Why video telematics the next step in tackling driver distraction
Australia’s road transport industry is facing tough times, with unpredictable fuel costs steadily rising and the ability to find experienced, qualified drivers willing to take on the job is diminishing. There’s another challenge the industry faces: poorly maintained roads damaging trucks and forcing drivers into unsafe situations, both of which affect productivity.
According to an Infrastructure Australia report titled Australia’s Road Infrastructure is in Crisis, Australia has over 800,000 kilometres of roads worth a whopping $100 billion. The report also says a great deal of this road system is in poor condition, and maintenance spending is slipping behind what is needed.
The report puts the blame squarely on how our roads are funded, with responsibility shared for different types of roads across all levels of government. Its answer to the road maintenance issue is establishing a national body with appropriate funding to oversee all Australian roads. While addressing the underlying cause is critical, trucking businesses can prevent unnecessary wear and tear on vehicles by utilising predictive maintenance tools.
Blue sky thinking won’t solve the existing roads crisis
The Australian road maintenance situation is particularly bad in Victoria, as well as parts of WA and the Northern Territory. Brendan Russell, the general manager of Victoria-based Hawk Logistics, told the ABC the damage bill for his trucks had increased by one-third because of the state of regional roads in the areas his vehicles operate.
“We are getting feedback from our drivers and noticing direct damage to our vehicles,” he said, estimating the maintenance costs for his fleet had increased by 25 to 30 per cent because of potholes, crumbling shoulders and loose stones. In particular, the state of the roads his fleet traverses are damaging windscreens, tyres, and suspension.
Ryan Milgate, Victorian Farmers Federation transport and infrastructure chair, operates a grain farm in Minyip and delivers crops to sheep and dairy farms and feed mills across western Victoria. He told the ABC the state of the roads is also taking a toll on his vehicles.
“It’s getting worse and worse,” he said, saying that shock absorbers needed to be replaced after 12-18 months, about three times more often than usual. The poor road conditions are also chewing away at tyres, which have had a 30-40 per cent increase in wear and tear.
He also said he is forced to drive below the speed limit because of the impact on his trucks. “It’s taking us a lot longer to get a job done than it used to or probably should.”
Unsealed roads in WA and the NT are having an impact on vehicle condition
The Tanami Road is an unsealed track running 1035 kilometres between the Kimberly, in WA and southern parts of the Northern Territory. It’s a vital road link for truckers, farmers, and the Defence Force. While $500 million in state and federal funding was announced to seal parts of it, lack of maintenance is taking a huge toll on the people and businesses relying on it to get livestock to market.
“It has deteriorated to a point where I would say it’s not a road anymore,” Mitchell’s Livestock Transport chief executive John Mitchell told the ABC.
The state of Tanami is so bad his drivers are forced to slow down to 18 kilometres per hour for their own safety and to avoid damaging the trucks. Despite this, his trucks are suffering significant wear and tear.
“[Things] are wearing out, falling off,” he said. “Things that would happen over a two-year period are happening in a week. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
Predictive maintenance can ease the burden
One area where fleet managers and operators can get ahead, despite the state of the roads, is by using technology for predictive maintenance. Data captured through telematics allows historical analysis and provides a guide for when a truck will need work done on it in the future.
By collating historical data, the system can forecast patterns in breakdowns or malfunctions over time – this allows the fleet manager to slot in a vehicle for maintenance before a part fails, allowing better scheduling and asset utilisation. It also means a job won’t be missed or rescheduled because a vehicle is off the road when a part unexpectedly goes wrong.
Using automated digital tracking solutions makes predictive maintenance an easy task for businesses and removes reliance on inefficient paper-based processes, ensuring vehicle parts are kept in peak shape.
Not a simple solve
The state of Australia’s roads isn’t an easy problem to solve, and the impact these poor conditions are having on the transport sector is real. Because of the sad state of our transport corridors, vehicles are being damaged, and productivity, as well as driver safety, are compromised.
Intelligent, predictive maintenance won’t solve all these problems but will help ease the burden and ensure your trucks stay on the road, however bumpy.