During the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) 29^th annual International Roadcheck, June 7-9, 2016, commercial motor vehicle inspectors conducted safety inspections of buses and large trucks throughout North America.

The three-day event involves CVSA-certified inspectors conducting educational, enforcement, and compliance initiatives is the largest targeted enforcement program in operation today. In fact, on average, during this 72 hours, there are as many as 15 truck or bus inspections carried out every minute.

Vehicle results for this year were as follows:

• Level l inspections – 78.5 percent of vehicles checked has no OOS (out of service) violations. 21.5 percent were put out of service
• Inspections involving hazardous materials – 87 percent of vehicles checked had no OOS violations. 13 percent were put out of service
• Passenger-carrying vehicles – 93.9 percent of vehicles checked has no OOS violations. 6.1 percent were put out of service
• All inspections – 82.2 percent of vehicles checked has no OOS violations. 17.8 percent were put out of service

Other top OOS vehicle violation percentage distributions included:

• Brake systems – 27.4 percent
• Brake adjustment – 18.3 percent
• Coupling devices – 0.7 percent
• Cargo securement – 6.1 percent
• Driveshaft / driveline – 1.0 percent
• Exhausts – 0.2 percent
• Fuel systems – 0.3 percent
• Frames – 1.2 percent
• Lighting devices – 11.7 percent
• Suspensions – 4.4 percent
• Steering mechanisms – 2.6 percent
• Wheels / tires – 18.5 percent

Driver results for this year were as follows:

• Passenger-carrying vehicles – 97.1 percent of drivers checked had no out-of-service (OOS) violations. 2.9 percent were put out of service.
• Level l inspections: 96.6 percent of drivers checked has no OOS violations. 3.4 percent were put out of service
• Inspections involving hazardous materials – 98.3 percent of drivers checked had no OOS violations. 1.7 percent were put out of service
• All Level l, ll and lll inspections – 96 percent of drivers checked had no OOS violations. 2.9 percent were put out of service

Other top OOS driver violation percentage distributions included:

• False log book – 16.4 percent
• Driver age – 0.0 percent
• Improper indorsement – 7.7 percent
• Disqualified driver – 6.2 percent
• Drugs / alcohol – 1.0 percent
• Hours of service – 46.8 percent

In addition to the above, the top OOS hazardous materials violation percentage distributions included:

• Shipping papers – 27.6 percent
• Placarding and transport vehicle markings – 33.8 percent
• Non-bulk packaging – 2.8 percent
• Loading and securement – 26.2 percent

It’s important to note that GPS fleet tracking can help in terms of reducing driver violation, and can significantly help keep on top of vehicle maintenance via maintenance alerts. An ELD software solution can help with things like false log books too.

The year 2017 is set to bring about big changes for many fleet businesses that involve trucking. This change is the new Electronic Logging Device (ELD) rule requiring trucks currently using paper logs or other logging software to transition to officially sanctioned electronic logging devices software and services by December 18, 2017.

If you’re like many in the industry, you may be wondering why this is happening – and why it is happening now. There are quite a few benefits to businesses within the industry for making the transition, these are just a few of the reasons the government believes electronic logging devices are the right solution.

Ensures Compliance with Current Safety Regulations

There are many safety regulations related to trucking that have been put into place to protect drivers, company assets, and other people on our busy roadways each year. Unfortunately, paper logs, and much of the logging software in the past, was easily tampered with to create false reports of the numbers of hours and miles driven in a day.

The ELD software solution prevents false reports and data tampering, helping to keep all parties on the same page and using the same information.

The U.S. Department of Transportations believes that this rule will ultimately save 26 lives while also preventing approximately 562 injuries related to crashes involving these large trucks annually.

Reduces Paperwork Burden on Trucking Businesses

Paperwork is expensive for small, medium-size, and large trucking businesses. Not only do paper logs have to be kept accurately and recorded, but they must also be stored for long periods of time. This also takes money for storage space for this critical information, plus money for the people to manage the documents in case they are ever needed. ELDs record and store the data digitally, requiring no giant record vaults and complex filing systems to access them.

While there is a cost-burden benefit to businesses for complying with the new regulation, investing in GPS tracking technology for ELDs can provide significant cost benefits that greatly help to offset those expenses. GPS tracking devices can help business save money in a variety of ways, streamline the paperwork process, identify problem areas for efficiency, and conserve fuel, to name just a few.

The bottom line is that the government believes these changes can save lives, reduce the number of accidents for large trucks on the roads today, and practically eliminate harassment of drivers, from some organizations, to ignore the laws that were put into place to protect their safety.

To learn more about our ELD software solution and how it can help you to be ELD compliant, give us a call here at LiveView GPS at 1-888-544-0494 or email us at info@liveviewgps.com.

GPS tracking technology is a tool many businesses in several different industries can use to improve all around safety. Using GPS tracking devices in the workplace provides all these, very real, benefits to businesses and many, many more.

Locate Employees Quickly During Emergencies

In moments when seconds matter, employee tracking can save the lives of your people on the road. Whether they’ve been in an accident, are experiencing medical emergencies, or are facing perilous road conditions, the ability to pinpoint their precise locations and get help to them quickly is priceless.

Substantiate Employee Locations

The fact that GPS records the exact location of employees and how long they are in any location takes employee tracking to a whole new level for you as a business owner. It means that if customers dispute the time listed on their bills, you have verification of the precise times your employees were at the location in question.

It also means that you can verify that employees are where they are supposed to be and not going off-route or taking care of personal errands on company time. It’s a benefit for your business in many ways.

Improves Efficiency and Employee Accountability

Because employees know you can track their behavior behind the wheel, their locations at any times, and how long each job is taking; they are more inclined to operate at maximum efficiency so that they can effectively compete with other employees for promotions and to keep their jobs.

The benefits to your organization is better productivity from employees, fewer traffic violations, more responsible employee response times, less overtime, and the potential for lower insurance rates.

Reduction in Paperwork

One of the most exciting benefits GPS tracking has to offer companies that operate fleets is the reduction in paperwork GPS tracking and logging facilitates. It is painful chasing down drivers at the end of their trips to get all the necessary logs, documents, and paperwork. GPS systems can be used to generate these records automatically and send them to the appropriate employee within your organization.

These little things, combined with improved dispatch, saving money on fuel, and improving overall customer satisfaction add up to major improvements for the reputation and profitability of your business.

All you need to know now is why you haven’t made the investment in GPS technology so your business can enjoy the same benefits other businesses, including your competitors, enjoy today.