SAN DIEGO - Following too closely, not looking far ahead, and traffic violations are the top three driving issues among fleets in the local distribution industry, based on data from DriveCam Inc., a global driver risk management company.

The most recent of DriveCam's Insight Series, designed to provide insight for executives and managers throughout a variety of transportation industries, focused on fleet vehicles of companies providing local distribution service to consumers. The series is derived from the company's database of more than 17 million driving events from 2 billion driving miles.

DriveCam was surprised to find that driving distraction ranks #4 on the list of top driving behaviors. A closer look at traffic violations revealed that rolling stops represented the majority of incidents, while handheld cell phone violations (along with food and/or drink) represented the primary distractions committed in risky driving events.

The Top 5 Driving Behaviors among all local distribution vehicles, according to DriveCam, are:

• Following too close.

• Not looking far ahead.

• Traffic violations.

• Distractions.

• Not scanning the intersection.

Delving a bit deeper into the data, DriveCam found the likelihood of traffic violations was twice as prevalent in local distribution vehicles (12 percent) than in long-haul distribution trucks (6 percent). In examining collision rates(collisions per vehicle in service) among different types of local distribution vehicles, DriveCam found larger delivery/box-type trucks have a slightly higher collision rate (5.9 percent) than the more standard van/truck-type delivery vehicle (3.6 percent).

DriveCam's Insights Series will be released on an ongoing basis. The next series on its list will focus on local distribution behaviors and collisions versus other industries.