Driving for Work Safety Policy

Julie Chi-Nwaoha, is my sister from another mother. She is also a colleague in the business of begging road users to drive and stay safe. She coordinates a novel concept birthed sometime in 2010. I was privileged to be Sector Commander in Lagos State and worked with another sibling-Chris Kehinde Nwandu, whose mother I am yet to meet in birthing the idea.

Julie is currently the head of Unit of the Celebrity Special Marshal, the first female to hold that position, after the tenure of Chris Nwandu, the pioneer. For the records this piece is not on Julie. Neither, is it a treatise on her elegant beauty. Nor on the contributions of Celebrities in driving advocacies. Rather, it is actually an acknowledgement of a material she recently shared with me which is the trust of this piece.

It is an interesting piece for leaders of industries, individuals and all whose daily activities necessitates navigating/traversing traffic daily. This is not about just your personal driver for those chauffeured daily. It is about general safety irrespective of your status in the workplace.

The annual driving for work seminar, posted on the social media platform of the Irish Road Victims Association, was the brainchild of the Road Safety Authority in partnership with the Health and Safety Authority and An Garda Siochana, which held at Enfield, County Meath.

Stakeholders such as industry leaders, commercial fleet operators, professional drivers and safety experts attended. Their mission was to address risks associated with driving for work and promote stronger employee-led road safety management. It was about seeking a solution to a problem that affects all, in Ireland or here.

I read it was a fallout of the study which estimates that up to 40percent of road deaths are work related, underscored by this year’s rise in road fatalities. Surprisingly, the focus was on heavy goods vehicles who some have termed killers on the road, irrespective of the clime they operate.

Since the devil is always in the details, let us examine what the data says about Ireland. Collision analysis reveals that heavy goods vehicles account for 10percent of vehicles involved in fatal collisions. The victims, the data reveals, are road users, not the heavy goods vehicle drivers. The same is the story here.

Meanwhile, in the submission of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (ROSPA), driving for work is risky. ROSPA emphasizes adopting a holistic approach to driving for work, focusing on risk management, robust employer policies and comprehensive training, like defensive driving.

Others include clear legal duties to protect employees, stressing that work- related road accidents are preventable through proper vehicle checks, fitness to drive and avoiding risky behaviors like fatigued or impaired driving all within a structured safety system.

I will dwell a bit on a select few, starting with risk assessment which requires treating driving for work as a significant hazard and incorporating it into an organization’s safety statements, if they have any. It also develops clear policies, including driver codes of conduct and procedures for reporting incidents and near misses.

It also incorporates training on defensive driving, safe practices such as pre-use checks, following employers’ rules, avoiding risks as well as reporting issues. Others dwell on vehicle safety, drivers’ fitness which includes holding valid licenses, avoiding driving under the influence of alcohol/drugs/medication as well as reporting any medical conditions that could impair driving ability.

In addition, it emphasizes both the legal and practical roles of employers to promote safety. Unfortunately, except for a few, such as players in the oil and gas sector, these safety concerns are not priorities in our clime, which explains why most organizations as well as leaders treat rising deaths and fatalities as mere accidents that require no concrete interventions, but lip service.

Over the years, even the United Nations has drummed the need for all players to join the crusade to rid our roads of avoidable road crashes and fatalities. Affirming this position, speakers at the seminar were unanimous in noting that driving for work is a significant road safety challenge.

They charged employers to take an active and structured role in managing driving for work risks. This means having clear policies, supporting drivers with proper training, and ensuring safety is at the center of every journey. They emphasized collaboration and strong partnership in addressing these issues.

While urging all employers, irrespective of the size of the organisation, to incorporate as well as review their driving for work policies and practices, they were equally urged to ensure that robust safety management systems are in place.

Let us now deal with details which reveal that 25 percent of drivers involved in fatal collisions were driving for work and that one in 10 drivers killed were driving for work. Based on this unacceptable data in Ireland, employers were urged to prioritize policies to promote safe driving behaviors and I am excited that commitments were made to mobilize all stakeholders in addressing this trend.

Fatigue was identified as one of the most dangerous causative factors responsible for road traffic crashes due to tired drivers’ poor decisions which increases collision risk. It is therefore crucial that employers manage fatigue and prioritize road safety, prevent collisions and save lives.

Employers should therefore develop/ publish or domesticate Driving for Work: Risk Management Guidance for Employers. This will help them understand their legal obligations and provide practical steps to build policies, procedures and work practices that support safer driving for work and collision prevention.

During the seminar, a professional drivers survey,2024 data collected from HGV drivers and bus drivers was presented. The findings were revealing; fatigue is an issue as one in two HGV drivers report that they continue driving when tired due to lack of suitable rest stops, or time pressure.

The survey also showed that distraction was an issue- one in three HGV drivers report using a hand-held mobile phone for work purposes while driving. Also, speeding is widespread among drivers as a third of HGV drivers exceed 50km/h limits with some frequency while almost two-thirds of HGV drivers do the same for 100km/h roads.

Meanwhile, the survey also revealed that driving under the influence was another issue- one in ten HGV drivers drive under the influence of alcoholic drink/ illicit drugs. Interestingly, HGV drivers also identified some road challenging conditions they experience such as, overgrown hedgerows, poor/damaged road surfaces, lack of suitable rest areas and traffic congestion.

On a larger scale, another disturbing finding from the survey on HGV drivers and bus drivers revealed that drivers spend an average of 37hours per week driving to work while 55percent often drive extra hours especially drivers under 35. The survey also revealed that 34percent are not aware if their employer has a driving for work policy.

Meanwhile,53percent were stopped for commercial checks in the past three years with some issues identified for 28percent of these drivers.

Strangely, only half of these drivers received clear instructions on in-vehicle technologies available to them.

When I wrote on, ‘Demons of the Season’, I highlighted that what has remained a burden and challenge globally in tackling avoidable crashes and deaths has been human adaptation and compliance with safety rules. The apathy of corporate players as highlighted by ROSPA is another. This failure is why we are battling to cut down avoidable road traffic crashes and deaths which stands at 1.19million yearly with over 20 to 50million non-fatal injuries.