January 2024 Fleet Safety Roundup

Safety is at the forefront of fleet operations. Here's a look at some of the latest news on fleet safety, including:

• U.S. DOT to audit National Roadway Safety Strategy program.
• NSC launches Fleet Essentials training program.
• Haas Alert unveils first-ever cross-brand car-to-car communication capability.
• Fleet Complete integration with Mobilisights data platform enhances OEM telematics.
• CerebrumX, HD Fleet partner to improve driver safety with real-time embedded vehicle data.

U.S. DOT to Audit National Roadway Safety Strategy Program

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General wiill evaluate the implementation of the department's National Roadway Safety Strategy.

The Office of Inspector General announced plans for the audit on Dec. 20, 2023.

A collaborative effort between the Office of the Secretary of Transportation and the surface transportation Operating Administrations, the National Roadway Safety Strategy was launched in Jan. 2022. The strategy includes priority actions in pursuit of five core objectives:

• Safer people.
• Safer roads. 
• Safer vehicles.
• Safer speeds.
• Post-crash care.

The audit is being initiated due to the DOT's "new and comprehensive approach towards traffic safety and its goal for the National Roadway Safety Strategy to help decrease fatalities over the next few years," Assistant Inspector General for Surface Transportation Audits David Pouliott stated in the audit announcement.

The objective is to evaluate the department's implementation of the safety strategy priority actions, monitoring of progress, and measurements of success.

According to its safety strategy action tracking dashboard, most of the DOT's actions have been focused on safer vehicles, safer roads, and safer people.

Many of the fleet-specific actions taken impact the trucking industry; some impact all commercial motor vehicles.

NSC Launches Fleet Essentials Training Program

The National Safety Council has launched a Fleet Essentials training program employers can use to educate their drivers. The program is available in the form of online courses to make it easily accessible to fleets.

The program includes online courses for:

• Passenger vehicles.
• Delivery vans.
• Medium-duty trucks.

The training program also addresses topics such as vehicle dynamics, driving professionally, and distraction awareness unique to work-related driving.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, more than 2,000 people died as a result of occupational transportation incidents in 2022, making up 37.7% of the total occupational fatalities that year.

Drivers who do not have their Commercial Driver’s License but are required to drive any vehicle for work may not be considered fleet or professional drivers by their employers and could therefore lack formal training. That’s as many as 15.5 million drivers in the U.S. who may not be properly trained to operate a vehicle on the job, according to an NSC news release.

Delivery truck drivers and sales employees have the highest rates of injuries and fatalities among all occupations, both of whom are non-CDL drivers.

“Many assume fleet drivers are well-trained, but unfortunately, that’s not always the case,” NSC Executive Vice President of Roadway Practice Mark Chung said. “At the National Safety Council, we follow the data, and the data are showing that workplace deaths are taking place on our roads at devastating rates, thus making this training truly essential—essential to saving lives and keeping workers safe on every jobsite, which includes America’s roadways.”

Read more about what each of the training courses entail.

Haas Alert Unveils First-Ever Cross-Brand Car-to-Car Communication Capability

Haas Alert, a hardware and software solution provider that sends safety alerts to vehicles, has unveiled the world's first-ever cross-brand car-to-car communication capability between Volkswagen and Stellantis vehicles.

The company announced the technology at the Connected Vehicle Systems Alliance Showcase during CES 2024.

Powered by HAAS Alert’s platform Safety Cloud, the solution aims to redefine the future of road safety and transportation by enabling alerting and notifications between vehicles from different manufacturers, opening up shared connected car safety solutions between automakers, according to a news release.

Two million Stellantis vehicles in North America — including 2018 and newer Chrysler, Jeep brand, Dodge, and RAM vehicles — are already equipped to receive digital alerts across the United States and Canada from the more than 3,200 public safety agencies, roadside assistance fleets, and transportation agencies with vehicles and equipment connected to Safety Cloud.

When these Stellantis vehicles are approaching hazards in the roadway, drivers receive advance warnings, giving them time to make safer, smarter driving decisions.

The new digital alerting expands the capabilities of Safety Cloud for vehicle manufacturers by enabling their vehicles to also send messages to other vehicles connected to Safety Cloud when necessary.

For example, when H.E.L.P. from integration partner Emergency Safety Solutions is activated to warn oncoming drivers of vehicles disabled or stopped and vulnerable on the road, Safety Cloud delivers alerts to approaching drivers through in-vehicle systems and navigation apps that a hazard is ahead, reducing the risk of potential collisions.

Fleet Complete Integration with Mobilisights Data Platform Enhances OEM Telematics

Fleet Complete, a provider of connected fleet management solutions, has announced the launch of its OEM telematics data support for Stellantis connected vehicles through Mobilisights, the Stellantis Data as a Service Company.

The FC Hub, Fleet Complete’s cloud-based fleet management software, is now seamlessly integrated with Stellantis’ embedded telematics, found in vehicles manufactured from 2019 onward.

The data integration between Fleet Complete’s fleet management platform and Mobilisights represents an advancement in next-generation OEM telematics, to help fleets optimize their operations.

With Mobilisights data integration, Stellantis vehicles can now transmit data directly to Fleet Complete’s platform, eliminating the need for additional hardware installations.

“Fleet Complete is excited to support Stellantis vehicles by leveraging their data through Mobilisights with enhanced cloud-connected analytics, reporting and dashboards, to help fleet managers drive better business decisions. Our OEM integrations are part of our commitment to continuously innovating and enhancing the connected vehicle experience for fleet managers, especially those with mixed-fleet operations needing a single pane of glass across multiple asset types.” Fleet Complete Chief Product Officer Frank Friesacher said.

When fleet managers operate mixed fleets, they often have few choices for achieving fleet-wide visibility and reporting when dealing with multi-vendor integrations. This integration underscores the growing importance of adopting seamless data integration through a unified platform for OEM connected vehicles, emerging as the preferred solution for mixed fleets.

CerebrumX, HD Fleet Partner to Improve Driver Safety with Real-Time Embedded Vehicle Data

CerebrumX, an AI-driven automotive data platform company, announced its partnership with HD Fleet, a provider of GPS fleet management solutions.

CerebrumX's technology utilizes built-in GPS systems in vehicles to gather extensive real-time diagnostic information, providing clients with a new level of data and insights. This combined with HD Fleet's dashcams will give fleet managers a more comprehensive and accurate view of their fleet's activities, CerebrumX noted in a news release.

The joint solution will take advantage of CerebrumX's Augmented Deep Learning Platform (ADLP) to gain access to additional safety parameters collected within the vehicle, but often lost in transmission, beyond traditional risk factors.

As a result, this enables HD Fleet to consider distracted driving, ADAS, ABS, seatbelt reminders, and crash notifications, while delivering safety and driver reports to fleets for maximized vigilance and minimized risk.

"By integrating our AI-driven data platform with HD Fleet's advanced dashcams and GPS tracking cameras, we are placing the power of real-time embedded vehicle insights and safety at the forefront of our industry," CerebrumX CEO Sandip Ranjhan said. "Together, we look forward to a future where fleets operate with heightened safety and efficiency."

HD Fleet's dashcams offer real-time video monitoring, promoting responsible driving and swift incident response. CerebrumX complements this with live location tracking, vehicle performance, driver behavioral profiles, and crash forensics all conveniently packaged into a single, seamless installation.

"We are excited to join forces with CerebrumX and combine our expertise enhance fleet management and provide our clients with the best possible service," HD Fleet CEO Scott McCurdy said. "Partnering with CerebrumX is a major step towards achieving that goal and we are excited to see the positive impact it will have on our clients' operations."