SmartDrive Systems, a leader in video safety and transportation intelligence, today published new insights on the effects of speeding in its latest SmartIQ®Snapshot. The SmartDrive SmartIQ Speeding Drivers Snapshot for Truckers, which aggregates and anonymizes data from the SmartDrive database of more than 220 million analyzed and scored driving events, helps fleets understand the inherent risks and costs associated with speeding, and highlights opportunities to improve safety and operational efficiency.
The SmartDrive SmartIQ Speeding Drivers Snapshot for Trucking illuminates key observations that distinguish speeding drivers as compared to all other drivers. With validation through video analysis, these findings clearly demonstrate that drivers who speed are more likely to take other risks, be involved in near collisions and waste more fuel compared to their non-speeding colleagues. Significant conclusions include drivers who speed are:
- Nearly 3x more likely to practice unsafe following distances
- 45 percent more likely to be involved in a near collision
- 54 percent more likely to cross the median or center line of the roadway
- More than 2.5x more likely to be distracted while driving
- Consistently more likely to fail to comply with stop signs and red lights
- More likely to engage in unsafe lane changing, merging, passing, braking and turning
- 3.7x more likely to drive with two hands off the wheel
- More likely to waste fuel; highway MPG for speeding drivers is 2.7 percent lower than all other drivers
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates that the total comprehensive cost of speeding is $203 billion. According to NHTSA:
- 83 percent of drivers surveyed believe driving is a safety concern, yet 64 percent say they are comfortable speeding
- 27 percent of all fatal automobile crashes involve drivers who were speeding
- Speeding-related fatalities increased by 4 percent from 2015 to 2016
- 15 percent of speeding-related fatalities occurred on interstate highways and drivers involved in fatal crashes tend to speed more frequently at night
“Although speeding continues to be one of the most serious problems facing the commercial transportation industry, speed limits continue to increase across the country,” stated Steve Mitgang, CEO of SmartDrive. “While everyone understands speeding is dangerous, only video safety—deployed with a cab-facing camera—provides objective measurement of the associated driving risks and the price fleets pay as a result of collisions caused by speeding, associated legal claims and vehicle damages, as well as wasted fuel. SmartDrive applauds those fleets that have taken the necessary steps to reduce speeding, protecting their drivers and the motoring public by implementing an action-oriented video safety program.”
The complete Speeding Drivers Snapshot for Trucking report is a free resource, available online. In addition to statistical data, the report includes data relating speeding to crash and maintenance costs, along with its effect on tires and fuel efficiency.The SmartDrive SmartIQ Speeding Drivers Snapshot for Truckers includes a unique interactive map that shows where speeding dangers exist on U.S. interstates. Now, in addition to understanding the impact of speeding, fleet managers can visualize where speeding occurs most often, and coach drivers accordingly. The map allows fleet managers to see which interstates have the best and worst speed scores, drill down into specific states to identify where the most speeding occurs, and search by road name to learn more