What do truck drivers in South Africa dread the most on the roads

According to new statistics from Webfleet’s Road Safety Report for the year, other road users are the primary cause of truck collisions on South African highways.

Other road users, such as passenger vehicles, were responsible for 33% of collisions, according to the organisation.

According to Webfleet, passenger drivers do not know how to share the road safely with trucks. These findings are supported by in-cab video footage, which is now routinely utilised in trucks and shows the precise cause of crashes.

Driving while distracted or not paying attention is the second leading cause of truck accidents. According to Webfleet, inattentive driving was the cause of 21% of all occurrences investigated.

Webfleet’s poll included big and small businesses transporting a wide range of items for a number of industry sectors, including gasoline, consumer goods, long-haul freight, lumber, waste management, and more. The fleet sizes varied from 3,500 to 5,000 automobiles.

In the previous year, 71% of respondents reported being engaged in a traffic accident. “Just four companies went the whole year without a crash,” said Webfleet.

The following graph depicts the primary causes of vehicle accidents in the trucking sector, according to the company:

Driver weariness, along with other road users and distractions, is a primary cause of crashes. According to the survey, driver weariness was the cause of 12% of all accidents. Speeding and irresponsible driving were responsible for 7% of all accidents. Another 7% was due to poor road conditions, 4% to drunk driving, and 1% to pedestrians.

Road users are a risk

Several industry executives and transportation specialists commented on the findings, explaining why road users represent such a concern to truck drivers.

Aside from drivers acting irresponsibly around trucks, as proven by in-cab cameras, the hazards are heightened by the physics involved. Many trucks transport heavy load, which modifies the forces at work when vehicles must manoeuvre.

According to the experts, truck stability is mostly determined by physics. When attempting to manage the vehicle, the high centre of gravity, offset centre of gravity, inertia or momentum, and weight differentials all enter into the equation.

As a result, when a careless driver compels a truck driver to respond on the road – quick braking, swerving to avoid a collision, or any other defensive manoeuvre – the trucks become extremely difficult to manage.

“On the point of ‘other road users’ being cited by respondents as a prime cause of truck crashes, hard evidence provided by in-cab cameras – now widely used in the has dispelled the widely-held myth that it is always the trucker’s fault,” the experts said.

“Certainly, there are some reckless, miscreant truck drivers who should not be on the road, but what this survey reveals is that there is a need for an educational campaign to engender greater awareness among all road users in sharing the roads safely and in harmony.”

Concerns about traffic safety

According to Webfleet, the truck fleet’s biggest worries about road safety include unroadworthy vehicles, bad road conditions, a lack of legislation, protests, and insufficient training.

“A major concern by respondents is the poor maintenance of heavy vehicles…Working trucks are randomly taken off the road and tested during the training of traffic officials.”

“Results up to 2019 showed that out of 764 trucks tested, 69% of those trucks failed due to a varying range of faults resulting from poor maintenance,” it said.

“Poor road conditions on roads, mainly off the main highways, is a concern expressed by many respondents who state they not only cause unsafe driving conditions but also cause damage to vehicles. Potholes are stated as particularly damaging and dangerous.”

Damage to cars and potholes cause trips to take longer, which leads to driver tiredness and lowers transportation productivity, according to Webfleet.

South Africa boasts the world’s tenth-longest road network with 750,000 kilometres; however, not all of it is administered by the South African National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral).

According to Webfleet, Sanral only administers 21,403 kilometres, provinces 47,300 kilometres, and municipalities 51,600 kilometres. According to recent results from the South African Institution of Civil Engineering (SAICE), the country’s roadways are in disrepair.

According to SAICE, provincial highways in large urban centres, as well as paved provincial roads and municipal roads, are all at risk of collapse. Unpaved provincial and municipal roads are absolutely unsuited for purpose, according to the organisation.