The Asset of a
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Well-trained Driver
Keen Selection of Applicants and the Institution of Thorough Tests are Important
NOT long ago anyone could obtain a driver's licence merely on application and by payment of the necessary fee. No matter whether the applicant was deaf, dumb, blind, or crippled —all were treated alike. That state of things has passed, and to-day if an applicant be not physically fit, within reasonable limits, a licence is not likely to be granted.
The paramount importance of employing only first-class drivers is now generally realized by road-transport operators, and great care is taken by owners of commercial vehicles in the selection of their men. It is also fully appreciated ,by employers that the renewal of their vehicle licences may well be jeopardized if they employ incompetent drivers. An intelligent man behind the wheel can, however, be much more than a driver, he can also be a keen salesman of road transport.
A Difficult Task.
The selection of suitable men to operate efficiently a fleet of commercial vehicles is by no means an easy job. It is probably correct to say that only about one in ten of the available men comes up to the required standard of being not only an expert driver, with a full and sufficient road sense, but one who can also pass the necessary psychological test.
Long experience in these matters has caused some concerns to insist that an applicant for a position as a driver shall not only be of good appearance and character and furnish satisfactory references as to character and ability, but shall also hold a H.G.V. driving licence, submit himself to a driving test by the company's examiner, and be willing to be engaged on a month's trial. Furthermore, he must be familiar with the district in which he will have to work and the class of customer to whom deliveries are to be made.
Psychology and the Driver.
It may be mentioned that for some years past the National Institute of Industrial Psychology has given considerable attention to the problem of the road-vehicle driver and, as a result, it has evolved a series of very useful tests. The tests measure both actual and potential driving ability and include measurements of reaction time, resistance to distraction, vigilance, visual acuity, visual co-ordination and judgment of size, speed and spacial relationships. As to the practical value of these tests it may be mentioned that the Eagle, Star and British Dominion. Insurance Co., Ltd., and the Premier Motor Policies, Ltd., grant a rebate of 10 per cent.' on insurance premiums to those who have secured the Institute's Class A certificate, and 5 per cent, to these ' who have secured the Class B certificate. There are some people who hold the view that a driver of a car is born and not made, and that the less he knows about the intricate mechanism of his vehicle the better. They are, of course, fully entitled to-their opinion. On the other hand, there are many others who are of the opinion that, provided a man has some .nous, and is ready and willing to learn, he can be taught at least the first principles of good driving, and probably trained to be a first-class man.
The writer subscribes to the latter view and suggests that, in his opinion, the driver of a vehicle cannot know too much about the property entrusted to his care. Furthermore, an owner is unfair, both to himself and his employee, if he sends a man out on a journey knowing nothing of the machine in his charge-and, therefore, at the Mercy of any repair agency should anything go
wrong en route. ' Assuming that a man is a likeable fellow, but a veritable greenhorn so far as mechanics are concerned, and that it _ . . .
is decided to try to lick him, into shape, he can be put to work in the garage as a cleaner or assistant to a fitter and thus be educated with regard to those
matters which affect public safety. He will also learn about the components most likely to give trouble, or cause involuntary stoppages on the road.
Armed with this, working knowledge of a vehicle the man will be able, when. he becomes a fully fledged driver, to assist the maintenance staff to some degree, for he will be in a position to diagnose trouble and send in an accurate report.
A Disciple of the Road
As previously indicated, the driver can also be trained to talk mechanical road transport at every convenient opportunity, and so help to push the sale of the commodity with which he is primarily concerned and upon which, incidentally, he depends for his living. If he be a keen, intelligent man, he should be able to do a great deal in this direction, But, of course, he must be carefully coached and must be provided with plenty of sales talk, as to the more rapid and safer transit effected by the up-to-date commercial vehicle, the consequent elimination of vexatious claims for damage en route, the great convenience of door-to-door delivery and so on. He must be told when to introduce the subject and to whom and, if the man be rewarded on a commission basis for any legitimate new business which he may introduce, the results are likely to be highly satisfactory both to the employer and the employee.
There is, without doubt, plenty of scope for the well-trained driver-salesman and, in view of the importance of publicising road transport on every possible occasion, owners might well pay even greater attention to this aspect of driver-training.