Safety Culture – Operating your Motor Carrier in safety and Compliance

The civil cases resulting in NUCLEAR VERDICTS sound the alarm for tort reform. Nuclear verdicts are increasing both in amounts and frequency and the need for tort reform across the nation, especially in so-called “judicial hellholes”. Motor carriers need to be operating safely and compliant. This calls for a “Safety Culture” attitude within the management and employees. It is imperative that drivers are WELL vetted, DQ files are current, and HOS regulations and FMCSRs are followed and obeyed by ALL employees.

The FMCSA Driver Violations In 2023 show that many drivers and motor carriers are not operating safely and in compliance.

Operating a CMV Without a CDL (53,317 OOS Orders)
ELD – No Record of Duty Status (ELD Required) (33,603 OOS Orders)
False Report of Driver’s Record of Duty Status (30,772 OOS Orders)
No Record of Duty Status When One Is Required (ELD Not Required) (13,075 OOS Orders)
Driver Does Not Have a Valid Operator’s License for the CMV Being Operated (8,569 OOS Orders)
Driver Failing to Retain Previous 7 Days Records of Duty Status (8,298 OOS Orders)
Operating a Property-Carrying Vehicle Without Possessing a Valid Medical Certificate (6,259 OOS Orders)
Driver Operating a CMV Without Proper Endorsements or in Violation of Restrictions (6,023 OOS Orders)
Prohibited From Performing Safety Sensitive Functions Per 382.501(a) in the Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse (5,447 OOS Orders)
False Record of Duty Status – Improper Use of Personal Conveyance Exception (4,855 OOS Orders)

The same for CMV violations discovered in 2023.

Tire-Flat and/or Audible Air Leak 393.75A3 (98,922 OOS Orders)
Brakes Out of Service: The Number of Defective Brakes Is Equal to or Greater Than 20 Percent of the Service Brakes on the Vehicle or Combination 396.3ABOS (49,501 OOS Orders)
Inoperative Turn Signal 393.9TS (43,200 OOS Orders)
No/Improper Breakaway or Emergency Braking 393.43 (27,965 OOS Orders)
Flat Tire or Fabric Exposed 393.75A (23,127 OOS Orders)
Inoperative Brake Lamps 393.9BRKLAMP (22,893 OOS Orders)
Inoperable Required Lamp 393.9 (18,929 OOS Orders)
Brake Tubing and Hose Adequacy 393.45 (15,977 OOS Orders)
Axle Positioning Parts Defective/Missing 393.207A (12,574 OOS Orders)
Leaking/Spilling/Blowing/Falling Cargo 393.100B (12,518 OOS Orders)

These driver and vehicle violations indicate that many motor carriers are failing to adhere to the guiding star of compliance, the FMCSRs. The plaintiff attorneys do not have to look far for the portable ATMs for large payouts.

49CFR part 390.1(e) Knowledge of and compliance with the regulations;
(1) Every employer shall be knowledgeable of and comply with all regulations contained in this subchapter that are applicable to that motor carrier’s operations.
(2) Every driver and employee involved in motor carrier operations shall be instructed regarding, and shall comply with, all applicable regulations contained in this subchapter.
(3) All motor vehicle equipment and accessories required by this chapter shall be maintained in compliance with all applicable performance and design criteria set forth in this subchapter.

The hidden connection between fleet safety and efficiency

Jim Perkins

The harsh weather of winter months naturally brings fleet safety more into focus.

At face value, fleet safety is keeping drivers out of harm’s way. Beneath the surface, safety is a key factor in boosting efficiency and decreasing total cost of ownership. Simply put, a culture of safety instilled into all facets of a fleet can be good for the bottom line.

Preventing accidents not only protects drivers and others on the road, but also prevents additional expenses. For example, the Network of Employers for Traffic Safety (NETS) reported on-the-job crashes that result in an injury can cost upwards of $75,000.

Ultimately, a safer fleet relies on systems allowing a more seamless and intentional on-the-road process. In the fleet management industry, there are several services that not only provide worthwhile safety features but also increase efficiency. A commitment to reducing potentially dangerous incidents doesn’t mean a sacrifice in profits.

The following is a list of fleet management tools that not only increase safety, but fleet efficiency as well. Working together in tandem or individually, they can help save fleets money and help reduce costly incidents.

Telematics

The offerings in transportation mobility technology continue to evolve. Telematics solutions emphasize efficiency via safety perhaps more than any other fleet management tool, but also help boost fuel economy and reduce fuel costs. The amount of data available through telematics, increasingly complex safety systems and advanced analytics continue to grow in importance and add to more standard telematics offerings.

According to analysts at Frost & Sullivan, telematics helps fleets save about 20% to 25% on fuel expenses through the promotion of better driving practices, including the reduction of speeding, harsh acceleration and hard braking. Optimizing routes is one of the most used features of telematics. In doing so, drivers are more likely to remain on-task and reduce mileage that could lead to further wear and tear on vehicles.

Telematics also help manage work hours and improve schedules that can help reduce fatigue – a major reason for accidents. Using data effectively can help fleet managers increase productivity by 10 to 15% and reduce overtime by 10 to 15%, decreasing daily driving time by 20 to 30 minutes based on the previously mentioned Frost & Sullivan analysis.

Telematics and in-vehicle cameras can reconstruct accidents, allowing fleet managers to build safety training programs for drivers.  Additionally, monitoring driving behavior is a safety-added value that helps prevent on-the-job incidents.

Fleet vehicles can be put through great stress and strain over time. Breakdowns and unplanned maintenance can impact efficiency, and place drivers in dangerous situations. Telematics can alert fleet managers to needed vehicle maintenance, helping keep fleet vehicles safe and ready for the road. In turn, this helps avoid even more expensive repairs or accidents that can occur from inconsistent upkeep.

Fleet cards

Implementing a fleet card program is an easy and popular way to save money on everyday fuel purchases. However, most overlook that safety is built into most fleet cards. For drivers, it eliminates the need to carry cash or personal credit cards to fill up fleet vehicles and helps drivers avoid the need to collect cumbersome paper receipts.

Fleet cards and their software platforms can help avoid fleet fraud, with the ability to track exact fuel spend and set limits on fuel purchases. The ability to quickly activate cards or cancel them at a moment’s notice if lost or stolen is another convenient safety feature. Driver ID technology helps to monitor expenditures for each vehicle driver.

Mobile fueling

Mobile fueling services deliver a variety of fuel options to fleets with trained technicians filling vehicles on site during downtime. This service, in addition to helping save on costs via bulk fuel purchasing, removes the need for drivers to carry cash or personal credit cards to fill up.

Requiring drivers to fill-up vehicles frequently can reduce productivity. According to Geotab, drivers are diverted about two miles out of the way to get gas, spending about 8 minutes at the gas station each time they stop for fuel on average. A fueling trip adds more than 20 minutes to a driver’s shift. Mobile fueling drastically reduces driver fill-ups at gas stations, helping save over 3,000 hours of fueling and over 20,000 miles of fueling trips for a fleet of 100.

For those fleets utilizing the service, safety starts before the first truck delivers a drop of fuel on-site. A mobile fueling provider, such as Shell TapUp walks fleets through the required permitting and guidelines approvals, establishing safety procedures from the onset. Fueling technicians follow strict adherence to safety procedures and protocols on- and off-site, even leading local officials and fleet staff through on-site fueling demonstrations designed to help prevent safety incidents.

Electric vehicles and EV charging

Safety is also an important element among EV fleets. More fleets are turning to electric vehicles (EVs) with each passing year, largely due to their long-term cost savings, federal and local policy, incentives and the push to decarbonize. Safety comes into play when a fleet is assessing EV implementation which also helps fleet operators run a more efficient fleet. Technical and commercial proposals are shared between teams before installation, and technicians follow high safety and security standards on charging station installation days. Following that, online platforms are used to monitor efficiency, and dedicated teams provide ongoing support to answer day-to-day inquiries and keep equipment running.

What is a Compliance, Safety, and Accountability (CSA) BASIC Score?

Kathy Close

A CSA BASIC (Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Category) score is a percentile ranking used to compare a motor carrier against its peers to assist in identify high-risk carriers.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) generates CSA BASIC scores for the following seven categories:

• Unsafe Driving: Dangerous or careless operation of commercial motor vehicles (CMVs).
• Hours of Service Compliance: Driving CMVs when ill, fatigued, or in violation of the hours-of-service rules.
• Driver Fitness: Operation of CMVs by drivers who are unfit to operate a CMV due to lack of training, experience, or medical qualification.
• Controlled Substances and Alcohol: Operation of a CMV while impaired due to alcohol, illegal drugs, and misuse of prescription medications or over-the-counter medications.
• Vehicle Maintenance: CMV failure due to improper or inadequate maintenance or inadequate cargo securement.
• Hazardous Materials (HM) Compliance: Unsafe marking, handling, or transportation of hazardous materials in an amount requiring a placard.
• Crash-Related: Histories or patterns of CMV crashes, including frequency and severity.

How is a CSA BASIC score derived?

The FMCSA uses a motor carrier’s safety data that is transmitted by state and federal enforcement to the Motor Carrier Management Information System (MCMIS). The past two years’ worth of roadside inspection and crash reports contain critical data elements used in CSA’s elaborate algorithms.

The algorithms provide carriers with a “measure” for each BASIC, taking into consideration:

• The severity of a roadside inspection violation or crash,
• How recent the event took place, and
• The carrier’s level of exposure (i.e., vehicle miles traveled, the average number of power units, number of inspections)

This BASIC measure is then compared against similar motor carriers for the percentile ranking. The rank is on a scale of 1-100, with 100 being the worst-performing. This percentile ranking is the carrier’s BASIC score.

How is the percentile ranking used?

Those motor carriers that exceed a predetermined threshold for an individual BASIC score are subject to an intervention by the FMCSA.

Interventions include:

• Warning letters advising of apparent safety problems and the potential consequences.
• Targeted roadside inspections to verify that the warning letters are being taken seriously.
• Offsite investigations that involve the collection and reviewing of documents at an FMCSA location.
• Focused onsite investigations at the motor carrier’s place of business, focusing on a specific safety problem.
• Comprehensive onsite investigations that occur at the motor carrier’s place of business.
• Cooperative safety plans developed and followed voluntarily by a motor carrier to address safety problems.
• Notices of violation to put a carrier on notice of specific regulatory violations that need to be corrected “or else.”
• Settlement agreements to contractually bind a motor carrier to take actions that improve safety.
• Notices of claims to levy a fine and compel compliance in the case of “severe” or repeat violations.

The intervention taken by the FMCSA is not sequential. If a carrier has multiple BASICs exceeding the thresholds and/or scores close to 100 percent, the agency will probably go straight to an investigation. A carrier can only be placed out of service based on the results of a comprehensive investigation since it contains elements of a compliance review.

How Can I Lower My CSA BASIC Scores?

The data used in the CSA formulas are only used for 24 months. As a result, you can only lower your CSA scores over time, by accumulating recent, violation-free inspections, and by avoiding crashes.

To improve your performance data, you should:

• Examine the violations that are scored in each BASIC,
• Look for trends (e.g., same driver or location), and
• Find a root cause for the safety event.

You should use this information to come up with a safety plan to avoid future violations and crashes. If the safety performance does not improve, you’ll have to re-evaluate its findings (find the real root cause) and apply another remedy until the issue is resolved.

To view your CSA scores and data, you must log into the CSA Safety Measurement System website. You can only access the carrier view of the SMS via an FMCSA Portal account. You also need a Login.gov username and password, since an account is required to securely log into any federal website such as the Portal and SMS.

The public view of the SMS does not require any type of logging into the database and can be accessed directly from the SMS website. This view allows carriers, customers, insurance providers, potential employees access, and any other member of the public access to the carrier’s raw data. However, they will not see a property-carrier’s BASIC scores. Passenger-carrier BASIC scores are visible in the public view with the exception of the Crash Indicator and Hazardous Materials Compliance BASICs.

Drivers’ names will not appear on roadside inspection or crash reports for property or passenger carriers.

ATRI: VALUE OF RISK AND SAFETY PER ANNUAL OPERATING EXPENSE

Doug Marcello

WHY IT MATTERS:  The value of safety and risk is not theoretical.  ATRI’s
Annual Operational Cost of Trucking Study quantifies its value and importance to the bottom line.  And with anticipated premium increases, it is now more vital than ever to reduce risk so that an insurance captive is a financially viable alternative for your company.

THE BIG PICTURE:  I recently wrote that safety was an investment, not a cost.  Management and operations should not think of it as a burden, but as a protection of the bottom line.

This value is brought home by ATRI’s Annual Operational Cost of Trucking Study for 2024.  Get a copy at An Analysis of the Operational Costs of Trucking: 2024 Update (truckingresearch.org)

Insurance and risk are major expenses.  The report quantifies the amount and demonstrates the crucial need to act to minimize this exposure.

THE NUMBERS:  For those in your organization that thrive on the quantifiable—you know, “if you can’t count it, it doesn’t exist—here are some data points for them.  And these do not include PD coverage.

–AVERAGE MARGINAL COST OF INSURANCE PREMIUM:  $.099 per mile or $3.99 per hour.

Think about it:  Your insurance costs you ten cent for every mile you run.  Four dollars for every hour your truck operates.

Consider that in relation to your rates.  And your bottom line.

The bad news—in 2014 premiums were $.071/mile and $2.86/hour.  That’s an increase of almost three cents per mile and almost $1.20/hour.

I became an attorney to avoid math, so check me. And I defer to the mathematically inclined to do the percentages.

These costs per mile vary per region of the country:

-Midwest: $0.083

-Northeast: $0.092

-Southeast:  $0.104

-Southwest:  $0.097

-West:  $0.105

And LTL’s—average cost at $0.045/mile.

-INCREASE-2022-2023:  Insurance premiums increased 12.5% in 2023 from the prior year.  ATRI did the math, so it is correct.

The only item to increase more was tolls (21.4%).  Wages “only” increased 7.6% and benefits only 2.7%.

Worse news—the “word” is that last year’s premium increase percentage will pale in comparison to this year.  I’m hearing increases of 15%-25% this year.

-TOTAL COST OF RISK:  Premiums are just the beginning.  If you’ve read my articles or heard me talk, it is the Total Cost of Risk that matters.

More importantly, it was a key element of the ATRI study on Impact of Rising Insurance Costs on the Trucking Industry  The Impact of Rising Insurance Costs on the Trucking Industry (truckingresearch.org)

“Total Cost of Risk”?  Premium plus deductible/retention plus cost of risk reduction technology.

ATRI analyzed the first two—premium plus the out-of-pocket deductible/retention amount.  The overall industry average out-of-pocket expense per mile was $0.036 in 2023 (or $1.44 per hour). That would make a total (premiums + out-of-pocket expenses) of $0.135 per mile or $5.43 per hour.

What it found per the combined premium plus out-of-pocket expenses based on fleet size, was as follows:

-Less than 5 trucks:  $0.175/mile

-5-25 trucks:  $0.204/mile

-26-100 trucks:  $0.171/mile

-101-250 trucks: $0.136/mile

-251-1,000 trucks:  $0.132/mile

-More than 1,000:  $0.110/mile

ACTION:  Inactivity is not an option.  You must attack the problem as you would other costs. You’ve read and heard me before:

-Proactively prepare to avoid exposure—avoid “Death by Dogma”;

-Attack the “Dark Period” when billboard attorneys gin up damages;

-Respond immediately—prepare today for accident response

-Litigate aggressively and be prepared to go to trial.

BOTTOM LINE:  It’s the bottom line.  A bottom line impacted by insurance premiums and out-of-pocket payments.  Further proof that safety is not an expense as much as an investment.

How Will AI Impact the Trucking Industry?

Michael McCareins

Artificial intelligence is becoming an increasingly popular global topic. From February 2022 to February 2024, Google searches for “AI” rose by a staggering 1000%, highlighting a common interest in just how impactful AI can become and what the implications might be.

The trucking industry is not exempt from those impacts. Self-driving cars have arrived and are here to stay. Therefore, you might think it’s only a matter of time before the arrival of self-driving trucks. If so, when might we see self-driving trucks on the road, and will truckers eventually be replaced by AI?

We’ll touch on these questions throughout this article, but it’s important to understand that there are other questions to ask and topics to consider beyond self-driving trucks when it comes to AI in trucking—especially considering AI is already impacting the trucking industry in a variety of ways.

Trucking business owners and anyone entering the industry should have an idea of the implications of AI in trucking. By knowing all of the AI-powered tools, how they’ve affected the trucking industry, and how they might be enhanced over time, you’ll likely be able to discover new ways to increase efficiency in your role.

What Is Artificial Intelligence?

Any machinery or software, such as a computer system, that is able to mimic human intelligence processes is considered artificial intelligence. Some of the most widely utilized examples of AI in society include the autocorrect feature on phones, navigation systems that can make real-time updates, voice-activated systems, and facial recognition.

While an AI-driven system like ChatGPT might make one assume these high-powered AI tools have suddenly advanced out of nowhere, it’s instead been a gradual progression and enhancement of these tools over time. This will continue to be the case moving forward.

AI Trucking Examples: How AI Is Currently Impacting the Trucking Industry

Artificial intelligence could have a massive impact on the trucking industry in the following years and decades, but it’s useful to understand that AI-powered tools have long been available in trucking. These tools have collectively made a major impact on how processes throughout the supply chain work. Below are a few examples.

AI Route Planning

In trucking, AI route planning occurs when a machine learning system relies on real-time data from GPS devices, traffic cameras, user-submitted traffic reports, and more to deduce the most efficient route for a truck or other delivery vehicle. Obviously, AI for route planning is utilized outside of the trucking realm as well. The vast majority of people use AI route optimization to find the quickest way to their destinations thanks to machines that can understand real-time data and output the most efficient solution based on said data.

Driver Assistance and Accident Prevention Systems

Automated driver assistance systems (ADAS) rely on both sensor technologies and AI processing algorithms to gauge the existing setting that a vehicle finds itself in. ADAS have become the norm in trucking, and the impact it’s made has been nothing short of lifesaving. ADAS systems have reduced vehicle accidents by 44%.

For instance, ADAS-powered systems detect blind spots and alert drivers to potentially unseen vehicles in their peripherals. This is hugely beneficial for truckers specifically, given that truck blind spots can extend up to 30 feet behind the trailer.

Other life-saving assistance features for truck drivers include automatic emergency braking and collision avoidance systems (CAS), which flash alerts to truckers before impending collisions. Even if a collision does unfortunately occur, the second or two of warning can save lives.

Driver Monitoring Systems

Driver monitoring systems (DMS) are specifically designed to detect distracted or tired drivers before an accident happens.

In trucking, one of the biggest challenges is preventing tired drivers from being behind the wheel. Truckers are in high demand, meaning existing truckers are forced to work longer hours, increasing the risk of accidents caused by drowsy truckers.

Driver monitoring systems often come in the form of sensors—such as wearable devices that detect signs of fatigue and alert drivers when it’s time to take a break. In some cases, these sensors can even track eye movements and other human cognitive states.

If a sensor detects fatigue, the application can take its intervention one step further thanks to AI. The system will suggest nearby rest stops or safe areas where a trucker can pull over, even suggesting nearby hotels or places to stay.

Predictive Maintenance

Predictive maintenance takes preventative maintenance one step further. While preventative maintenance involves simply performing routine maintenance check-ups to prevent future vehicle issues, predictive maintenance combines historical data with real-time monitoring to detect patterns that might suggest a piece of equipment might break or fail.

Given that equipment repairs and maintenance are some of the costliest expenses for owner-operators, this not only leads to safer vehicles, but also saves money.

Increased Data Consumption

Computer systems being able to consume large quantities of data isn’t an artificial intelligence process in itself, but trucking businesses have leveraged AI to take this data and turn it into actionable insights.

For instance, after inputting fuel consumption data, an AI-driven system can correspond said fuel data with vehicle types and even driver habits, revealing the efficiency of specific vehicles or truck drivers on their routes. This type of performance data can teach drivers how and where to improve; and on a larger scale, it can uncover significant cost-saving measures for trucking businesses.

Virtual Reality Systems for Driver Training

Virtual reality isn’t explicitly AI, but AI algorithms are required to create virtual reality environments.

In trucking, virtual reality is used for driver training. The combination of VR and AI allows drivers-in-training to experience simulations in the first person, preparing them for realistic, challenging situations behind the wheel. This can include configuring narrow turns, poor road conditions, severe weather conditions, or mountainous terrain.

Efficiency and Cost-Saving Measures

All of these above examples of AI in the trucking industry provide opportunities for trucking business owners to implement efficient and cost-saving measures in their business.

Even something as simple as route planning and real-time navigation is powered by AI. Imagine how difficult it would be to run a trucking business without a digitized map! Training methods for commercial truck drivers would look drastically different; VR (backed by AI algorithms) creates simulations that have become a significant chunk of the education required to become a driver. Predictive maintenance prevents trucking business owners from having to spend tens of thousands of dollars on broken equipment. Computers can analyze huge swaths of data and produce new data that can eventually prompt far more cost-efficient processes.

Owner-operators might be unaware of AI’s full presence and impact in the industry, but without it, their day-to-day life would look drastically different—and their pockets far emptier.

How Might AI Impact the Trucking Industry in the Future?

Now that you have an idea of how artificial intelligence is impacting the trucking industry right now, let’s look toward the future.

Increased Safety and Accident Prevention Measures

As technologies continue advancing, AI capabilities will become even more powerful.

Consider this: an emerging AI platform can scan drivers’ micro-muscle movements, which are reflective of brain activity that determines cognitive states, revealing how focused they are on the road. While this mechanism is only the result of a small startup company, it’s fair to assume that inventions like these will increasingly tap into mainstream business as years pass.

Additional Costs for Trucking Businesses

As AI technologies are introduced, owner-operators will need to keep up. Implementing these devices, training employees on how to use them, and managing them over time will become just another cost of starting a trucking business.

Ever-Changing Job Responsibilities and Day-to-Days of a Trucker

It’s no secret that experienced truck drivers have had a hard time keeping up with all of the emerging technologies. And for some, the constant technological oversight—such as electronic logging devices (ELDs) that monitor essentially every movement from within the cabin—has proven aggravating. These ELDs and AI-powered surveillance devices have made many truckers believe that they aren’t trusted by their employers, despite being in place to increase safety and efficiency.

Potential for Newfound Legal Implications

As automation progresses, the government will have to keep up by implementing rules and regulations for trucking businesses to adhere to.

New laws regulating AI are important. However, as it stands, the U.S. doesn’t have a federal law surrounding the use of AI. Artificial intelligence legislation is widely different on a state-by-state basis. Meanwhile, in 2023 the EU invoked the AI Act, which became the world’s first comprehensive AI law. In short, this act ensures any new use of AI does not pose a systemic risk.

The lack of wide-scale regulations involving AI could prove difficult for owner-operators to navigate. But if, or when, any government restrictions or laws on AI are passed, it will be critical for trucking business owners to gain an understanding of how it could affect their businesses, along with implementing this information into their new driver training.

Different Job Opportunities

Will trucking jobs be replaced by robots? This is a tricky question when it comes to AI.

There are plenty of unknowns pertaining to how AI will affect specific trucking roles in the future. But we do know one thing: jobs in trucking will look different because of artificial intelligence. We already have examples of this throughout the vast majority of professions. Many positions in the trucking industry require workers to input and analyze data produced by AI before using problem-solving skills to come up with takeaways from the data. As trucking industry employees gain experience with doing so, it can eventually qualify them for positions such as data analysts and logistics managers. In fact, data analysts across all industries are expected to increase by 25% through 2029.

Furthermore, drivers will be required to know how to interact with new AI inventions to keep up. There might even be blended roles—positions where tasks are commonly completed by AI-powered systems but need human oversight.

That brings us to the most intriguing dilemma surrounding AI in trucking: the emergence of autonomous semi trucks.

Self-Driving Trucks: Possible or Not?

So, will AI replace truck drivers? It’s a legitimate question. You see self-driving personal vehicles on the road, so it’s inevitable that self-driving trucks are in the works. But when?

We could be only a few years away. In early 2024, one self-driving trucking firm announced they had finalized the design of a self-driving trucking system that could be ready for use by 2027.

However, reports show that we won’t see self-driving trucks on the road en masse for several years, if not decades. A more realistic short-term scenario is hybrid trucks, where autonomous trucks are monitored through the presence of a human. Sure, the job responsibilities might look different, but human oversight would still be required.

While yes, there is a future where AI could replace truck drivers, these autonomous vehicles will still require human supervision and control as they are first introduced. We’re not close to a world where driverless semi-trucks can be trusted on the road.

Implications of AI in Trucking: Weighing the Pros and the Cons

There are undoubtedly both benefits and potential pitfalls of AI’s integration in the trucking industry.

Pros of AI in Trucking

The benefits of AI in trucking are significant. We’ve already seen proven positive results of AI’s integration into the trucking industry via driver assistance and specific accident prevention features reducing the number of trucking-related accidents.

Virtual reality wouldn’t be possible without AI, and it’s been a huge help for helping new drivers learn how to navigate tricky situations such as driving in mountainous terrain, driving in tough weather conditions, and making narrow turns.

AI route planning, which is the result of GPS systems using real-time data to inform drivers of the quickest routes, ensures optimal efficiency for trucking businesses when their drivers are on the road. This is just one example of AI in trucking acting as a cost-saving measure. Predictive maintenance features also prevent major, unexpected truck system failures, alerting drivers of dormant issues before the problem turns even more costly and a truck breaks down while on the road.

Finally, while self-driving trucks do pose a threat to the driver workforce (a significant con in itself), the possibility of fully autonomous semi-trucks does offer a glimpse into a future where trucking businesses don’t have to devote as much of their budget to hiring drivers. There’s also a national truck driver shortage, so these automated trucks could be a positive from the trucking business owner point of view. And from drivers’ perspective, even driverless semis would still require human supervision and intervention, possibly creating an entirely different sector of jobs.

Cons of AI in Trucking

The most newsworthy and potentially impactful con of AI in trucking is the possibility of the possibility of truck drivers being replaced by AI. In the U.S. alone, this puts the 3.5 million people who make a living driving trucks at odds. However, since we’re by all accounts several years away from this posing a real threat to the workforce, there isn’t a whole lot of data surrounding what this might exactly mean for the workforce.

On a smaller scale, the downsides of AIs integration in the trucking industry include the possibility of overreliance, misuse, or failed oversight of AI-powered safety features. There are potential legal ramifications for trucking companies who don’t do their due diligence. And to implement all of these features can prove costly for new or small owner-operators who are operating on a tight budget.

As for truck drivers, job responsibilities and required skill sets are also ever changing thanks to the introduction of advanced technology. This can be difficult for more experienced drivers who never had to worry about knowing how AI-powered systems and devices operate when they first began their careers.

In-Summary: How Will AI Impact Trucking?

The question, “how will AI impact trucking,” is one that we already know much of the answer to because its impact has already been felt. Many drivers may not realize just how much of their experience when operating a vehicle has already been altered by AI. Predictive maintenance, accident prevention measures such as lane change assist, and AI route planning all play massive roles for standard motor vehicle drivers and truck drivers alike.

That said, there’s a long way to go for AI in trucking. Semi-trucks are getting more autonomous by the year, and a future of completely self-driving trucks is very much something the entire industry needs to prepare for. However, we’re yet to fully understand what the ramifications of the future might be.

Trucking Attorneys Need to Get Aggressive, Expert Says

Plaintiff Lawyers Put Transportation Industry in Crosshairs of ‘Destructive Machine’

Eric Miller

INDIANAPOLIS — Litigation psychologist Bill Kanasky has a few rather frank words of advice for truckers and their attorneys facing potential nuclear verdicts: Get in the game early, get more aggressive and prepare your defense witnesses so that they don’t say something dumb in depositions.

Truckers should know that plaintiff attorneys in trucking-involved crashes are the “bad guys who exploit the system” and will strike hard and fast in a lawsuit, according to Kanasky, a longtime observer of courtroom tactics as senior vice president of litigation psychology at Courtroom Sciences Inc.

“The transportation industry is in the crosshairs of the plaintiffs’ bar, a very well coordinated, oiled, highly effective destructive machine,” he said.

“The odds are they’re planning that the defense won’t be ready,” Kanasky told a large group of executives attending a June 2 session at the Truckload Carriers Association’s Safety and Security Meeting. “The trucking industry needs a major, major change in philosophy to get more aggressive. Your world is changing.”

As for plaintiff attorneys, Kanasky said they have been very open, publicly stating that their objectives are to go after the big money in lawsuits.

“That’s how arrogant they are,” he said. “The first step to getting nuclear verdicts or nuclear settlements is attacking your witnesses, your corporate reps, your safety directors, your heads of HR, your drivers, ripping them to shreds. That’s in a deposition, it’s on video and an incredible amount of economic leverage going forth. That’s the first step.”

Then they do a lot of testing of their cases with mock juries to figure out if they have a winner, Kanasky said.

“They figure it out before your legal team figures it out,” he said. “Then we’re in the first quarter of the football game and the score is 21-0. If you learn one thing, learn this: You’ve got to win the battle in these depositions.”

If not, then plaintiff attorneys will seek excessive demands, he added.

“They have figured out everything about the case, and you don’t have a clue about it,” Kanasky said. “Some of them think why take the settlement money — go to the courtroom, get a massive nuclear verdict.”

Such legal moves by plaintiff attorneys have been called the “reptile method,” a tactic that attempts to convince juries that in accidents with trucks, they need to send messages with large verdict awards.

Truckers commonly express concerns about lawyers on billboards trying to solicit clients involved in accidents with large trucks. But Kanasky says they’re not the worst problems. They tend to move on after getting quick settlements that are much smaller than those the more serious plaintiff attorneys are looking for.

“They’re beatable. You just have to know how to play the game,” he said. “What they do is increase the number of claims, but they don’t increase nuclear verdicts.”

Kanasky said bad depositions are preventable, but there are a number of reasons that truckers get into trouble during depositions that can virtually guarantee a nuclear verdict. Some of them include:

• Problem witnesses who are unable to answer the difficult questions that plaintiff attorneys use to lead them down a dangerous path
• An ineffective witness testimony strategy when a trucking witness is argumentative and tries to win the deposition
• An emotional witness who gets easily upset during questioning
• A witness who has a “cognitive breakdown”