Leading employers focus on ending distracted driving

Folks, here's some good news: A new report by the Network of Employers for Traffic Safety (NETS) shows that 74% of 24 leading employers that operate fleets of vehicles either have in place or are planning policies to ban the use of all mobile devices behind the company wheel. ALL. Hand-held, hands-free, you name it.

While I have been on a rampage against distracted driving, I am not the only one. One very effective group I've discussed here has been employers, and this latest news is simply further evidence that we will win the battle against this deadly epidemic.

Now, we know from the success of groups like Mothers Against Drunk Driving that any effort to curb distracted driving will require education, legislation, and enforcement.

Well, employers are in a unique position to use all three. And a NETS sponsored report from November demonstrates that the companies with the best traffic safety records have done the most work in all three approaches.

For example, the safest companies share results and lessons from collisions with all employees and conduct ongoing driver-education training.

The leaders also have the most restrictive rules. Some companies, for instance, explicitly ban text-messaging even though they also ban hand-held devices--which are required for texting. This duplicate layering is reinforced in top safety companies by a zero-tolerance policy.

One of the greatest challenges to our distracted driving efforts has been enforcement. But looking over the survey results, it seems clear that the safest employers have the steepest penalties and the most vigorous observation policies.

Some employers let employees know they will actually examine mobile device records for employer-owned phones. And some will terminate a driver for a first offense.

In this economy, I think that sends a pretty serious safety message.

While these measures may appear intrusive, employees are accepting these policies because they know the outcome is greater safety.

And not just safety for the employee-drivers, but safety for everyone on the road. Friends. Family members. Loved ones.

That's an outcome that's easy to appreciate.

So, Thank you! to these companies that have been true pioneers in this effort of ours to counter distracted driving. And, Thank you! to NETS for collecting this data into a very useful report.

And to the those whose employers have not yet embraced this effort, you can help your company by showing them the NETS report, pointing them to this blog, and raising your voice for safety.

Comments

[Michael E. Bailey]

This is great news. I know that public transit agencies in southern California have taken a hard line on this issue too. OCTA has banned the use of all hand held and hands free phones by its fixed route bus and paratransit drivers and they have cameras and recorders set up in each bus and OCTA owned paratransit vehicle to gaurantee the policy is enforced. You don't see drivers on their cell phones while driving the buses any more; you used to see it all the time, but no more. The Metrolink train crews are no longer allowed to use cell phones while operating trains and there is an effort to put cameras in the cabs of the trains. But the word needs to get out to the independent owner-operators that just have one or two trucks or one or two tour buses. There is the weak link. Another weak link is vehicle and equipment operators in the mining industry. There were a number of truck accidents at mines last year. Some had all the earmarks of using cell phones while driving the equipment. Trucks ran over the tops of berms on mine access roads and overturned, one backed up to far over the edge of a tailings dump and fell in. One person had a cell phone and was using it around trucks at a loading facility and was crushed by a dump truck. A lot of outreach work needs to be done to mine workers who operate mine vehicles to use the seat belts every time the turn on the ignition of a truck or other vehicle. Last year many truck accidents at mines were fatal because the driver did not use his seatbelt and was throwed from the cab then hit by the truck. Best wishes, Michael E. Bailey.

[Curt]

This is great news at first glance. The companies have stated they have a "policy" and are against it. What else could they say...it would be like being against clean air or clean water. This is simply the first step! What needs to occur is companies investing in the solutions to these distractions...whether they be cellphones or laptop computers.

Only technology will actually ensure that the policy is followed. It will be too easy for employees to "not" follow policy...the temptation is too great. Technology to prevent the cellphone or laptop from operating or displaying info is available now for a small price.

[John]

Signal-Safe is the revolutionary new driver cell phone monitor introduced by Orion Innovations of Saint Marys, PA. Unlike any other system or approach to addressing the national cell phone caused DWD epidemic, the Signal-Safe System uniquely operates with all cell phones in all vehicles at all times that the vehicle is in operation, without the need for a subscription or pre-programming to or from a cell phone. When the shift lever is moved from the “Park” position, our enforceable monitoring technology is on the job.

Though other technologies have been introduced to address this problem, none are enforceable and each has significant limitations. These include the need for GPS tracking, reliance on cell phone specific pre-programming for each and every cell phone to be monitored, cell phone specific hardware or software installations, and most importantly, no means to assure compliance by the vehicle driver. These systems can be easily bypassed by swapping phones to “beat the system”, placing or receiving calls in an emergency is limited to pre-assigned numbers, and a subscription with an ongoing renewal fee is often required for activation and continuation of service. The Signal-Safe System suffers none of these restrictions. It applies to all phones operated in the driver station of all vehicles at all times during mobile operation, without affecting non-driver passengers. Calls can be both placed and received without limit in the event of an emergency and no subscription, download or activation fee is ever required. Signal-Safe offers unmatched reliability, capability and end-user flexibility with a nearly endless variety of applications. To see a real-world demonstration, visit the online video link at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kkjA5Z_BNN0.

Cell phone use while driving in the initial Signal-Safe prototype vehicle prompts flashing parking lights, disruption of the vehicle stereo system, and an audible warning that is heard throughout the vehicle announcing that an “unauthorized cell phone” is in use by the driver. This occurs each and every time a cell phone call, text message, email or multi-media message is sent or received by a cell phone at the vehicle driver's station. This same signal can be utilized to address a large variety of end-user needs, allowing everyone who uses our roads to immediately benefit from this reliable and affordable new traffic safety technology. Concerned parents with a teen driver in the home, medium and large size businesses with corporate fleets, rental car companies, trucking and delivery fleet operators, and every driver that negotiates traffic in a daily commute can now be spared the imminent danger that is posed each and every day by drivers distracted from the use of a cell phone.

For more information, visit www.NoDriverDistraction.com.

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This occurs each and every time a cell phone call, text message, email or multi-media message is sent or received by a cell phone at the vehicle driver's station. This same signal can be utilized to address a large variety of end-user needs, allowing everyone who uses our roads to immediately benefit from this reliable and affordable new traffic safety technology.