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October 2024
Summaries of timely road safety news, events, and alerts
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Message from NETS' Executive Director,
Susan Hipp
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Several years ago I ran the Indianapolis half-marathon, 13.1 miles/21.2 kilometers. I didn’t train well, ran maybe 5 or 6 miles at a time before taking on the race, and ended up getting worn out and walking quite a bit of it. But I kept going and finished it. I had a goal to complete the race, and a desire to not quit.
We recently had our annual Strength IN Numbers Fleet Safety Benchmark Conference in Atlanta. It was a pleasure to connect with old and new NETS members and Sponsors alike, and to once again network, learn, and share best practices.
But what happens next for those who attended the conference? Are you worn out? Have you quit yet? Or will you keep going and put your newly learned skills to use in your fleet safety program?
Our conference presenters shared information on safety culture, distracted driving, vehicle safety standards, the latest on EVs, and how to address the health and wellness of employees who drive as well as numerous best practice case studies from our member/Sponsor partners.
Even if you didn't attend the conference, I urge you to continue to find new and meaningful ways to implement strong safety cultures within your organization in order to keep drivers safe. Even when you're worn out. Even when you feel like you can’t finish the race.
NETS has multiple resources you can put to use in your fleet safety program. And conference attendees and all NETS members can download the conference presentations for up to 90 days post conference from the conference platform, Whova.
Our fleet safety journey is never done. Reach out to other fleet safety professionals. Find new resources. Connect with a NETS Sponsor company to learn how they can help your program.
Keep going, even after you've finished the race.
Until then, safe driving!
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Susan Hipp
Executive Director, NETS
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NETS 2024
Strength IN Numbers®
Fleet Safety Benchmark Conference Successfully Concluded!
Presentations available for all conference attendees
in Whova for 90 days
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NETS Bestows Road Safety Awards at Annual Conference
The 2024 NETS Strength in Numbers Fleet Safety Benchmark Conference, held Oct. 8-11 at the Omni Hotel at Centennial Park in Atlanta, brought together industry leaders, road safety professionals, and sponsors to discuss critical advancements and strategies in fleet safety. During the conference, NETS recognized NETS member companies and/or employees for their successful achievements in advancing road safety.
Congratulations to the following award winners:
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Overall Fleet Safety: Sara Wojcik, Sunbelt Rentals, Driver Risk Profile Program
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International Fleet Safety: Amazon, Global Transportation Docking and Releasing (GDTR) Technology
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Women in Fleet: Pam Chandler, Syngenta, for the Syngenta North America Fleet Modernization
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NETSTalk Now: Driving Change, A NETS Road Safety Podcast | Hear the latest episode with Nauto’s CEO and Founder, Stefan Heck, describing the history of technology and how AI has burst onto the scene in all industries, including the vehicle safety space. | | | |
NETS Annual Benchmark Report Now Available for NETS Members | |
NETS' annual benchmark report brings together socially responsible companies willing to look at their own crash metrics, compare findings and share what they’ve learned. This program is for all types of companies and organizations — large or small, local or global, public or private. NETS members can now access the report including the analysis by NETS' Statisticians identifying best practices to put in place a cost-effective, integrated, and comprehensive plan to improve their road safety performance. | |
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*NETS Members must be logged in to access the report. Not a NETS Member?
Sign up today!
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A.L.I.V.E. Consulting Health and Wellness Program for Your Drivers!
Health and wellness can have a huge impact on your drivers. By focusing on holistic wellness, stress management and resilience, peak performance, conscious leadership, and culture change, improving the physical and emotional well-being of drivers can lead to increased driver retention and driver safety.
NETS' keynote speaker at 2024 Strength IN Numbers Conference, Sergio Rojas of A.L.I.V.E. Consulting, can help your organization focus on this essential driver safety issue and is offering a promotion for 3 NETS member companies of 40% off his service fees! This is on a first come, first serve basis which you must take advantage of by December 1.
Not a NETS Member? Join NETS today to receive the NETS member discount, or sign up for the program at 25% off!
Services include:
- Employee Wellness
- Driver-Specific Wellness
- Leadership Development
- Executive Health Coaching
- EQ & Communications
- EOS
Connect with Sergio at A.L.I.V.E. Consulting and sign up today via email at sergio@aliveconsulting.net or visit the website www.AliveConsulting.net
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NETS is proud to partner with the following PLATINUM Fleet Safety Sponsors: | |
When Should You Put Winter Tires on Your Car? | While some drivers underestimate the risks of waiting too long, others panic and decidedly leave summer tires on during the winter months, which, simply put, isn't a good idea. Consider the factors for your region, and make it a priority to maintain your vehicle right on the right timeline to enhance performance when you need it most. | |
This Halloween, Be Safe When Trick-or-Treating By Watching For Cars
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The scariest things lurking around the corner on Halloween aren’t monsters or ghosts. According to doctors, it’s cars. Halloween is one of the deadliest days of the year for pedestrians, especially for kids.
“There’s a lot of focus on the risks of candy that might be a little misplaced,” said Britney Lombard, an injury prevention manager at Children’s Hospital Colorado. But one thing experts are sure of, she said, is an increase in child pedestrian fatalities on Halloween.
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Daylight Savings Can Create Driver Fatigue and Hazards | |
As clocks “fall back” and daylight saving time ends, many Americans will be driving longer at night which could translate to more driver fatigue and hazards on the road, says Virginia Tech Transportation Institute expert Matt Camden.
Camden says that any time change can exacerbate drowsiness and your body may need a few days to adjust accordingly. He offers the following advice for drivers to avoid fatigue.
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WORKPLACE / HOME ROAD SAFETY
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Healthy Drivers, Safer Roads: Could Wellness be Trucking’s Secret Weapon? | According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the average life expectancy of a commercial truck driver is 61 years. That’s 16 years lower than the national average, making truck driving one of the unhealthiest occupations in the U.S. | | | |
News : Roadside Chat – Tailgating Can Cause a Real Monster Mash | The same adrenalin pump and communal spirit that brings us together to kick up our heels can contribute to the aggressive driving behavior of tailgating. According to AAA, too much togetherness on the road, whether an interstate convoy or rushing little goblins across town on Beggar's Night, is unsafe and could cause a monster crash. | | | |
Auto Insurance Rate Hike? Your Phone Might Be to Blame | |
Drivers routinely use their phones in the car to listen to music or get directions. But the devices may be listening back, tracking driving behavior, and ultimately sharing that information with insurers.
A recent report from The New York Times named three popular apps — Life360, MyRadar, and Gas Buddy — as recording and sharing driver data with Arity, an Allstate-owned analytics company. Arity, in turn, uses the information to create consumer “driving scores” that insurance companies can purchase “instantly.”
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Video shows how quickly a distracted driver caused a 9-car pileup |
- Dashcam video shows how quickly a distracted driving moment can turn into a nine-car pileup.
- Troopers in Oklahoma said they were lucky: it could have been much worse.
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TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION
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Fewer Drivers Are Opting Out of Lane Departure Prevention | Almost 9 out of 10 drivers of vehicles equipped with lane departure warning and prevention systems now keep them switched on, a new study from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety shows. Seven out of 10 drivers of vehicles that give visual alerts when they exceed the speed limit also keep that feature running. | | | |
Out With The Old (Automatic Emergency Braking), In With The New | AAA’s latest research found that new (2024) model vehicles with automatic emergency braking (AEB) avoided 100% of forward collisions when tested at speeds up to 35 mph, in comparison to old (2017 – 2018) model vehicles, which only avoided collisions 51% of the time. AEB uses forward-facing cameras and other sensors to automatically tell the car to apply the brakes when a crash is imminent. | | | |
Self-driving Cars: Science and Industry Must Work Together for Safety | There is a gap between scientific knowledge about the human factors involved when a motorist must take back control of an automated vehicle and how those factors should be translated into the design of vehicle systems. This is according to research by SWOV, the Institute for Scientific Research on Road Safety. SWOV aims to use scientific research knowledge to contribute to safer road traffic. | | | |
The UK’s Wayve Brings Its AI Automated Driving Software to U.S. Shores | |
It might seem that the autonomous driving trend is moving at full speed and on its own accord, especially if you live in California.
Wayve, a UK startup that has received over $1 billion in funding, is now joining the crowded party by launching on-road testing of its AI learning system on the streets of San Francisco and the Bay Area.
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GOVERNMENT AND NON-PROFIT
AGENCY NEWS
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RAP Knowledge Live Session 11: Star Rating for Designs - A Key To Safer Roads | Participants from 54 countries tuned in last week for the 11th #RAPKnowledgeLive session - A key to safer roads. In this session, participants learned how to use the Star Rating for Designs (SR4D) tool to assess and improve road safety by evaluating road designs and identifying high-risk areas, ensuring safer infrastructure for all road users. | | | |
The FIA Road Safety Index is a new index aiming to increase companies and organisations' insights on the impact of their operations on road safety and to help them report on their ambitions, actions, and results. With the FIA Road Safety Index, organisations and companies can measure their safety footprint just like they do for their carbon footprint (total greenhouse gas emissions). Learn more about how your organization can participate and measure your road safety footprint! | | | |
INTERNATIONAL ROAD SAFETY
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Prevalence of Ocular Injuries Following Road Traffic Accidents Among Two-Wheeler Riders | Introduction Road traffic accident-related ocular damage is a serious public health issue that can result in unilateral blindness. Several individual risk factors lead to ocular injury and various levels of visual impairment. Objectives The objective is to assess the demography and pattern of ocular, orbital, and eyelid injuries among motorcycle accident cases attending a medical college and hospital in Chengalpattu district Tamil Nadu India. | | | |
Cyclist Safety-Focused Smart Sensors |
Vivacity Sensors are Helping with Keeping Bikers Safe
A new smart sensor pilot on Solihull's A34 Stratford Road aims to enhance pedestrian and cyclist safety by reducing wait times at crossings. Transport for West Midlands and Solihull Council have partnered to install advanced VivaCity sensors at a key crossing. This technology is capable of detecting cyclists from up to 30 meters away. This early detection allows traffic signals to adjust and facilitate quicker green lights for cyclists.
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Improving Pedestrian Safety in Bangladesh | Pedestrians, particularly students and workers, face significant risks when they cross busy roads. With industrial, commercial, and educational activities concentrated in urban areas, many must cross high-speed roads daily. This issue is part of a broader global challenge, as 93 per cent of road traffic fatalities occur in low- and middle-income countries. | | | |
UPCOMING TRANSPORTATION SAFETY EVENTS
AND CAMPAIGNS
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Fleet Safety Conference: November 6-8 in San Diego, CA | Join NETS at the Fleet Safety Conference to learn the latest results from NETS annual Benchmark report, along with NETS member PG&E and NETS Platinum Sponsor Smith System, discussing how to build a motor vehicle safety program to include benchmarking as well as how to take the benchmarking building blocks to enact change with training tactics that work for sales and corporate fleets. | |
October is Pedestrian Safety Month | At some point in the day, everyone is a pedestrian, which is why pedestrian safety is an essential part of every highway safety communications plan. | |
Road Safety Week 2024 is November 17-23 | Road Safety Week is our biggest annual road safety campaign. This year, we have put road victims at the heart of Road Safety Week. We want to raise awareness of the devastating toll of road crashes, and celebrate the work of the incredible people who support families after a road death or serious injury. | |
NHTSA Launches Labor Day Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over Campaign | In advance of one of the busiest and deadliest holiday travel times in the U.S. due to alcohol-impaired-driving crashes, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration today kicked off its annual Labor Day Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over national enforcement mobilization campaign. | | | |
Do you have a particularly successful road safety example to share? NETS Members are encouraged to share best practices, ask questions or contribute their expertise to the NETS Road Safety Leaders Forum, an online discussion forum exclusively for NETS Members and Sponsors. Not yet a member? Check out the benefits at https://trafficsafety.org/membership-info/.
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Note from the editor:
All links to stories have been tested and are active 24 hours prior to distribution; however, links may become inactive over time at the discretion of the publication source.
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About NETSWork®
NETSWork is published electronically each month by the Network of Employers for Traffic Safety.
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Network of Employers for Traffic Safety
344 Maple Ave. West #357
Vienna, VA 22180
+1.703-755-5350
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© 2024 Network of Employers for Traffic Safety
NETS is registered by the US Internal Revenue Service as a 501(C)3 non-profit organization
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