Reducing the risk
We know that some businesses do not treat road safety risks the same way that they would treat similar work-related risks. Gisborne District Council are showing admirable leadership in improving road safety by adopting a proactive approach to driver safety.
“We work hard to gain our driver licences, but once obtained, we don’t get regularly assessed to ensure we haven’t got into bad habits. Fleetcoach was a viable and cost-effective solution to supplement actual one-on-one driver training. The consensus from staff has been positive,” explains David Wilkinson, Gisborne District Council Health and Safety Manager.
“With today’s vehicles becoming ever more complex and each vehicle having different handling characteristics, we thought it would be valuable to introduce an initiative to support and educate our staff.”
Futureproofed solutions
In addition to the driver training introduced to establish a positive culture of safety and address the initial risk, Fleetcoach also offer several Specific Skills Modules that cover a range of topics. These proved particularly useful with the recent introduction of electric vehicles into the Gisborne District Council fleet.
“The system is futureproofed as well so that should we identify any new driver trends, there are additional modules to refresh or upskill,” added David.
Other driver’s inconsistent approaches to safe driving practices was another one of the reasons David contacted Fleetcoach. He recognised the benefits of the interactive driver training programme which is designed to empower those behind the wheel to make better choices.
This proactive approach to driver training helped boost the culture of safety throughout the Council and served as a reminder that health and wellbeing doesn’t sit in isolation from driving.
“Fleetcoach gave Gisborne District Council the opportunity to roll out a cost-effective, fun and educational initiative. The training has since raised discussion across the Council, and some healthy competition along the way, many going that extra mile to achieve 100% scores,” says David.
The journey so far
Following the initial delivery of driver training, Gisborne District Council noted that they had strengthened controls around the key risk of driving and vehicle safety.
This can be attributed to the number of drivers who completed the online driver training as well as the addition of the Specific Skills Modules which added value and variety to the learnings to date.
“Many of our staff commented that Fleetcoach training had helped remind them of the dangers and become more aware of the potential hazards. I would certainly recommend Fleetcoach as an initiative to focus on driver approach, attitude and awareness,” says David. “Many had taken [those learnings] on board when driving over the holiday season.”
