Aging State Vehicle Fleet Fuels Tens of Millions in New Money Requests by Agencies
With more than 260,000 square miles of ground to cover in Texas, agencies say using state vehicles is typically cheaper, safer and more reliable than rentals or mileage reimbursements for employees — particularly those whose jobs include on-site inspections, working in remote places and conducting statewide investigations.
Many state-owned vehicles are aging past the standards for replacement. Early budget drafts signal that lawmakers are considering funding some $237.6 million in requests for new ones. The average age of the nearly 34,000 vehicles in the state-owned fleet belonging to 100 agencies, colleges and universities is about 10 years, according to the Texas comptroller’s office.
Crash-Free Driving: How Coaching is the Key to Keeping Your Drivers Safe on the Road
By Ed Dubens, CEO/Founder, eDriving
While many businesses focus on organization-wide training and safety programs, there's another tool that's quickly gaining recognition for its ability to “drive” success: COACHING.
Coaching is the “glue” that helps support and sustain lasting behavior change when implemented as part of a holistic driver risk management program.
By providing personalized support and ongoing guidance, coaching can help managers and their drivers identify and address risky driving behaviors, improving safety and reducing the risk of collisions and injuries and their associated costs.
New Projection: U.S. Pedestrian Deaths Rise Yet Again in First Half of 2022
Drivers in the United States struck and killed 3,434 people in the first half of 2022 – up 5%, or 168 more deaths, from the same period the year before, according to a new analysis from the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA).
Why are more people walking dying on U.S. roads?
A combination of factors, including a surge in dangerous driving that began at the start of the pandemic and has not lessened; larger, heavier vehicles that are more likely to seriously injure or kill people on foot in the event of a crash; roads designed to prioritize fast-moving traffic over slower speeds that are safer for pedestrians; and inadequate infrastructure such as sidewalks, crosswalks and lighting in many parts of the country.
Will Self-Driving Cars Solve Our Traffic and Street Safety Problems? A Tech Historian Says No
Waymo, Cruise and other players in the autonomous vehicle space talk a lot about how much safer and easier driving could be if cities embraced self-driving cars. But if the future is so bright, why hasn’t it been a smooth road?
Tech historian Peter Norton says self-driving cars don’t properly address the underlying issues that make driving a dangerous, cumbersome activity - and actually divert attention away from solutions that have worked elsewhere. Take claims that self-driving cars can fix California’s trademark congestion. If everyone who drives themselves around now started using AVs tomorrow, we’d have the same number of cars on the road. Plus, recent research concluded traffic would actually get worse in urban areas as more people opt for self-driving cars over public transit.
Here’s Why Head-Up-Displays Are Worth the Extra Cost in Modern Cars
Imagine being able to keep your eyes on the road ahead while still having access to important information like your speed and navigation. In modern cars, Head-Up-Displays (HUD) have become increasingly popular as a safety feature, helping to reduce driver distraction and increase situational awareness.
Not only can they display important information like speed and directions, but some models even offer warnings for lane departure, collision avoidance, and pedestrian detection. And the best part? The information displayed on the HUD can be customized to your liking. Some models even offer night vision capability to help you see in low-light conditions. It's no wonder HUDs are quickly becoming a must-have feature for anyone looking for a safer and more convenient driving experience.
