Wisconsin ‘Trooper in a Truck’ Event Promotes Safety
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Wisconsin State Patrol troopers and the Wisconsin Motor Carriers Association recently held their third annual Trooper in a Truck safety campaign to tackle distracted driving.
Over five days in July officers accompanied professional drivers inside the higher vehicles to be on the lookout for dangerous driving in Green Bay, Hudson, Madison, Waukesha and Wausau.
“Working with law enforcement gives us the opportunity to work together for safer roads,” said Neal Leclaire, a WMCA Road Team Captain and driver with Duplainville Transport Inc., part of Quad Graphics’ fleet.
He said the biggest goal is to educate people about the dangers of texting while driving and aggressive driving. “As a professional driver my advice would be, pay attention to your driving and be patient,” Leclaire noted.
When police see a violation, they radio to patrol cars in the area to pull over the drivers to issue citations. (Wisconsin Motor Carriers Association via Facebook)
Trooper in a Truck has troopers sit inside a semi or bus and look down at roadway drivers to watch for illegal activities such as speeding, distracted driving, following too closely and seat belt violations. When police see a violation, they radio to patrol cars in the area to pull over the drivers to issue citations.
“As a professional driver with almost 30 years of experience, I have seen many changes in driving habits in regard to distractions and aggressive driving. As technology advanced, it seems the problem has gotten worse. That’s why I participated in the Trooper in a Truck program,” explained Leclaire, also WMCA safety director. This time he noticed “a slight decline in what was observed for distracted driving from the first year I had done it.”
The Wisconsin campaign, conducted July 8-12 on multiple state highways during the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s Operation Safe Driver Week, was designed to reduce crashes and injuries involving commercial motor vehicles.
Troopers watch the road from a truck. (Wisconsin State Patrol via Facebook)
Kim Conradt, WMCA safety programs coordinator, worked with the Wisconsin State Patrol three years ago to launch this annual event, which has attracted more carriers as participants and more news coverage.
“Some of my road team captains came to me about three years ago and they said every day they’re up in the truck, they can see the drivers and what they’re doing down below,” Conradt told Transport Topics. “Texting, watching Netflix, putting on makeup. It’s really about the distracted driving and it causes a lot of accidents. So we thought, why can’t we partner with the troopers and get them in the truck and help us make your family get home safe, our family get home safe, everybody be safe on the road. We don’t want to write tickets. We want to educate. There’s nothing that’s more important than you getting home alive.”
Wisconsin State Patrol Superintendent Tim Carnahan said drivers should pay attention, especially around large trucks and buses. “Commercial motor vehicles have large blind spots, limited maneuverability and require longer distances to stop. All motorists have to work together to prevent crashes,” he added.
In the past five years, Wisconsin has averaged 7,000 crashes annually involving large trucks. Distracted driving is a growing safety concern in Wisconsin, says the state transportation department.
Wisconsin State Patrol officers watch traffic from the back of a school bus. (Wisconsin Motor Carriers Association via Facebook)
Gillian Taylor, senior logistics safety coordinator at Duplainville Transport, feels strongly about promoting safety for all drivers.
“Professional drivers spend 11 hours a day on the road, which unfortunately is more than enough time to witness firsthand the results of distracted driving,” Taylor said. “So many lives could be changed forever in the precious moments it took for them to pick up their phone and read a message. It’s not worth it, a life is not worth it.”
Another participant in the event this year was Kwik Trip, a convenience store chain founded in 1965 in Eau Claire, Wis.
Kwik Trip driver Jeremiah Wickersham, a professional trucker for eight years, said: “As a lead trainer for Kwik Trip and a Road Team Captain with the WMCA, safe driving is important to me because I am always seeing the effects of unsafe driving while either training new drivers or driving myself.”
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