The Truckload Carriers Association (TCA) has announced the grand prizewinners of the 2005 National Fleet Safety Awards.

Bison Transport of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, won in the category of companies operating over 25 million miles annually, and Rocha Transportation of Modesto, Calif., won in the category of companies operating under 25 million miles annually.
TCA presented the awards to Rob Penner, vice president, operations of Bison Transport, and Henry Dirksen, president of Rocha Transportation, at the annual Banquet and Awards Dinner this week at the Gaylord Palms Resort in Orlando, Fla.
The two fleets were selected from among 18 division winners in the National Fleet Safety Division Awards announced in January. Both companies strive to meet stringent standards in their overall safety programs, on and off highway, and were judged to be the best in their commitment to improving safety on our nation’s highways.
Bison Transport operates according to the philosophy, “we do what is right.” This means that safety expenditures are not subject to a cost benefit analysis because the company understands that the accident that you never had made the biggest difference of all. Bison drivers are empowered to make decisions as to whether they can complete a trip safely and legally, through “The Right to Decide Policy” and safe drivers are rewarded through the company’s Safe Driving Awards Program, which provides financial incentives to stay safe.
Bison was the first trucking company in Canada to purchase and employ simulators as part of its Tatonka training program. Bison’s commitment to safety spans training through entire trucking careers and explains why since 2002 their annual accumulated safe driving miles has increased by almost 50 percent.
Rocha Transport’s comprehensive safety program is the carrier’s highest priority because the company understands that the safer it is, the more profitable it is. The program is accomplished by creating a safe work environment, identifying and correcting safety issues, and awarding people for being safe. Safety is a business at Rocha – statistics are tracked to discover and correct unfavorable trends and an outside vendor is used to monitor the speed of drivers. Another key to the carrier’s success is its rapid response to safety concerns. For instance, after a number of backing accidents the company initiated the G.O.A.L. program, requiring drivers get out and look before backing, and succeeded in reduced backing accidents by 80 percent.