What is Operation Safe Driver Week 2021?

The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s (CVSA) Operation Safe Driver Week takes place from July 11-17, 2021. This year the theme will focus on speeding. CVSA’s initiative aims to educate driver’s about ways to share the roads safely and reduce risky and unsafe driver behaviors.  The program’s one-week enforcement and education campaign will have law enforcement personnel on the lookout for commercial vehicle drivers and passenger vehicle drivers engaging in risky driving behaviors in or around a commercial motor vehicle.

The program chose speeding as this year's theme because despite the drop in roadway travel last year due to the pandemic, traffic fatalities increased nationwide.  “Data shows that traffic stops and interactions with law enforcement help reduce problematic driving behaviors,” said Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) President Sgt. John Samis with the Delaware State Police. “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.”

Impact on Drivers

The program focuses specifically on drivers because their actions - whether it’s something they did or didn’t do, like speeding or not paying attention to the road - are responsible for most crashes.  Research shows that interactions with law enforcement do impact drivers’ behaviors.  This initiative aims to improve the behavior of all drivers operating in an unsafe manner in  and around commercial motor vehicles through educational and traffic enforcement strategies

Tips for Drivers and Carriers

It’s important to practice and encourage a culture of safety all year round, but here are some helpful tips for Operation Safe Driver Week:

• Make sure you are alert and well-rested when driving
• Always wear your seatbelt
• Follow the common Traffic Laws
• Obey signs, signals, and other traffic control devices.
• Do not engage in dangerous driving behaviors like aggressive or reckless driving, distracted driving, following too closely, improper lane changes, use common sense, etc.
• Most importantly, do not speed

Tips for Shippers and Brokers

Operation Safe Driver Week can limit capacity and cause transit delays. Here are some things shippers and brokers should keep in mind and what they can do to mitigate possible issues during this week:

• It may take longer to source trucks during this time, so factor in longer lead times.
• Build flexibility into your delivery dates
• When possible, adjust your shipment pickup to take place either before or after this week.
• Evaluate your orders and determine if you can hold the non-critical shipment orders until after the safety initiative ends, and expedited options with time-definite services for if the load is critical.
• See how ZUUM’s Logistics Super Platform can help you.

CVSA’s Operation Safe Driver Program was created to help reduce the number of crashes involving  commercial motor vehicles and passenger vehicles due to unsafe driving behaviors. The initiative aims to combat the number of deaths and injuries from crashes. Identified unsafe drivers will be pulled over and issued a citation or warning.

To learn more about how ZUUM Transportation can help you navigate Operation Safe Driver Week, contact one of our specialists.