Occupational fatalities among driver/sales workers and truck drivers in the United States, 2003–2008

2019

Eur. Transp. Res. Rev.

The occurrence and severity of truck crashes generally involve complex interactions among factors correlated to driver characteristics, vehicle attributes, roadway geometry and environment conditions. Thus, the elucidation of the significance of these potential contributory factors is critical when developing safety improvement countermeasures. To this end, data from a total of 1175 crashes involving at least one large truck and collected between 2010 and 2015 from two typical freeways in mountainous areas in Jiangxi and Shaanxi (China), were analyzed using a partial proportional odds model to determine the significant risk factors for injury severity of these crashes. Fourteen total explanatory variables, including the age of the driver, seatbelt status, number of vehicle involved, type of transport, freight conditions, brake system status, disregarding speed limit or not, following distance, horizontal roadway alignment, vertical roadway alignment, seasons, day of week, time of crash, and weather were found to significantly affect the severities of the truck crashes. In addition, old drivers, involvement of multiple vehicles, failure to wear seatbelts, overloading, speeding, brake failure and risky following behavior, curve section, seasons (summer, autumn and winter), nighttime period, and adverse weather conditions were also found to significantly increase the likelihood of injury and fatality crashes. Taken together, these findings may serve as a useful guide for developing legislation and technical countermeasures to ensure truck safety on freeways in mountainous regions, particularly in the context of a developing country.

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Interpreting risk factors for truck crash severity on mountainous freeways in Jiangxi and Shaanxi, China

Wang

Luo

2019

Eur. Transp. Res. Rev.

“…These workers are at an increased risk of occupational fatalities. They were 12 times more likely to die on the job than the U.S. general worker population (Chen et al, 2014). In 2012, 695 heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers died on the job, the largest number of occupational fatalities in any occupation (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The influence of daily sleep patterns of commercial truck drivers on driving performance

Accident Analysis & Prevention

Fang

Guo

et al. 2016

Fatigued and drowsy driving has been found to be a major cause of truck crashes. Lack of sleep is the number one cause of fatigue and drowsiness. However, there are limited data on the sleep patterns (sleep duration, sleep percentage in the duration of non-work period, and the time when sleep occurred) of truck drivers in non-work periods and the impact on driving performance. This paper examined sleep patterns of 96 commercial truck drivers during non-work periods and evaluated the influence these sleep patterns had on truck driving performance. Data were from the Naturalistic Truck Driving Study. Each driver participated in the study for approximately four weeks. A shift was defined as a non-work period followed by a work period. A total of 1397 shifts were identified. Four distinct sleep patterns were identified based on sleep duration, sleep start/end point in a non-work period, and the percentage of sleep with reference to the duration of non-work period. Driving performance was measured by safety-critical events, which included crashes, near-crashes, crash-relevant conflicts, and unintentional lane deviations. Negative binomial regression was used to evaluate the association between the sleep patterns and driving performance, adjusted for driver demographic information. The results showed that the sleep pattern with the highest safety-critical event rate was associated with shorter sleep, sleep in the early stage of a non-work period, and less sleep between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. This study also found that male drivers, with fewer years of commercial vehicle driving experience and higher body mass index, were associated with deteriorated driving performance and increased driving risk. The results of this study could inform hours-of-service policy-making and benefit safety management in the trucking industry.

“…The majority of these drivers were over-the-road or long-haul truck drivers (LHTDs), meaning they delivered goods over intercity routes that may span several states (BLS, 2014a). Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers were 12 times more likely to die on the job and 3 times more likely to suffer an injury involving days away from work than the U.S. general worker population (Chen et al, 2014; BLS, 2014b). In 2012, 695 heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers died on the job, the largest number of work-related fatalities in a single occupation.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

NIOSH national survey of long-haul truck drivers: Injury and safety

Accident Analysis & Prevention

Sieber

Lincoln

et al. 2015

Self Cite

Approximately 1,701,500 people were employed as heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers in the United States in 2012. The majority of them were long-haul truck drivers (LHTDs). There are limited data on occupational injury and safety in LHTDs, which prompted a targeted national survey. The National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health conducted a nationally representative survey of 1265 LHTDs at 32 truck stops across the contiguous United States in 2010. Data were collected on truck crashes, near misses, moving violations, work-related injuries, work environment, safety climate, driver training, job satisfaction, and driving behaviors. Results suggested that an estimated 2.6% of LHTDs reported a truck crash in 2010, 35% reported at least one crash while working as an LHTD, 24% reported at least one near miss in the previous 7 days, 17% reported at least one moving violation ticket and 4.7% reported a non-crash injury involving days away from work in the previous 12 months. The majority (68%) of non-crash injuries among company drivers were not reported to employers. An estimate of 73% of LHTDs (16% often and 58% sometimes) perceived their delivery schedules unrealistically tight; 24% often continued driving despite fatigue, bad weather, or heavy traffic because they needed to deliver or pick up a load at a given time; 4.5% often drove 10 miles per hours or more over the speed limit; 6.0% never wore a seatbelt; 36% were often frustrated by other drivers on the road; 35% often had to wait for access to a loading dock; 37% reported being noncompliant with hours-of-service rules (10% often and 27% sometimes); 38% of LHTDs perceived their entry-level training inadequate; and 15% did not feel that safety of workers was a high priority with their management. This survey brings to light a number of important safety issues for further research and interventions, e.g., high prevalence of truck crashes, injury underreporting, unrealistically tight delivery schedules, noncompliance with hours-of-service rules, and inadequate entry-level training.