Opinion: Driving Accident-Free — A Mission

By Susan Chandler

Executive Director

Safety & Loss Prevention Management Council

American Trucking Associations

This Opinion piece appears in the Aug. 8 print edition of Transport Topics. Click here to subscribe today.

On Aug. 9, contestants of the National Truck Driving Championships and National Step Van Driving Championships will be convening in Orlando to begin four intense days of competition. They will be put to task. Nerves will be tested; beads of sweat will form — and not just because of the southern heat.

We say it all the time, but these competitors — 428 of them this year — are exceptional and are worthy of our respect long before they register for the state competitions that begin the journey to national recognition. They and their almost 5,000 driving colleagues who participated in the state and regional competitions have managed — despite congestion, increased freight, tighter deadlines and distracted motorists — to drive accident-free for at least 12 months.

In this case, “accident-free” means just that. It doesn’t matter if it was the truck driver’s fault or not — if he or she was moving and involved in an accident where there was damage or injury, he or she is deemed ineligible. That may seem harsh, but the championship competitors and the motor carriers that support them will tell you that when drivers feel responsible for everyone else on the road it makes them extraordinary defensive drivers. That’s why many of the competing drivers have millions of accident-free miles under their safety belts. They truly are the best of the best.

Everyone is trying to find the silver bullet, that system or technology that will reduce collisions and injuries. With the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s Compliance, Safety, Accountability program, this quest for safety salvation has accelerated. What the best carriers in the industry will tell you is that no system or technology is a substitute for alert, knowledgeable, well-trained professionals who understand and appreciate defensive driving. This is no easy core value, nor is it easily achieved.

Understanding what influences the attitude companies and drivers have toward safety is critical in achieving one’s own safety goals. The best of the best safety professionals will tell you that. For some, competition may be the motivator. For others, it might be incentives. And for still others, it is often recognition and respect.

We know from the NTDC/NSVDC that money isn’t the motivating factor for these competing drivers to achieve greatness. The prize money is minimal and will ultimately go to only 27 of those 428 competitors.

What the contestants will tell you is that being at the “Nationals” is about feeling, sometimes for the first time in their careers, that they are special, they are essential and they are the best at what they do. They are not “just a truck driver.” They are a transport professional delivering America’s essential goods and doing it better than anyone else.

This year, nearly 100 companies have drivers competing at the national championships, but that is only a portion of the companies that had competitors at the state and national competitions. It’s an investment — that is for sure — but each of them will tell you that the return on investment, both safety-wise and retention-wise, is more than worth it.

At American Trucking Associations, we are fortunate to see and know the very best the industry has to offer. We see the pride that the America’s Road Team captains, the state and national drivers of the year, the state and national SuperTech contestants, the National Safety Director Award recipients and the National Truck & Industrial Safety Contest winners have for their professions and their industry. Their achievements are hard-fought gains and certainly help the image of our industry. That pride is what often fuels success, whether we are talking money or safety. They walk hand-in-hand.

As we enter the next decade, we face a number of challenges. I don’t have to list them because you already know them more intimately than those who are here in Washington.

However, one thing that will remain consistent and trustworthy: The drive to inspire excellence and safety consciousness among those who work in our industry holds the key to trucking’s future. Motivating safety through training, competition, incentives and respect will give drivers, carriers and the industry a tenfold return on investment long before the technologies and systems catch up with it.

American Trucking Associations is a national trade federation for the trucking industry with headquarters in Arlington, Va., and affiliated associations in every state. ATA owns Transport Topics Publishing Group.