Verizon Connect has found that commercial drivers operate vehicles without a seat belt fastened in one out of every 10 instances, according to May 2023 research by the Data Science Team at Verizon Connect, in an investigation of 7 million+ videos from Verizon Connect’s own dashcam footage. The findings of the report reflect a related, worrying trend: a growing number of fatalities among unfastened commercial drivers, with 64 percent of trucking drivers killed in automobile accidents not wearing seat belts.
The Verizon Connect study also revealed that 40 percent of all videos showed a vehicle exceeding the posted speed limit. For more than two decades, speeding has contributed to approximately one-third of all motor vehicle fatalities. In 2021, speeding was a factor in 29% of all traffic fatalities.
Given this information, now more than ever, Verizon Connect is committed to providing additional context in each video so fleet managers can more efficiently analyze, classify and prioritize harsh driving events.
“Video is a transformational medium for fleets, boosting operations as well as driver safety. Our research and ongoing enhancements to Verizon Connect’s Integrated Video are part of our commitment to provide our customers with a best-in-class experience when it comes to fleet management,” said Lisa Donnelly, associate director of product management, Verizon Connect. “They will provide greater actionable insights and the ability to improve coaching for drivers, which we know is key for our customers.”
Based on the aforementioned research, Verizon Connect has launched enhancements, including new AI tags for speeding and unfastened seat belt detection.
New AI tags for Speeding and Unfastened Seat Belt Detection
Using their findings, Verizon Connect has announced a series of new AI Dashcam enhancements delivered in Q2 2023. These enhancements include new AI tags for speeding and unfastened seat belt detection for driver safety and opportunities for driver coaching.
Verizon Connect’s Cloud AI (Video Analytics Engine) provides additional context to each video so that fleet managers cut down the time needed to understand what needs their immediate attention. With Cloud AI analysis, fleet managers can view each video with severity labeled alongside additional tags including tailgating, rolling stop and phone distraction. By enhancing its Cloud AI to identify and tag speeding and unfastened seat belt events, Verizon Connect enables fleet managers to zero-in on opportunities to coach driving behaviors.
Camera Health and Increased Capacity: 256 GB SD Card
Dashcam reliability is key to detecting driver issues, such as seat belt use and speeding. Camera Health makes Integrated Video customers aware of issues with their dashcams and provides self-remediation steps to resolve the issues. With the diagnosis and self-remediation provided by Camera Health, customers are able to resolve issues.
In addition, Verizon Connect now offers a 256 GB SD card option, which allows Verizon Connect AI Dashcam users the ability to store and retrieve more on-demand video clips. With the 256 GB SD Card, dashcams can now store approximately 170 recording hours on a road-facing camera and 115 hours on a dual camera.
As these video clips are often used to provide evidence against false claims, recall context of road rage incidents or share footage of events when driver safety was compromised, this expanded option is designed for customers that are out of network coverage for extended periods of time, increasing the ability to capture more footage.
IRONPROS Perspective
In the early days, AI dashcams used to be viewed as an optional accessory to have inside trucks. No one really knew yet how effective the technology would be or its true potential in keeping roadways safe.
This report shows that AI dashcams are quickly becoming essential tools for fleet management. The data highlighted in the study are too critical to ignore: 40 percent of dashcam videos displayed drivers exceeding the speed limit and commercial drivers operate vehicles without a seat belt in one out of 10 instances.
It seems that addressing these two frequently overlooked factors can make a huge difference in reducing fleet-related driving fatalities and injuries. Verizon Connect’s response to the findings (in the form of new AI tags to easily detect such occurrences) shows how powerful data-driven features can be in supporting proactive fleet safety measures.
