To train drivers with limited or zero over-the-road experience, Cowan Systems decided not to invest in technologies like simulators or computerized training programs, says Dennis Morgan, president of the Baltimore, Md.-based truckload carrier.
“We use the old school methodology,” he says. After new drivers attend orientation training they are paired with seasoned drivers on local routes using day cabs and automatic transmissions. The initial training period lasts between four and eight weeks.
Drivers then graduate to solo operations but stay on local routes for a few more months before being promoted into regions with longer-length routes based on their measured results.
“We’ve been doing this for about six months, but we are moving very cautious,” he says.
Whether fleets decide to use old-school or high-tech training methods, or a mixture of both, experts say it is critical to document the training and the results. If an accident occurs, plaintiff attorneys will take advantage of gaps in training records to argue that the company was negligent and that its drivers were unfit for duty.
Here are four technologies now being used to train drivers and, perhaps just as important, to document that the training happened.
