Operation Safe Driver Week is scheduled for July 7-13, 2024

Michelle MachenMauser News

Operation Safe Driver Week, organized by Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA),  is a safe-driving awareness and outreach initiative in North America aimed at improving the driving behaviors of passenger vehicle drivers and commercial motor vehicle drivers through educational and traffic enforcement strategies and interactions with law enforcement.

Throughout Operation Safe Driver Week, law enforcement personnel will be on the lookout for commercial motor vehicle drivers and passenger vehicle drivers engaging in risky driving. Identified unsafe drivers will be pulled over and issued a citation or warning.

Data shows that traffic stops and interactions with law enforcement help reduce problematic driving behaviors. By making contact with drivers during Operation Safe Driver Week, law enforcement personnel aim to make our roadways safer by targeting high-risk driving behaviors.

  • Speeding has been a factor in more than a quarter of crash deaths since 2008.
  • Speeding of any kind was the most frequent driver-related crash factor for drivers of commercial motor vehicles and passenger vehicles.
  • Speeding was a factor in 26% of all traffic fatalities in 2018, killing 9,378 people or an average of more than 25 people per day.
  • Distracted driving claimed 3,142 lives in 2019.
  • Of the 22,215 passenger vehicle occupants killed in 2019, 47% were not wearing seat belts. Seat belts saved an estimated 14,955 lives and could have saved an additional 2,549 people if they had been wearing seat belts, in 2017 alone.
  • Every day, about 28 people in the United States die in drunk-driving crashes — that’s one person every 52 minutes. In 2019, 10,142 people lost their lives due to drunk driving.

For Mauser, Regional Safety Managers Dan Kraemer and Matt Osting try to make every week safety week. With responsibilities of over 120 drivers, they monitor and engage with Mauser’s fleet daily to reduce events such as speeding, harsh braking, and driver fatigue. They also emphasize that the proper inspection of equipment remains a priority for not only the drivers but also the Private Fleet’s management staff.

The goal at Mauser is to keep safety and compliance at the forefront of everyone’s mind. Some additional safety methods recently implemented within the transportation department include:

  • Monthly training program for drivers and managers.
  • Coaching event protocol that allows Fleet Management to review Safety/Compliance incidents to ensure prompt consistent corrective measures are taken.
  • Coordination of Mauser’s first “DOT Mock Audit” in the West region – to ensure that Mauser is following State & Federal DOT mandates.

Mauser’s safety managers want to remind everyone that wearing proper PPE, driving defensively, and not becoming complacent are keys to everyone having not only a safe day or week – but a safe career at Mauser.