Being safety conscious is vital. Commercial driving requires a great deal of skill, carries a lot of responsibility for the safety of others, and it demands a lot of common sense. By improving the safety of your drivers, you not only ensure their protection, but you can also reduce costs associated with accidents, claim payouts, and rises in insurance premiums. Here are our safety tips for truck drivers.
1. Situational Awareness
Know everything around you- Check mirrors every 8-10 seconds to be aware of vehicles entering your blind spots. Be aware of long stopping distances and make careful wide turns. Maintaining good situational awareness of what is happening around you at all times will help you to preemptively avoid accidents, and adjust to changing road conditions.
2. Practice defensive driving
Like any other job or task, you must be responsible and reliable, not only for your safety but also for the safety of others around you. By practicing defensive driving, you reduce the risk of (fatal) incidents.
- Be aware of the blind spots – 10-15 feet in front of you, directly behind your trailer, on the passenger side from the door to the back of your sleeper unit, and the driver side from the front bumper to the nose of the trailer. Since rear-view and side mirrors aren’t always effective when checking for blind spots, look over your shoulders and out the windows when changing lanes. And leave plenty of room around your vehicle while merging
- Practice the three-second rule ( to avoid forward and rear collisions)- This rule states that truck drivers should allow three full seconds to pass between the time the car in front of them reaches a particular spot on the road and the time it takes the truck driver to reach that same point. In heavy rain, the time should be increased to 5 seconds, and on icy roads at least 10 seconds.
- Keep lane changes at a minimum– The odds of an accident increase dramatically each time a vehicle makes a move to another lane. If you have maintained your lane position in the event of an accident, the other vehicle will most likely be at fault, not you.
- Avoid aggressive drivers. Don’t get caught up in road rage scenarios; antagonizing aggressive drivers will only escalate the situation.
3. Use a Trucker’s GPS.
It could be a low bridge, weight restriction, or a road that just doesn’t allow big trucks. That’s why it’s essential for you to use a GPS designed for truck drivers ( especially if you are hauling a HazMat load). A typical GPS for cars or a smartphone is okay, but more often than not, you could find yourself in trouble on unfamiliar state roads.
Here are some wonderful examples of truckers’ GPS:
Garmin dezl OTR700
Rand McNally TND 750
TomTom Truck GPS GO Expert – it has live restrictions ( live alerts on height, hazardous goods, weights and more.)
4. SLOW DOWN!
Follow suggested speed limits!- Speeding doesn’t save time. There’s no question that speeding can put you and others around you at a safety risk. So, it’s advisable not to go beyond the specified speed limit on the roads. If you need to get to your destination quickly, use alternative routes. ( Use your GPS or the old fashion Map)
5. Check the weather conditions
Knowing what to expect helps a trucker be better prepared for bad weather driving and necessary precautions can be taken. Bad weather conditions—like snow, ice, hail, or rain—can impact a driver’s visibility or can cause roads to become slippery, all of which contribute to a greater chance of an accident.
The Rand MCNally GPS ( suggested above) can help you with the weather conditions, too.
6. Invest in a Dash Cam
Avoiding accidents is always a priority, however, the unexpected can and will occur no matter how safe a driver you are. But often, determining who is at fault in an accident can be unclear. Thousands of truck drivers each year have been cleared of any fault on their part in an accident simply because they had a dash cam and video proof they were not at fault in an incident.
Here’s a list of the best Dash Cams according to the truckers that we’ve worked with:
Rove R2- 4K Dash Cam Built in WiFi GPS
Vantrue N4 3 Channel 4K Dash Cam
Vantrue N2 Pro Uber Dual 1080P Dash Cam
7. Take adequate brakes and do your Pre and Post trip inspections
It’s important to remember that the effects of operating a vehicle while fatigued are similar to operating a vehicle under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
Pre and post-trip inspections are essential for spotting defects in your equipment before they become a threat to your safety. We have prepared a FREE comprehensive Pre Trip inspection check list for you. Inspections are an essential line of defense in safe operation and should not be overlooked under any circumstance.
At Easy Compliance Solutions, we know that the trucking industry can be stressful and that safety can be overlooked as a result. But we practice what we preach—we believe that safety formulates the backbone of every transport company and that any investment in safety will pay off. The alternative simply isn’t worth the risk! We will help you through the complexity so that you can focus your attention on your core business functions, thereby saving time, and money, and ensuring your company’s successful growth in the meantime. If these safety tips for truck drivers aren’t enough for you, you can always schedule a FREE CONSULTATION with us or call us at (773) 820-9200