Truck drivers and transport companies now feel much safer on the road as their trucks are equipped with a camera on the windshield.
“It relieves me of a lot of stress,” explains Sylvain Bouchard, a 47-year-old truck driver, pointing to his dashcam.
Sylvain Bouchard, 47, has been driving on the roads of Quebec, Canada and the United States for more than 20 years and has noticed that the behavior of road users has worsened since the pandemic as they become more reckless and put themselves in danger. CLARA LOISEAU, THE MONTREAL JOURNAL
Although he admits that at first he was rather hesitant about the idea of having a camera in his cabin that would watch his every move, today he has no regrets at all about having this device that films continuously. .
“For example, the camera records 30 seconds before and 1 minute after hard braking, a sharp turn or during a collision,” he explains.
Like Sylvain Bouchard, many truck drivers say they are often singled out in collisions or accidents.
66%
According to SAAQ, between 2007 and 2011, other road users were responsible in 66% of fatal accidents involving at least one heavy vehicle, according to data compiled by an analytical committee.
“We are big and impressive, so we are scary. “We often say it’s our fault,” adds Serge Larue, a former truck driver now a trainer at a transport company.
An important witness
The on-board camera therefore becomes an important witness, says Marie-Ève Vaillancourt, a 41-year-old truck driver who admits that thanks to this technology she feels safer on the road.
“This shows that we drove well,” explains the woman, who has been driving a truck for a year and a half.
For Serge Larue, the camera has become an indispensable tool.
“These cameras can protect our drivers who are accused of driving, but they are also used to see how our drivers are driving to refocus them and tell them to be careful,” he explains.
When he receives images from the cameras of the 80 drivers he monitors, Mr. Larue assures that in 95% of cases the camera was activated due to dangerous behavior by other road users.
“The remaining 5% are dangerous behaviors of drivers that result in disciplinary action,” assures the man who analyzes the videos of his company’s drivers.
Do some prevention
On social networks you can see images of these small cameras accompanying truckers more and more often.
“Thanks to these technologies that make it possible to document these behaviors and raise people’s awareness, we are observing many deviant and very dangerous behaviors,” estimates Martin Lavallière, professor at the University of Quebec in Chicoutimi and member of the network. Road Safety Research (RRSR).
There aren’t enough police officers, truckers say
The number of police officers deployed for surveillance is not keeping pace with the increase in dangerous behavior by users who violate road safety regulations, several truck drivers regret.
“I drive hundreds of kilometers every day on busy roads and often don’t see any police officers,” says Marie-Ève Vaillancourt, a 41-year-old truck driver.
Of the 1,200 km covered in three days with three truckers, Le Journal saw only two police cars, including one attending an accident.
Sûreté du Québec police officers during a radar operation on Highway 30 on October 17. Pierre-Paul Poulin, Le Journal de Montréal / QMI Agency
“Even in the morning, in places where there is daily traffic and dangerous behavior, there are no police,” breathes Katherine Maillé, a trucker who regularly has to drive around the Champlain Bridge in particular.
For both road vehicles, it is clear that this lack of police presence is driving many road users to be reckless.
“This also applies to truck drivers! Many are not careful and behave dangerously,” adds Katherine Maillé, a trucker for around 10 years.
Phones and even tablets
For the three truckers, phones while driving and sometimes tablets are one of the main problems on the road, as the Journal representative observed.
“If the police were on the road for a month and only looked at cell phones while driving, it would rain tickets,” says Mr. Bouchard.
Additionally, the Quebec Association of Directors of Police (ADPQ) announced on October 4 that in 2022, more than 50% of bodily injury accidents, including fatalities, were caused by distracted driving.
“At night we see them more often because people are illuminated by the light from their screens, but during the day we see them with the phone in their hand, on their thighs, between their legs. We see everything from our trucks,” describes Marie-Ève Vaillancourt.
Stop reporting
To report certain dangerous behaviors on the road, Sylvain Bouchard would sometimes call *4141, an exclusive number to reach emergency services en route.
“But I stopped because I really feel like it’s pointless. “I’ve never seen a police car coming down the street, not even when I told them there was a guy drinking his beer and driving sideways,” he explains desperately.
“We see so much dangerous behavior on the streets and often in the same places all day long, but we don’t see any police officers,” laments Mr Bouchard.
In 2022, 392 people died on Quebec roads, an increase of about 13% compared to the previous year and the worst result since 2013, according to the latest road safety report from the Société de Quebec Automotive Insurance (SAAQ).
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