By: Robert Lawrence

Maintaining a high degree of workplace safety is a challenge for all supervisors.

When your staff members operate vehicles in the field all day rather than sitting at a desk, however, keeping them safe can feel like an insurmountable challenge. But what if you could keep an eye on every vehicle in your fleet and be confident your drivers are working safely?

GPS tracking units make it feasible for fleet supervisors to monitor their fleets’ driving habits and support their safety in real time, even if they’re out on the road. With key data on driver safety and tools like safety report cards, route review and real-time alerts for hazardous behaviors, fleet supervisors gain peace of mind their haulers and other motorists are safe on the road.

Curbing aggressive driving

While aggressive driving can be an issue for many motorists, the problem becomes much more considerable when it involves big vehicles. Dangerous actions like speeding, hard braking and quick acceleration often indicate bad driving habits, like “lead-foot syndrome” or chronic tailgating. These high-risk behaviors are particularly troublesome in unfavorable conditions like heavy rain, darkness and snow.

A GPS tracking system can spot these dangerous actions and allow supervisors to curb the adverse behaviors before it becomes an ingrained habit.

Slowing down speeders

Speeding is a contributing factor in one-fourth to one-third of all fatal crashes in the United States, year after year. A decrease in speed as small as three mph on a road with an average speed of 30 mph can lessen the possibility of injury and fatality by 27 percent and 49 percent, respectively, according to a 2015 study. Another study found virtually one-half of all driver’s speed on limited access roadways, and 60 percent of drivers speed on primary roads.

The ability to track how quickly vehicles travel permits both drivers and fleet supervisors to spot unsafe drivers or other troublesome driving patterns. Most of the time, just knowing they are being followed and receiving text alerts about it can have a substantial positive influence on drivers’ safety.

Reviewing routes

One particularly useful feature of many GPS systems is a tool called route replay. With this feature, fleet supervisors can watch a visual replay of a driver’s activity along with indications for unsafe activity or other major driving behaviors. Route replay enables fleet supervisors to view and playback each vehicle’s driving record using animation and breaks down each trip into comprehensive segments. This tool can often allow users to see street-level details for further insight.

By pinpointing trends in unsafe driving habits through this tool, a fleet manager can figure out sensible ways to boost a fleet’s safety. For instance, if most speeding alerts take place in a particular stretch of road where the speed limit drops, fleet supervisors can tell their drivers to slow down ahead of the speed change.

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Robert Lawrence joined the Cornerstone team in January 2017. As Director of Transportation, he oversees the national and regional transportation programs, policies and procedures. With over 20 years of experience in the staffing industry working in business development and regional operations, he brings a wealth of knowledge and business insight to the Cornerstone family. Robert’s hands on approach and positive attitude towards team development and client services has garnered him accolades and awards with a proven record of client retention, market expansion and transportation expertise.