Shell Road Transport Forum Oct 06, 2015 Ft McMurray “Fleet Safety Solutions for the Real World” Stephen Evans VP of Safety Chairman
Pacific Western is the parent company of Diversified. The PW Group of Companies is made up of over 25 brands, 4,100 employees, and 3,400 buses & coaches organized into Employee Transportation, Transit, Student, and Motorcoach Lines of Business that operate throughout much of Canada and into the USA. All of our brands feature our “Safely Home” logo which serves as a consistent reminder of our commitment to our first Core Value.
The PWT approach to Safety: - Keep it simple - Keep it practical - Keep it clear - Keep it positive
We will not advance Safety at PWT by just quoting rules & regulations. Safety needs to connect with people and be promoted. Our success in Safety will come from: - matching our safety programs to our organization. - focusing on what we can prevent.
To keep in the loop on current issues, and to ensure we have a voice, we belong to a number of industry associations.
The ABA’s Bus Industry Safety Council is comprised of over 200 industry leaders who meet twice a year to review and discuss issues and innovations in areas of bus & motorcoach safety, regulatory compliance, technology, security, and human factors. The BISC provides advice, insights and feedback to members, the industry, government agencies, and other interested parties on the status and availability of bus & motorcoach safety practices, products, and services.
BISC 2015 – 2016 EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE: Chairman: Stephen Evans (PWT) Vice Chairman: Al Smith (Greyhound) Secretary: Dan Tomlinson (Indian Trails) Chair Govt Affairs: Mike Horak (Academy) Chair Human Perf: Mike Ferianc (Butler) Chair Security: Lynette McMillan (Greyhound) Chair VTOC: John Oakman (Coach USA) Chair Workplace HES: Pam Martinez (Dattco) Bus Manufacturer: Louis Hotard (ABC) Supplier Rep: Matt Daecher (Daecher Consulting) Insurance Rep: Bob Crescenzo (Lancer) At-Large Member: Chris Crean (Peter Pan) At-Large Member: Charles Corder (Coach USA) Govt Agency Rep: Loretta Bitner (FMCSA) SSC Chair: Alan Glickman (Starr Tours) VP Govt Affrs & Policy: Suzanne Te Beau Rohde (ABA) Executive Director: Brandon Buchanan (ABA) Past Chair: Mike McDonal (Eyre)
A sampling of the topics covered at BISC meeting sessions - Driver qualification files - Vehicle maintenance records - HOS supporting documentation - Driver Safety Meetings - Drug and alcohol testing - Inspections - Electronic logging devices - Handling crisis communications - Training programs that produce results - Driver recruitment and retention - Due diligence - Conducting a security assessment - Better pre-trips - A guide to emerging technologies
The Progression of Telematics & Technology = because our numbers are small, the bus industry tends to get technology last 16.5 million new cars & light trucks 75 NASCAR race cars 500,000 new luxury sold in 2014 (but only 43 per race) performance car sold in 2014 1,710 new motorcoaches sold in 2014 220,405 new Class 8 trucks sold in 2014
So technology comes to the bus and motorcoach industry primarily through government rule makings. U.S. Department of Transportation Motorcoach Safety Action Plan http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/documents/safety-security/MotorcoachSafetyActionPlan_finalreport-508.pdf 2009
Motorcoach Safety Technologies: Crash Avoidance Stability Control Systems Forward Collision Warning/Adaptive Cruise Control Blind Spot/Side Collision Warning Rear Collision Warning Lane Departure Warning Pedestrian Collision Warning Speed Limiters Accident Event Recorder (AER) Heavy Vehicle Event Data Recorder (HVEDR)
Motorcoach Safety Technologies: Vehicle Maintenance Performance-Based Brake Tester (PBBT) Smart Infra-Red Inspection System Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS) Electronic Vehicle Inspection Report Fire Safety Fire detection/warning systems Fire suppression equipment
Motorcoach Safety Technologies: Driver Fatigue Electronic on- board recording devices (EOBR’s) Sleep apnea and sleep disorder testing/treatment equipment Driver fatigue monitoring/warning devices (eyelid, eye movement, yawning, facial cues, etc.) Driver Performance In Vehicle Management Systems Telematics (IVMS – real time monitoring/reporting on speeding, sharp turns, hard braking, etc)
Crash Cause Factors 2.5 % Roadway Factors 2.4 % Vehicle Factors 2.0 % A Variety of Minor Misc. Factors 93.1 % Driver Factors
It’s All About the Driver
Air France A330-200; Flight 447; Atlantic Ocean: The aircraft was on a scheduled flight from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil to Paris, France. The aircraft crashed in the Atlantic Ocean in the early hours of 1 June 2009. There were no emergency or distress messages sent by the crew. The last contact between the airplane and Brazilian air traffic control happened around 35 minutes before the crash. Debris from the aircraft was found near the estimated position of its last radio communication. There were 216 passengers and 12 crew members on board.
Air France was started in 1933, currently has 344 planes, employs 64,000 staff, and moves 77,000,000 passengers per year between 168 destinations in 93 countries. Despite the significant resources and effort dedicated to safety, and an excellent prior track record…their organization was surprised and devastated when this crash occurred.
“Air France Panel Cites Wide Safety Deficiencies” The Wall Street Journal, Wed Jan 26/11 An independent study of Air France was conducted in 2009 and found: “Safety First” was described as highest priority by management, but did not - appear to have penetrated to the work force - Lines of responsibility for safety blurred - Discipline and accountability lax - Training ineffective - Safety structure overly complex - Performance monitoring inadequate - Incident data not being used to learn and prevent reoccurrence - Staff who violated safety rules/procedures/etc. were not disciplined, instead management tried to fix by adding more and more unduly complicated procedures
***Caution*** Having no major crashes & few incidents …and… Successfully passing safety audits Does not mean all is well!
Safety in our industry can be compared to a cliff.
How drivers get into trouble at the top of the cliff: - trying to pass - speeding - talking/texting on the cell phone - fussing with tunes - rain/snow/ice/strong winds - racing - not paying attention to the road - not properly trained - poor driving skills - in a hurry - just don’t care
One approach to Safety is to focus on the bottom of the cliff >>>>>>>>
Emergency Response
Recovery
Investigation
Emergency Response – Recovery – Investigation Bottom of the cliff approach is all about the post incident response. We wait for something bad to happen, and then the Safety Team can leap into action. It is also our opportunity to get noticed, so we do it up right with flashing lights, uniforms, shiny wheels, technical equipment, comprehensive procedures, well documented standards, certified experts, etc. In between incidents, we train and practice so that when the call comes, we are ready to respond.
We own the bottom of the cliff !!
The problem is that we have to wait for something bad to happen before we do anything. With a bottom of the cliff approach we never really fix anything. We just get better and better at responding. We need a steady stream of careless folks driving off the cliff to keep us busy and to ensure we can get budgets for new equipment, training, etc. We view careless drivers falling off the cliff as an inevitable part of life. It is just one of the risks of operating vehicles. Nothing much can be done as these are random act of fate. But if we do a really good job of responding once they reach the bottom of the cliff, we can probably save quite a few and really feel like we are making a meaningful contribution.
The other approach is to focus on the top of the cliff >>>>>>>>
The top of the cliff approach is all about preventing drivers from falling off the cliff. Safety doesn’t need to wait for someone to drive off the cliff. We are on the top of the cliff in advance of any traffic looking for ways to make sure nothing happens. We use training, signs, lights, road design, lines on the road, sanding/plowing, rumble strips, etc. And we know that despite the best of intentions, people will still sometimes make mistakes… so we also construct strong fences as a last resort.
Top of the cliff: Prevent OR Bottom of the cliff: Respond
My observation is that we are spending way too much time and effort on the bottom of the cliff providing a great “after the fact” service… …and not enough at the top of the cliff building strong preventative fences.
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