Speed Management under CoR has always been challenging with the high volume of speed alert emails and paper based corrective action processes, only to discover after-the-fact that drivers are not breaching based on flawed GPS data.
Speed management using GPS solutions has been around for well over a decade, and yet fleets use different criteria with varying degrees of accuracy, resulting in incorrect speed breaches raised against drivers, and a large supervisor workload to filter the data to identify real breaches.
Should we use GPS speed data alone? Should we include ECM CAN speed data? Or are both data sources essential to make accurate decisions on speed breaches?
It is important that a transport operator manages its drivers using innovative technology and tools currently available and decide on the corrective action under reasonable steps, including the freedom to use any technology that meets such requirements.
Managing speed breaches are an essential CoR responsibility, and the use of accurate data sources that are created frequently will provide good visibility of a driver’s behaviour, which can only be provided by the capabilities of telematics equipment. Attempts in the past to provide this information using smartphones and enterprise mobile devices, have fallen well short of the requirements of the legal system as well as providing inaccurate GPS data, with inadequate frequency of availability and limited ECM speed validation.
Recent court cases involving drivers that cause serious accidents through speeding, are now demanding continuous one second speed data (GPS) that are validated with regular and reliable engine management CAN speed data, even though such high data standards have not been documented by any Government authority. Only TCA have issued guidelines on minimum speed data standards which has at least raised the bar on standards, although, these still fall short of what the courts are now demanding as evidence.
To ensure best practice speed breach analysis and alerting is achieved, the following should be considered for any telematics based system to ensure drivers are not penalised for false speed breaches, and the data can be used in court if required:
- 1 second GPS speed samples with HDOP of <2.5
- ECM speed samples at least every 5 seconds for GPS validation
- Altitude data to determine descents where brakes have not been used by drivers
Most heavy vehicles operate within a 100km radius of depots and hence spend most of the driving time om roads with <100km/h speed limits. So any effective speed management process needs to include 40, 50, 60, 70, 80 and 90 km/h speed zone breaches, so it is essential to use a mapping system that is regularly updated for speed sign locations and can differentiate conflicting speed signs between freeways and underpasses, and on/off ramp signs. HERE maps certainly meet this need, and is updated quarterly, with the addition of heavy vehicle compliance data covering maximum mass, length, width and other route based heavy vehicle restrictions.
Fleet operations staff should have immediate access to all the CoR speed breach information that is required to meet CoR speed management requirements and more. Some of the minimum capabilities required to meet the CoR speed management should include:
- Auditing of any driver speed breaches, including comprehensive second by second speed analysis leading up to a breach, and the inclusion of altitude and ECM speed data for validation of speed breaches.
- Compliance staff to access any speed data regardless of breaches and for any period for review.
- Email/SMS speed breaches in real time and manage corrective actions with drivers.
- Audio in cabin speed breach alerts for drivers
- Speed breach reports with corrective action for review with driver.
One of the greatest challenges a Compliance Manager has is the collation and analysis of vast amounts of compliance information ‘Big Data’, especially once posted speed zone alerts are included. Kynection has integrated a Business Intelligence (Analytics) platform into a Cloud based fleet solution, which provides a dashboard for CoR speed management compliance, including corrective action responsiveness and speed zone fleet analysis of breaches by driver or vehicle.
FINAL THOUGHT:
Automated CoR Speed Management is now a reality and numerous fleets are benefiting from reliable and accurate compliance data, with comprehensive management reporting.
© 2022 Autolync Pty Ltd, trading as Kynection