Citation

Smith G, Jones S. J. Australas. Coll. Road Saf. 2016; 27(1): 47-52.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2016, Australasian College of Road Safety)

DOI

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PMID

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Abstract

Long distance, or 'linehaul', operations utilise high productivity vehicles Such as B-doubles and road trains. It is not unusual for vehicle combinations to weigh up to 130 tonnes and represent a million dollar investment. Typically, vehicles are loaded within Toll NQX depots by loading staff, leaving drivers fresh for the task of driving. Unlike pick-up and delivery work which has the inherent stimulus of multiple drop-offs, interaction with customers and urban traffic flows, linehaul driving involves long stretches of one, single task: driving. It is common for Toll NQX linehaul drivers to clock up 1000 kilometres over a 24-hour period and around 220,000 km in a year. In comparison, Australian motorists drive an average of 15,530 km per year. Professional freight drivers generally do not receive enforcement concessions because of their increased exposure relative to other (non-professional) drivers. They have the same demerit point thresholds and incur traffic infringements at the same or higher penalty levels than general motorists. (Professional drivers in New South Wales have a higher demerit point threshold than other drivers, RMS, 2015). Linehaul driving is a solitary task without the myriad of workplace interactions many of us take for granted. This solitariness is often an attraction for linehaul drivers, but it creates unique managerial and safety challenges. For example, how can schedulers judge the fitness for duty of drivers they cannot physically see and assess? How can restorative rest be promoted in remote areas with limited facilities? What is the most effective and efficient response in the event of mechanical failure, rollover or weather event? Such challenges made the risk management opportunities afforded by technology deeply attractive to Toll NQX, and the business unit was an early adopter of GPS-enabled telematics (or "black boxes") for this reason.

Language: en