Whether a district has five vehicles or 50, the principles of minimizing fleet risk are the same — a rigorous hiring process, ongoing training and a focus on safety.

With 14 vehicles in its fleet, (passenger buses, dump trucks, work vans, pick-up trucks, aerial tree truck), hiring a new driver is a complex matter, according to Jesse Felix, Superintendent of Parks at West Chicago Park District.

“We look for experienced Commercial Driver Licensees (CDL) with passenger endorsement — plus an air-brake endorsement to drive one of our 40-passenger buses,” he says. But a CDL alone doesn’t cover all the bases...

Special Recreation Association (SRA) staff spends a good deal of time transporting patrons to and from activities and locations that include unique exposures. Ensuring drivers receive regular training helps reduce those risks, keeping both staff and patrons safe.

A significant problem for every driver is the area behind a vehicle the driver can’t see — the blind zone — that can obscure people and obstacles. The larger the vehicle, the larger its blind zone. For SRAs, most drivers are behind the wheel of vans and/or shuttle buses, which are more than large enough to have problematic blind spots.

One PDRMA member met this challenge with a simple solution that not only saves the agency money in replaced tires but also earned it a 2012 Risk Management Grant and Recognition award — a Mirror Adjustment Station...

We do it every day, and it’s one of the most hazardous tasks we undertake — driving. Many variables impact our ability to do it well and safely, such as weather, the vehicle and our skill in handling that vehicle...

PDRMA members have spoken, and we listened! Now members need less live class time to earn a certificate of completion for the HELP 1 — Essentials of Human Resources class...