Welcome Noel Facey Canada Safety Council
How safe are we in our Vehicles? Did you know that your children are 16 times safer in a school bus than in your vehicle and we worry about school bus safety. The safest way to travel is by plane, but a lot of people are scared to fly.
OH&S Safety is the big topic for all governments and businesses for their employees. How to safely do this and do that. The proper way to lift The proper way to handle certain materials The proper equipment that must be worn. You can not even wash the floor without putting out the proper safety signs.
Then we take the same employees and turn them loose in the most unsafe environment in the world with little or no training. Most employees spend anywhere from a half to three hours in their vehicle each day getting to and from work, at times in the most dangerous driving conditions that you could imagine.
Let s look at some stats that will show just how unsafe you are in your car compared to your out of car Work place. Vehicle Deaths: In 2001 there were 2778 motor vehicle deaths in Canada 232 deaths per month 54 deaths per week 8 deaths per day 3 deaths per hour
Vehicle Injuries: In 2001 there were 221,158 motor vehicle injuries in Canada. 18,249 per month 4,253 per week 610 per day 25 per hour
The alarming thing about those stats is that they have not improved much and may have gotten worse since then. If we look at the period from 2001 to 2004 using the 2001 figures, this is what it looks like: Total Vehicle Deaths for the 4 year period 11,112 people dead or the population of Truro, Nova Scotia Total Vehicle Injuries for the 4 year period 884,632 people, 80% of the population of Nova Scotia
When we compare these figures to the deaths and injuries in the workplace it becomes very apparent where you are the safest. However, if you are spending two to three hours per day in your car, what are the chances of you being killed or injured?
When we consider all the courses we take at work to be safe, why do we not take the training and actions necessary to stay safe in our vehicle?
Now for the upsetting news: 85% of those deaths and injuries did not need to happen because the crashes where preventable. That means that 9445 of those people did not have to die. And it also means that 751,937 of those people did not have to be injured.
If we as a society can prevent these terrible deaths and injuries in motor vehicles, why aren t we? If it was happening in our out of vehicle work place it would have been dealt with long ago. Besides the cost in Death and Injury, there is the individual and societal cost in DOLLARS. Therefore, if it was happening in the work place, most organizations, businesses and governments would be bankrupt.
This poses a huge problem for people in the vehicle safety world. Why do people want to do everything they can to be safe at work, home, school, etc but not in their vehicle? And what can we do about it? Lets look at the WHAT IF and some ways that we can maybe change things to make you obey the rules and be safe in your vehicle.
Education: All new Drivers must take a minimum of 6 months of driver training three-quarters of which must be in the vehicle before getting their license. All new drivers are only allowed to drive on secondary highways during daylight for the first two years. All senior drivers over the age of 65 are only allowed to drive on secondary highways between the hours of 10:00am and 2:00pm.
All Senior Drivers over 65 must complete a senior s driving course every year to retain their license. All Drivers must take a retraining course and be retested every five years to retain their license.
Enforcement: Police will have zero tolerance for speeding: first offence for speeding you will lose you car for 1 month, plus storage and towing charges and 6 points on your license. Second offence for speeding is loss of car until you have taken a driving course and been retested for your license, plus storage and towing charges. Third offence loss of license for 5 years.
For causing a traffic crash, loss of license for one year, plus retraining and testing. Any traffic offence while impaired will result in loss of vehicle and license for life.
Safety Regulations in Vehicle: Seat restraints must be worn at all times or vehicle will not move. Eating, smoking, talking, singing, or other disturbing activities will not be allowed or the vehicle will not move. Mechanical, electrical or battery operated devices are not allowed or the vehicle will not move.
All occupants must wear full helmets and full body armor while in the vehicle or it will not move. All your activities in the vehicle will be monitored by video camera. Have a nice safe day and enjoy your drive.
Now lets Look at Reality What can we do to improve this Vehicle Safety Problem?
We need to look at the CAUSE. What is the Major Cause of Vehicle Crashes in Canada today? Inattention This means the problem is with you and me.
If the problem is with you and me, then we should be able to fix it. What will be our FOCUS? To get ourselves and our passengers from point A to point B safely.
We are now going to look at three areas that drastically affect our Vehicle Safety when we are driving. The ENVIRONMENT The VEHICLE The DRIVER
The Environment Light Road Weather Traffic
Light Conditions Dawn, Daylight, Dusk, and Night Bright Sunlight, Sunglasses and visor Other drivers headlights, front and back Your lights can you see with them? Can you be seen?
Weather Conditions Rain Sun Snow What is an ideal driving day? Freezing Rain Fog Wind
Road Conditions Snow Covered Frost Heaves Ice Curves Black Ice Blind Crests & Hills Pot Holes & Ruts Water Pools
Traffic Conditions Mix of Traffic City or Rural Time of day Night-time or Day-time Time of year Week Day Or Week end
The Vehicle Are you prepared for Summer and Winter? Tune-Up Remove all frost, fog and snow before starting Mirror Adjustment Emergency Equipment Brakes------ABS/Regular Salt plays havoc----wash Vehicle frequently. Clean windows and lights frequently
The Driver You Are you ready for the driving Task? SAFE System See -Eye Lead Time Following Distance Anticipate Find Execute
Driver Conditions What causes you to be inattentive? Tired, Fatigued, Medication, Alcohol & Drugs, Nervous Illness, Over the counter drugs Irritated, In a Hurry, Aggressive Inexperienced, Calm, Relaxed Confident/Over Confident Defective Eyes/Hearing
What would you do? If your Brakes Fail If your Accelerator Sticks If your Vehicle stalls on intersection turn If your Hood flies up at 90 km/hr Stuck in snow---no shovel, no salt, no sand SHOULD YOU TRY TO PUSH VEHICLES?
The Safety Zone Attitude Common Sense YOU Responsible
In Summary If Inattention is the major cause of Vehicle crashes which cause death and injury. And Inattention is caused by you and me. What will be our future focus to eliminate the 85% of crashes that are totally preventable? In reality the solution is not up to the Police, Transportation, Safety people, or Government, it is up to us and the way we drive.
Thank you for attending the Conference and this Seminar. Do you have any questions? Your Safety is your responsibility. Remember, the life you save may be your own.