‘Bad Driving Habits’ On The Rise – What Does It Mean For Fleets?
Recent research has found that bad driving habits are on the rise, with fleets being urged to help address the issue.
It comes as a survey found that 10% of drivers admit to bad driving habits at some point in the last 3 months.
That includes frequently tailgating, failing to check mirrors, zoning out during a journey or risky overtaking.
Reports have found that many drivers believe driver behaviour has worsened in the last few years with more reports of dangerous driving such as tailgating, middle lane hogging and risky overtaking.
Now fleets are being urged to help by ensuring their drivers are extra-vigilant, as well as reporting any incidents through the Police’s Operation Snap.
Driver’s Bad Habits – Can They Change?
Several studies have been published recently looking at driver behaviour with a concerning trend emerging – more and more poor driving behaviour is being witnessed.
Almost one-third of drivers have admitted that they regularly ignore the ‘two-second gap’ rule when driving, which is indicative of a wider issue.
With police and authorities looking for alternative ways to spot and penalise offending motorists, driving habits are coming under the microscope.
Operation Snap was launched by police forces around the UK to provide a central place for road users to send in dashcam footage, as well as personal camera footage from cyclists, horse riders and pedestrians.
That was an initiative that police believed could ease the burden on police presence for penalising offences, but as aggressive driving and other driving offences rise, it’s clear that there is more work to be done.
Hundreds of thousands of hours of footage has been uploaded by motorists and fleets, leading to penalties being issued and drivers facing punishment for dangerous driving where they might have otherwise got away unpunished.
Road Safety And Fleets
Fleets always have a key role to play in road safety and today is no different.
Nobody is on the road more than fleet drivers, whether that’s short distance, long distance, local, national or anything in between, fleet drivers see more of our roads than anyone else.
But even with fleet drivers being vigilant and cautious, the reality is that driver behaviour requires deterrents and punishments that stop dangerous driving from occurring.
Given that aggressive driving is one of the most common issues for fleet drivers, it’s food for thought as the focus on road safety becomes even more important.
There are some simple rules that aren’t being followed, hence National Highways launching its ‘Keep Left’ campaign to curb middle lane hogging and Operation Snap looking to catch offenders.
But while the future of road safety is unknown with technological advances being considered, one thing is for sure – road safety is at a crucial junction.
Do you think more needs to be done to improve road safety? Would you welcome more technology being used to catch motoring offences? Let us know in the comments below.
