It's National Safety Month: Tips for Driving Safely

The National Safety Council, a non-profit organization with a mission to save lives by preventing injuries and deaths at work, recognizes June as National Safety Month. At Ruan, safety is our number one priority at all times. We do everything we can to ensure all of our team members return home safely each day.

To recognize the importance of safety, we’d like to share these tips for all drivers from Ruan’s Vice President of Safety Lisa Gonnerman.

• Stay focused to ensure you know where traffic is around you at all times. Treat the cars around you like your family is sitting in them
• Make sure a space is clear before moving into it. How can you make sure? By getting out and looking and conducting a 360-degree 4D walkaround. It only takes a minute. It’s worth it!
• Check your mirrors every five to nine seconds. Develop a scanning pattern such as:  right mirror, front window, left mirror, front window, front window, gauges and front window.  Inadequate mirror checks account for 60 percent of lane change and merging accidents 
• Remember to use SOS when changing lanes. Signal at least four clicks.Observetraffic to make sure it’s safe.Make a gradual, slow, smooth move into the other lane
• Look ahead on the road to prepare for what’s coming. On an open highway, look at least one quarter of a mile ahead. In the city, look ahead at least three city blocks and always look through curves and turns. Increase your following distance, doubling it as needed for adverse weather conditions.Check the weather forecast and have extra supplies ready in your vehicle
• Every time you couple to a trailer, you must do a visual check of the fifth-wheel mechanism to ensure it is properly hooked. This includes climbing under the unit and using a flashlight.  The motoring public traveling behind us are our family and friends—yours and mine. Do the visual check, every time