Marshfield, WI-based Roehl Transport Inc. has been honored--for the second year in a row—with the Grand Prize in the 34th annual National Fleet Safety Awards program presented by the Truckload Carriers Assn. (TCA). Roehl (pronounced “Rail”) was deemed the safest company from among all large carriers, those with total annual mileage of at least 2- million miles.
Tom Witt, president of Roehl's flatbed & specialized division, accepted the award at the TCA’s Annual Banquet and Awards Dinner earlier this month in Las Vegas.
“We are honored to win this award once again,” said Witt. “Our safety record is a testament to the quality men and women who make up the Roehl Transport team. I am truly appreciative of them and accept this award on their behalf.”
According to the motor carrier, winning the top prize was a result of Roehl’s adherence to stringent safety programs—both on and off the road—and its commitment to improving overall highway safety. The Dept. of Transportation’s SafeStat reporting system consistently ranks Roehl as the safest large carrier in the United States, and its safety record in Canada is also excellent.
“Our unmatched commitment to safety is our most important corporate value,” said John Spiros, Roehl’s vp of safety, noting the company has worked hard to build a corporate culture that is based foremost on safety, even over traditional corporate values. “Everyone across our organization knows that safety is the cornerstone of everything we do,” he added.
While many carriers provide "defensive driving" courses to their drivers, Roehl’s system, called "The Roehl Way," teaches "protective driving." Each driver accepts responsibility for others who share the highway. Drivers are asked to think of each member of the driving public as "14," which is the number of people—parents, children, relatives, friends and loved ones—who die each day in accidents with commercial motor vehicles.
“We focus on the individual people who share the highways with us,” said Rick Roehl president & COO of Roehl Transport, Inc. “We teach our drivers and other employees to think of every driver as an individual and that helps instill a real sense of responsibility in each member of our team.”
“Not surprisingly, many professional drivers consider a company’s safety record alongside pay, benefits and home time when they evaluate a company,” commented Cindy Faber, Roehl's director of Driver Employment. “Many of our potential new drivers mention safety as a top reason they are interested in working with Roehl.”
Roehl Transport Inc., along with Erb International Inc., of New Hamburg, ON, (the winner among smaller companies—with total annual mileage of less than 25 million miles) will be recognized a second time during TCA’s upcoming Safety & Security Div. Annual Meeting, May 16-18, 2010, in Kansas City.
