Six days on the road

Abstract

Purpose -This research aims to examine the stressors that professional truck drivers experience and the impact these stressors may have on road safety. Design/methodology/approach -Both quantitative and qualitative data gathered from 435 professional drivers measured attitudes and behaviors related to safety and compliance. Interviews with professional truck drivers provided an assessment of the stressors that they experience. The insights offered from these individuals were then integrated into a conceptual model. The model was tested via data collected through surveys administered to drivers using structural equation modeling. Findings -Results from the interviews, as well as the results from the survey administered to professional drivers, suggest that truck drivers experience severe time pressures. Such time pressures create stress which can lead to physical fatigue and emotional exhaustion. Further, both of these debilitating conditions are related to negative attitudes about safety compliance and the current CSA regulation. Additionally, negative attitudes about safety compliance standards are positively related to violation of hours of service regulations. Originality/value -Findings call into question the effectiveness of the new regulation with regard to commercial transportation as well as possibly suggesting that drivers of automobiles might play a role in helping to ameliorate vehicular crash rates.

Motor-Carrier Safety: A Review and Research Recommendations for 2020 and Beyond

“…While no evidence exists that deregulation negatively influenced motor‐carrier safety performance (Corsi, Fanara, and Jarrell 1988; Fowles, Loeb, and Clark 2013; Loeb and Clark 2007; Lyman and Braver 2003), motor‐carrier safety regulations are abundant. Motor‐carrier industry regulations are not always popular with carriers and drivers (Kemp, Kopp, and Kemp 2013a), as they are often thought to reduce operational efficiency (Douglas and Swartz 2016a). However, evidence exists that regulatory spending, compliance, and enforcement are associated with reductions in crashes (Corsi et al 2014; Mitra 2016).…”

“…Issues with visual depth perception, however, do not seem to affect driving performance (McKnight, Shinar, and Hilburn 1991). Emotional health is also important, as one study found drivers who were emotionally exhausted were more likely to harbor negative attitudes toward safety regulations (Kemp, Kopp, and Kemp 2013a).…”

“…Yet we still lack a solid understanding of interactions between the driver, carrier, and other entities (e.g., regulators and enforcement officials), and how the interactions influence drivers’ goal‐framing and behavior. For example, we know that driver perceptions of safety regulations and carrier practices, policies, and procedures (i.e., safety climate) influence drivers’ intentions to comply, or commit unsafe driving actions (Douglas and Swartz 2016a; Kemp, Kopp, and Kemp 2013a; Swartz and Douglas 2009). Additionally, safe carriers provide safety and regulation training programs for drivers (Corsi et al 2012; Mejza et al 2003).…”

“…Additionally, carrier data analysis may be utilized to evaluate driver behavior, which could then lead to individualized driver training and reinforcement interventions (Mejza et al 2003) to adjust drivers’ goals and reduce undesirable behaviors (Douglas and Swartz 2016b). Thus, researchers could evaluate the relationship between driver monitoring, intervention, and performance (Kemp, Kopp, and Kemp 2013a; Miller et al 2018). These opportunities would get us closer to an understanding of the influences of actual driver goal‐framing and behavior.…”

“…In the past, researchers have focused on safety‐related issues as diverse as driver fatigue, inattention, psychological stressors, and age/experience (Cantor et al 2010, 2013; Crum and Morrow 2002; Kemp, Kopp, and Kemp 2013a), driver attitudes and safety behaviors (Douglas and Swartz 2016a; McElroy et al 1993; Swartz and Douglas 2009), and driver turnover (Miller, Golicic, and Fugate 2017; Taylor et al 2010). Factors such as carrier size, financial performance, and experience (Britto, Corsi, and Grimm 2010; Bruning 1989; Cantor et al 2016; Corsi et al 2014; Miller and Saldanha 2016, 2018), carrier safety management (Corsi, Fanara, and Jarrell 1988; Mejza et al 2003; Mejza and Corsi 1999), and carrier safety technology adoption and use (Cantor, Corsi, and Grimm 2006, 2008, 2009; Cantor et al 2016; Miller et al 2018) have also been identified as important contributors to safety performance.…”