Driver Safety - Cognitive Distraction: Something to Think About
Keeping our employees safe on the road is an ongoing concern for all public employers. In recent years the extent of distracted driving and its effect are becoming ever more evident. The attached meta-study from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety contains some eye-opening information on this very important subject that all supervisors should be aware of mitigating the risk posed by both policy and training. Available at no additional cost to all CORSA members are a variety of defensive driving training options, both live and computer based. CORSA also provides it's members with our model driver policy and best practice guide, both available at www.corsa.org<http://www.corsa.org> to download at any time. CORSA Risk Management services also include yearly Motor Vehicle Reports (MVR) on member employees via our SAMBA service provider and individual MVRs for hiring/HR purposes through our office. Extracted from the AAA study: "Three Sources of Distraction Conceptually, sources of driver distractions can be divided into three categories: 1. Visual: Visual distractions take the driver's eyes off the road. Turning to look at a passenger is an example of this kind of distraction. 2. Manual: Manual distractions take the driver's hands off the wheel. For instance, when a driver is holding food or a beverage, he or she is manually distracted 3. Cognitive: Cognitive, or "mental," distractions take the driver's mind off the task at hand (safe driving). Worrying about a job interview or dwelling on an intense conversation while behind the wheel might constitute cognitively-distracted driving. Any form of visual or manual distraction inherently involves an element of cognitive distraction, as well. " James Hale, ARM-P, ARM-E Risk Control Consultant County Risk Sharing Authority 209 East State Street Columbus, OH 43215 614.246.1630 FAX 614.220.0209
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James Hale, ARM-E, ARM-P