American Trucking Associations’ Safety Management Council recognized outstanding drivers, executives and trucking companies at the Safety, Security and Human Resources National Conference and Exhibition in Long Beach, California. David Boyer, a professional truck driver with ABF Freight and an America’s Road Team Captain, was honored as trucking’s 2018 National Driver of the Year.

“The trucking industry is made up of millions of individuals whose primary focus day to day is on safety – how to practice safe driving, incentivize safety, and enhance safety outcomes on a large scale,” said ATA President & CEO Chris Spear. “Because trucking is defined by our approach to safety, ATA and ATA’s Safety Management Council understand how important it is to recognize leaders in the safety field, like David Boyer, and we work hard to celebrate their achievements.”

The National Driver of the Year Award annually recognizes one exceptional driver for noteworthy and career-long professional achievements, holding a stellar safety record, and maintaining dedication to keeping the roads safe. The driver is selected from a pool of exceptional state Drivers of the Year submitted by ATA’s affiliated state trucking associations. Each candidates’ qualifications are first reviewed by a group of industry safety professional judges. These judges then narrow the field of nominees to a group of finalists who are judged by an impartial panel of Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance and law enforcement representatives, who select the award winner. The 2018 National Driver of the Year Award is sponsored by EROAD.

Boyer, who attended an October 17 White House event alongside Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao in which she told President Trump about his achievements, is in his 47th year as a professional truck driver. He has driven more than 5 million safe miles throughout his career.

Boyer is a 40-year veteran of ABF Freight and has worked for only one other trucking company in his decorated career. He regularly operates twin trailers, over the road between Wytheville, Virginia and Memphis, Tennessee and drives an average of 150,000 miles per year. During his meeting with President Trump, Boyer described the thousands of great jobs available in trucking that he sees advertised on the highways of Virginia and Tennessee.

“David is a first-rate truck driver and representative of our industry, always jumping at a chance to talk about safety or share his trucking experiences with the motoring public,” said ATA EVP, Industry Affairs and COO Elisabeth Barna. “His commitment to the trucking industry, his family, and his company are as impressive as his safe driving record and we could not be more pleased that the selection committee chose David as the 2018 National Driver of the Year.”

In October, Boyer coordinated high school safety demonstrations through ATA’s Share the Road safety program, teaching thousands of Virginia and West Virginia students about truck blind spots, stopping distances and distracted driving. He hosts annual multi-week safety demonstrations for young drivers each year in Virginia and West Virginia.

As a prolific truck driving championships competitor at both the state and national levels, Boyer has won two state titles and appeared at the National Truck Driving Championships. He was also awarded the 2016 Virginia Governor’s Transportation Safety Award, which was presented by former Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe, named the 2018 Virginia Driver of the Year, and has been recognized with 39 years of annual safety awards. Boyer was named an America’s Road Team Captain in 2011.

Long Beach also played host to the presentation of several other key trucking safety and security awards.

The Trucking Association of New York was honored with the 2018 ATA Excellence in Safety Award, given annually to a state trucking association making innovative and impactful progress on promoting safety to their members. TANY hosted 13 safety council meetings, 28 education sessions, 6 Safety Breaks, and hosted a state truck driving championship for 88 truck drivers representing 21 motor carriers.

TANY staff and members are active in both the state and nationally, playing roles in the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance, North American Transportation Management Institute, and the Institute for Traffic Safety Management. Locally, they are active in the Share the Road Program and sit on advisory committees for training schools.

To keep their members informed, TANY publishes a quarterly magazine; distributes a monthly safety newsletter; and partnered with the US Department of Transportation, Transcom and their state Thruway Authority to disseminate crucial information concerning road closures, traffic and weather advisories.

The ATA President’s Award was given to three companies who exhibited safety excellence in their daily operations:

• Sinclair Trucking Company, a for-hire, tank truck and heavy hauler operation headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah for fleets operating less than 25 million miles annually;
• Cargo Transporters Inc., a for-hire, general commodities truckload motor carrier headquartered in Claremont, North Carolina and operating in the 48 contiguous states, for fleets between 25 million and 100 million miles and;
• Hub Group, a for-hire, intermodal operation, located in Chicago, Illinois and operates in 48 states for fleets with more than 100 million miles.

Security, an increasingly critical topic in the trucking industry, was also recognized at the conference. Wider Group Inc. was presented the Excellence in Security Award for the company’s strong human resource pre-employment practices including an internally developed risk analysis assessment; robust termination and administration procedures; a multi-tiered approach to twice-a-year security training; a dynamic security program monitoring adjustment protocol; an embrace of on-board and off-board security technologies; and, social media monitoring to ensure an enduring and protective culture as demonstrated by a 100% year-on-year reduction in the number of emergencies handled by the security team. The company’s culture of security has also been demonstrated by a two year run with no cargo thefts and no tractors or trailers stolen.

Old Dominion Freight Line claimed the Excellence in Claims and Loss Prevention Award for less-than-truckload carriers. The company showcased the ability to keep total company claims ratios and claims frequencies low; resolving 94% of claims in 30 days or less; experiencing a 14% decrease in total claims paid between 2016 and 2017; and, a 17% decrease in total dollars paid on claims during that same time period. Those results are attributed to significant and ongoing training efforts in the classroom, outside education, company-produced training videos and networked content, and an embrace of technology solutions.

M & W Transportation Inc. was named the winner of the Excellence in Claims and Loss Prevention Award for truckload carriers. Judges noted the company’s ability to keep total company claims ratios and claims frequencies low; increasing resolution of claims in 30 days or less by 58% year-over-year; experiencing a 32% decrease in total claims paid between 2016 and 2017; and, a 22% decrease in total dollars paid on claims during that same time period, can be attributed to solid transportation security and accident reporting planning, and robust employment policies.

In keeping with ATA’s efforts to engage the law enforcement community, SMC awarded the Cargo Theft Prevention Distinguished Service Award (sponsored by Wider Group, Inc.) to Special Agent Juan Rios, Texas Department of Public Safety’s Cargo Theft Task Force. This award is made based on recommendations by the council’s members, and recognizes a law enforcement professional or a law enforcement agency that has gone above and beyond to work with a motor carrier or the industry as a whole to better understand the nature of cargo theft, help to mitigate cargo theft, or provide extraordinary assistance in responding to a cargo theft incident.

ATA’s Safety Management Council and Transportation Security Council’s Safety, Security and Human Resources National Conference and Exhibition began Nov. 12 at The Hyatt Regency in Long Beach, California.