The American Trucking Associations’ Management Conference & Exhibition took place from Oct. 22 to Oct. 25 and featured several speakers sharing updates on safety and efficiency in the trucking industry. On Oct. 23, trucking executives heard about the importance of dashcams and how they can increase safety and transparency, as reported by Transport Topics.
Motive, a fleet management company, had their staff project manager Mary Shepherd share how the utilization of dash cams can decrease unsafe driving and collisions all while conserving a firm’s reputation in the industry.
Previously, dash cams have received varied responses due to the possibility of the technology increasing legal exposure from the data it produces. If a company decides to use dash cams, it is most effective to treat the technology as an extension of an already established safety program, Shepherd said. She advised that transparency, communication, and education be prioritized.
“You want to make sure, as you’re pitching these solutions, that you are transparent on what your goals are but also the reason for bringing this to the table,” Shepherd said. “Technology doesn’t have to be scary. There actually is a happy medium that you can find between managing your legal risk and actually being able to reduce accidents.”
Abhishek Gupta, the senior director of product at Motive, said that the possible benefits from the usage of dash cams are dependent on the user’s experience.
“It’s really about how the technology is implemented,” he said.
Fleets should be clear in communicating the safety benefits of dash cams and spend time creating awareness on how the technology works and what it is capable of accomplishing. Making sure all of this is communicated can help with a smooth transition of using the technology, Shepherd said.
“Communicate that these dashcams aren’t just there to, kind of, tell you everything the driver is doing wrong,” she said. “They can also be used to reward great driving.”
