So many people rely on our road network for their livelihoods. There are those who make deliveries such as truck drivers and couriers. We have the emergency services who have to drive at high speeds to save lives. There are sales representatives going from appointment to appointment and finally there are taxi and bus drivers who have to transport people from place to place. All these people have demanding driving schedules but do their unique challenges affect the way they drive?
“More than 50% of major road accidents are caused by risk driving behaviors from professional drivers of HDVs.” This is a staggering statistic when you consider that these are professional drivers who rely on their driving skills for their livelihood. However, drivers of heavy goods vehicles, who are generally highly skilled and professional drivers have to deal with monotony and pressure. They have to drive for many hours at a time, driving goods from one place to another. This fosters boredom and tiredness which of course can lead to errors. On top of this, when working alone for so many hours, there is an impulse to connect. In this day and age this is done through cell phones and their applications which can be a distraction to their driving.
First responders have to take calculated risks when trying to save lives. Every second counts when racing to fire, when transporting a critically ill patient to hospital or speeding to a crime scene. However, they are highly trained to deal with these situations, the adrenaline kick helps keep them alert and they are not doing it for long periods of time. Therefore, statistically the incidence of accidents is not as high as expected for such high speed, dangerous driving.
Sales representatives are highly pressurized to get from appointment to appointment and have to drive for long periods of time. This can lead them to some of these drivers driving fast and erratically at times. Their presumed need to keep in contact with clients and work constantly can lead them to use messaging apps as they are driving. Pressure, tiredness and distraction are a deadly cocktail.
Bus and taxi drivers have the responsibility of the safety of their passengers but also have a grueling schedule. Busses need to keep to their timetables and taxi drivers need to pick up more fares. This can lead to errors but at least with constant eyes upon them, they are unlikely to drive illegally.
There is no question that a person’s occupation can impact their driving, especially when they are driving for long periods of time or are under a lot of pressure to get from one place to another. It is important for those in charge of these drivers to foster a good driving ethic and remove unnecessary pressures that can make the job fatal.
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Traffic Administration of the Ministry of Public Security of the People’s Republic of China. Annual Report on Road Traffic Accidents of the People’s Republic of China . Beijing, China: 2019. [Google Scholar]
