Guidance in Managing the risks of time slot bookings

16 May Guidance in Managing the risks of time slot bookings

Blog

With the increasing incidents that involves fatigue, speeding, poor loading or traffic congestions that cause significant reputational damages to businesses and can result in serious health and safety hazards, the National Heavy Regulator provided a guidance on recognising and managing the risks associated with the scheduling of delivery or pick-up times for heavy vehicles.

How to mitigate these risks?

The best practice approach is to manage risk proactively, rather than reacting after an incident has occurred. Being proactive will ensure everyone in the CoR is meeting their obligations to ensure the safety of their transport activities.

At a minimum, you should undertake a risk assessment and consider what risk controls are required to mitigate those risks.

Time slot booking risk controls

Risk controls to manage the risk of drivers being fatigued or speeding to meet time slot bookings often include the following strategies:

Distribution centre/warehouse facilities

don’t enter into a contract with conditions that would have the effect of causing a driver to speed or drive while fatigued
ensure sufficient staff are available to load or unload vehicles and ensure loaders and unloaders work efficiently
in the event of a delay, communicate with operators and drivers to allow drivers the opportunity to better manage their fatigue along the journey (rather than arriving as scheduled only to have to try to rest while queueing, for example)
don’t exceed loading or unloading facilities’ capabilities when creating bookings
educate workers undertaking loading and unloading tasks about the impacts on drivers and operators arising from loading/unloading delays (both scheduled and unscheduled)
provide back-up bookings to allow flexibility in the event of a delay
have contingencies in place to minimise delays to account for any unforeseen issues on site
prevent queuing of vehicles onto the road as this increases the public risk of passing vehicle collisions with waiting vehicles
ensure contracts allow sufficient time to absorb delays (do not penalise drivers for missing or being late for a booking time)
include space for vehicle queueing when designing or configuring premises
have a specific traffic management plan in place
schedule time slots where possible to minimise night driving
allocate a specific area and a procedure to allow drivers and other workers to check that loads are properly restrained, or to respond to any other vehicle safety issue prior to leaving site.

Transport operators and schedulers

when developing a driver’s schedule, consider the complete task the driver has to perform (including the potential impact of traffic delays or other unforeseen circumstances) and allow the driver adequate time to complete the task lawfully
minimise queuing times by planning the journey to arrive at scheduled times and using any extra time around bookings to rest where possible
don’t enter into a contract that would have the effect of causing a driver to speed or drive while fatigued to meet booking obligations
ensure contracts allow sufficient time to absorb delays (do not penalise drivers for missing or being late for a booking time)
ensure contracts have flexibility in booking times to cater for minor variations in the driver’s expected arrival time
when developing schedules, ensure contingencies are in place should a driver become unwell or is unable to complete the journey
maintain open, two-way communication with all relevant parties (and drivers) and encourage early notification of delays to allow appropriate alternative arrangements to be made
ensure back-up time slot bookings are made available should there be a delay
provide information, education and training to workers, which includes the risks arising from working while fatigued or speeding
introduce Electronic Work Diaries (EWDs) to help drivers effectively manage their fatigue
implement technology solutions, such as fatigue detection devices or GPS monitoring devices, to ensure driver safety and other legal obligations are being met.