Can On-Board Cameras help to make trucking safer?

September 13, 2016 • Accidents

On the Arrive Alive website we have a detailed analysis of the benefits of dashboard cameras and road safety. It is generally expected that there will be an increase in this technology as more road users protect themselves from other corrupt road users and even officials.

The major fleet operators are also recognizing how on-board camera technology can benefit their fleet operations in cost savings, driver training, accident investigation etc.

Our friends from FleetCam provided the following important insights and allowed us to share:

Most businesses using a fleet of vehicles – no matter the size or what service they provide – are concerned about keeping track of their assets and the drivers operating the assets. Telematics technology has been around for some time and as with any technology it is forever improving and is becoming more flexible, easier to use and, very importantly, cost effective all the time.

Monitoring positions and behaviour is no longer the only option available to fleet owners. On-board cameras, coupled with telematics, are slowly becoming the norm and is allowing fleet owners to not only manage driving behaviour but also to now see what their drivers are doing. Utilising this technology allows managers to monitor the all-round efficiency of their fleets. This technology allows for critical aspects such as fuel consumption, CO2 emissions and driving behaviour to be tracked in real-time. If your current setup doesn’t take advantage of these methods, it might be time to give your vehicles a nifty little upgrade at a relatively low cost.

Telematics

Black box telematics technology has been around for some time with a numerous amount of fleet owners utilizing it actively and with a positive impact in their businesses. It allows the fleet owner to internally monitor his assets and get real time GPS location tracking to keep track of where his assets are and how it is driven, an important factor in managing commercial fleets.

This allows the fleet owner to have a clear picture of what’s happening in their fleet and also provide an opportunity to identify issues and make quick and effective decisions to reduce costs but also to improve and increase productivity.

On-board Cameras

But technology improves by the day and fleet owners can now add another element to driving behavior and positional data. By adding on-board cameras in conjunction with telematics technology fleet owners can now actually tie up positional information with video material to see what’s happening inside the cab, in front and behind the vehicle at any given time.

This allows the fleet owner to not only identify bad and unsafe driving habits but also to tie the information up with a video. By combining the two technologies, fleet owners can now also have video footage available at any time to help with driver training, disciplinary action and insurance claims.

On-board camera has many advantages, some being:

The front-facing camera allows for a clear, wide-angle view of the road ahead. This footage can, for example, can be used in legal cases where you may need to prove your driver’s innocence – especially as other motorists may attempt to claim against you by intentionally causing an accident.
The in-cab camera allows to see what is happening inside the cab to identify whether your driver is complying and whether there are illegal passengers inside the vehicle.
The system allows you to add additional cameras that will allow you to monitoring actions around your fuel tank, trailer or behind the vehicle

Most transport companies currently still use telematics and on-board cameras as two separate applications which cost them double. There are now several hybrid telematics/on-board camera systems available at much more affordable rates.

On-board camera technology coupled with telematics makes it so much easier to be on top of your vehicles at all times. Adding the extra technology to your existing fleet will improve your overall operations, driving behaviour and will allow to provide the right evidence to settle any disputes quickly, without any of the hassle.

[Article by Wessel Lourens / Fleetcam]

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