Employers

Employers must commit to work vehicle and roadway safety and communicate that commitment to employees at all levels of the organization. Employers must demonstrate that commitment by allocating time and budgetary resources to work vehicle and roadway safety.

Employers should conduct a risk assessment to identify the likely hazards associated with drivers, vehicles, and roads and determine steps to eliminate or reduce those hazards. Employers should identify local, state, and federal laws that apply to their workplace. From the risk assessment and review of applicable laws, employers should develop, disseminate, maintain, review, and update written policies and procedures with input from managers and employees that covers the following:

• Driver Training – initial and ongoing training
• Vehicle Maintenance – operator and organizational
• Safe Vehicle Operations – speed, defensive driving
• Seat Belt Use
• Distracted, Drowsy, and Impaired driving
• Accident Reporting Procedures
• Mechanical Failure Procedures

Employers should establish a driver’s training program that is specific to the vehicles that the employee is expected to drive. The adherence to the driver training program schedule is a leading indicator in the prevention of work-related vehicle crashes. Periodic refresher training is useful to prevent driver complacency and maintain focus on safe driving principles.

In addition to general safety training, there are also some circumstances that require additional specialized training. This could include longer combination vehicle training, hazardous materials training, and reasonable suspicion training for supervisors. Depending on the contents of the freight, the type of vehicle, or the specific position an individual holds, additional training as mandated by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) may be required.

Employers should ensure that all employees are properly licensed for the type of vehicle that they are expected to operate. It may be useful to have a system of tracking driver license expiration dates to ensure that company drivers are not operating vehicles on an expired license.

A comprehensive preventative maintenance program with scheduled checks and services helps ensure that work vehicles remain in a safe operating condition. The adherence to the preventative maintenance checks and service schedule is a leading indicator in the prevention of work-related vehicle crashes.

Employers should implement and enforce mandatory seat belt use policies. Adherence to the seat belt policy is a leading indicator in the prevention of workplace driving-related injuries and fatalities.

Employers should review their operational procedures to ensure that the procedures are not causing or contributing to distracted driving. For example, systems and procedures for dispatching and rerouting vehicles have the potential to cause cognitive, visual, and manual distractions which may directly cause or contribute to a vehicle collision.

Employers should ensure that workloads and work schedules allow employees to drive at a safe speed and obey any applicable hours-of-service regulations. Employers should have a system in place to ensure that employees get information about road construction or closures, bad road conditions, or any other road hazards.

When purchasing, renting, or leasing company vehicles, employers should look for vehicles with high safety ratings based on crash testing and with safety features such as lane departure warning systems, collision warning systems, rear-facing cameras, and adaptive cruise control.

Employers may want to consider using an in-vehicle monitoring system (IVMS) to reduce the risk of crashes. These systems are designed to improve drivers’ performance by identifying risky driving behaviors for self-correction and for supervisors to use to coach drivers and identify fleet-wide problems. A NIOSH study found that an IVMS with in-vehicle driver feedback and supplemental supervisory coaching using driver- and outward-facing video led to a significant decline in overall risky driving behaviors and a decline in driving unbelted in comparison to a control group of drivers. If an IVMS is to be used, it is important to explain to workers why the IVMS is being put in place and how it will work.

Employers should establish a crash investigation process. All crashes, regardless of severity, should be reported to the employee’s supervisor as soon as feasible after an incident. All crashes should be reviewed to determine their root cause and what can be done to prevent it from happening again. The crash review should include a determination of whether any changes in policy or practices are needed to prevent future crashes. Understanding the root causes of crashes forms the basis for reducing the risk of recurrence.