The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has released new Pilot Car Escort Vehicle training publications, including best practices guidelines, best practices for law enforcement, a study guide, training manual, and PowerPoint slides, all of which may be accessed at https://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/freight/sw/index.htm.
The best practices guidelines document summarizes the material found in the 2016 Pilot/Escort Vehicle Operators (P/EVO’s) Training Manual. The 2016 Pilot/Escort Vehicle Operators Training Manual is the result of extensive research, review, and analysis of existing pilot/escort vehicle operators training materials, laws and rules relevant to P/EVOs, incident reports, case studies, and other information focused on the movement of oversize loads. The Pilot/Escort Vehicle Operators Training Manual, its companion Pilot/Escort Vehicle Operators Study Guide, a P/EVO training presentation, and these Pilot/Escort Vehicle Operators Best Practices Guidelines are available to State agencies, training providers, and others involved in the training and certification of P/EVOs.
Each of these documents can be used individually or in combination, and are available at no charge from FHWA’s website. The format of these materials offers flexibility to meet the needs of the pilot/escort operators, from one- or two-car companies to more complex multi-state operations.
If you have any comments or suggestions on these training materials or seek further assistance, please contact John Berg, john.berg@dot.gov or Crystal Jones,crystal.jones@dot.gov
The 2005 Large Truck Crash Causation Study (LTCCS)i was the first-ever national study to attempt to determine the critical reasons and associated factors that contribute to serious large truck crashes.
The LTCCS defines “critical reason” as the reason for the event that immediately led to the crash.
Utilizing data from the LTCCS, this analysis examines the association between a driver’s years of professional truck driving experience and the critical reason assigned to the large truck driver (driver causation) in a crash.
Read the Analysis of Driver Critical Reason and Years of Driving Experience in Large Truck Crashes
Driver pay has become more contentious recently, led by the US DOL’s focus on federal contractors (such as USPS highway contract route providers) and actions in California.
Most companies want to pay drivers correctly. The current market dictates that good drivers are paid well and paid right, or they will go somewhere else.
However, we have conflicts between DOL and DOT regulations, differing interpretations of regulations, and a workforce that operates largely independently.
- Have well-defined routes and tasks for drivers. This creates documented expectations. Build fuel, break, and rest stops into the route. Include clear instructions for break stops. Let us know your situation and we can help suggest instructional language.
- Have an onboard telematics device that you use for a timeclock.
- Use your quality telematics device as an electronic logging device. Beat the mandate rush, there are many reasons to start your program now.
- Monitor drivers’ Hours of Service. Don’t coerce drivers – even if they have hours. You can help them manage their limited time more effectively.
- Match pay to activities; defined by your dispatch system and measured by your telematics device.
- This is a lot easier when your TMS is both a dispatch and ELD system in one – give LoadTrek a look.
