SmartDrive Systems announced that Mesilla Valley Transportation, one of the largest locally owned transportation providers in New Mexico and West Texas, has selected SmartDrive’s video-based safety solution for its fleet of more than 1,300 tractors.
Mesilla Valley improved performance in key areas that are predictive of collision frequency and severity. These include an 80% increase in seat belt compliance, 88% reduction in speeding, and 50% decrease in distracted driving.
“Following our competitive pilot of multiple video safety solutions, we selected SmartDrive because it clearly offered the best value for our investment, based on its demonstrated ability to improve safety, proven innovation in video-based analytics, access to video within minutes and outstanding customer support,” said Royal Jones, president of Mesilla Valley. “The SmartDrive platform delivers actionable insights, making it easy to identify areas of risk, focus our driver coaching where it is most impactful, and accurately measure the results.”
Headquartered in Las Cruces NM, Mesilla Valley specializes in time-sensitive service between major manufacturing centers in the United States, Canada, and the Mexican border region. The company is a member of American Trucking and Transportation Insurance Company (ATTIC), a risk retention group formed by safety-minded trucking companies.
Mesilla Valley sought a video-based program to ensure a clear and unbiased picture of what happens on the road. After initial concerns about deploying a solution, the firm experienced first-hand the impact it can have after one of its drivers was involved in a collision with a vehicle that had video. Mesilla Valley was able to quickly determine fault in the situation, enabling the company to avoid a lengthy claims process, and also assuring its general counsel that moving forward with video was the right choice for the business.
Dean Rigg, Mesilla Valley’s chief financial officer, and his team selected SmartDrive based on key capabilities including its patented ability to capture U-turns, aggressive swerves, and other risky driving maneuvers; triggering based on real-time data from third-party onboard systems; and its intuitive user interface.
During the two and one-half month pilot program, Mesilla Valley identified 58 U-turns on public roadways. The company prohibits drivers from making these high-risk maneuvers, but was unable to effectively monitor for these turns before implementing SmartDrive. With the video-based platform, driver managers can not only identify the offending drivers, but also step in immediately to provide coaching and eliminate future risk.
For more information, go to www.smartdrive.net.
