking industry. The BLS reported that long-haul trucking is unappealing to many potential employees. This is why traditional safety training might not be enough to address the risk of trucking accidents. Traditional strategies are not the best fit for companies that have to replace their entire workforce every year. This is where technology can provide great value.
In December 2019, a federal rule requiring motor carriers to use electronic logging devices to track drivers’ hours went into effect. This will help address a big safety issue: drivers exceeding the number of hours they are safely allowed to drive. The FMCSA has claimed that mandating these devices will lead to 1,844 fewer crashes, 562 fewer injuries, and 26 lives saved annually. Taking this technology one step further, Progressive Group, the nation’s largest commercial auto insurer, has begun offering a Smart Haul telematics program, which provides discounts for safe driving and incentivizes companies to make sure their drivers are practicing safe habits. The Smart Haul program has been expanded to 46 states and collects data from the driving habits of commercial drivers to make meaningful predictions about risk and driver behavior. Progressive also aims to offer more value-added benefits to policyholders that include alerts when a driver is speeding and maps that show the location of every truck in a fleet. Progressive’s Smart Haul program isn’t the only avenue for using technology to mitigate the risk of trucking accidents. In an interview with Insurance Journal, Tommy Ruke, founder of the Motor Carrier Insurance Education Foundation, stated that event recorders and driver assistance devices can also be beneficial. Trucking companies can even make small investments that have a big impact. “All (motor) carriers should have forward-facing cameras,” Ruke said. “I have no idea why they are not installing them. They are relatively inexpensive — $400 or $500 — and they record what happened.” It’s clear that integrating technology as a loss-control measure in the trucking industry has the potential to reduce the number of accidents we see on the road. Additionally, these technologies can be used after an accident to paint a clear picture of the events leading up to the accident. This information can then be used to take the necessary steps to help prevent future accidents.
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