Road Safety Plan Template

Use this section to build your road safety plan

document. It identifies the core elements of a
road safety plan and provides instructions and
links to the resources you’ll need for each section.
The template document is a framework that also
includes the instructions and links, but the output
is a polished plan document.

Get Ready
Before you set about drafting your road safety
plan, it’s important to understand what needs
to go into the plan. The sections below identify
key components and outline the steps to take
in building your plan so it accomplishes the
company’s safety objectives.

Get Going
The primary output is the “plan” itself – a
well-organized, comprehensive description of
the processes and actions the company will 2. Learn the 10 Essentials
implement to meet its road safety objectives. We consulted leading resources
This guide describes an ordered framework, to learn what companies and road
identifies helpful resources and provides safety professionals see as the key
examples you can use to accomplish that. characteristics of successful road safety
programs. Know the 10 Essentials is a guide
Get Started summarizing the elements your safety plan needs
to contain in order to be effective.
Before you set about drafting your road safety
plan, it’s important to understand what needs
to go into the plan. The sections below identify 3. Get Management
key components and outline the steps to take On-Board
in building your plan so it accomplishes the
company’s safety objectives. To be successful, the road safety
program needs dedicated support
from the leadership team. Create a solid business
1. Understand Legal case that fosters and secures their commitment.
Requirements Learn more at Get Management Commitment.
At a minimum, your road safety If the management team is unclear about the
plan should enable the company to meet its legal cost advantages of preventing work-related
obligations. Those basic requirements should crashes, or if they simply respond better to
steer the policies, procedures and practices hard numbers, use the MVI Cost Calculator to
that the management team, supervisors and demonstrate the real costs of motor vehicle
employees implement to ensure the safety of crashes.
employees when they drive for work.
4. Check the Gauges Example #1
The Road Safety Snapshot is a { insert company name } and its leadership team
quick ten-question online survey are committed to establishing and maintaining
to help you gauge the road safety attitudes workplaces - including vehicles used for work -
and perceptions of people in your organization; that meet regulatory requirements. To achieve
understanding those will help you set planning this, our company will establish, maintain and
priorities. You can also use this tool for continually improve a health and safety program
benchmarking and tracking progress over time.
designed to prevent injuries and diseases that
may arise from driving and collisions.
Get Going { insert company name } takes seriously its
The primary output is the “plan” itself – a responsibilities to ensure the safety of our
well-organized, comprehensive description of employees when they are driving for work. We
the processes and actions the company will will provide our employees with the training and
implement to meet its road safety objectives.
instruction necessary to ensure they are qualified
This guide describes an ordered framework,
and motivated to safely complete the work-
identifies helpful resources and provides
examples you can use to accomplish that. related driving they are assigned. We will ensure
that we have policies, procedures and practices
in place to accomplish those goals.
1. Health and Safety Policy
We will provide its supervisors with the
The health and safety policy should
training necessary to enable them to fulfill their
clarify leadership’s commitment
to safety, explain the company’s responsibilities to direct and control workplace
health and safety objectives, and identify the activity, orient new workers, provide training,
responsibilities of people in various positions or complete inspections and investigations, and
roles. Below are two example policies you can report and correct unsafe acts and conditions in
adapt to suit your company. Note that if your the workplace.
organization already has a safety program, it may We will support our employees so that they know
already include a sufficient policy statement.
and follow established safe work procedures,
correct hazards or report them, participate in
inspections, use personal protective equipment
and report near misses and incidents that result
in injuries or property damage. We will also
encourage and facilitate their participation in this
safety program.
Name: ___________________________________
Title: ____________________________________
Signature: ________________________________
Date: ____________________________________
Example #2 Regularly meet with employees to review the
{ insert company name } Occupational Driving safety program, discuss safety performance and
Health and Safety Policy collaborate on ways to improve the program and
our results.
{ insert company name } is committed to
safeguarding the well-being of our employees Name: ___________________________________
while they are at work, including when they are Title: ____________________________________
driving for work purposes. The company will
establish and implement policies and procedures Signature: ________________________________
aimed at ensuring the company meets its Date: ____________________________________
legal obligations. Similarly, we will support our
employees, supervisors and managers so they
can understand and fulfill their respective safety
2. Safety Responsibilities
responsibilities. Provide statements describing
responsibilities of people who hold
{ insert company name } will:
key roles in the organization.
a. Establish occupational safety policies and safe
• General responsibilities of senior management,
work procedures that, at a minimum, meet
including owners and directors
occupational health and safety requirements.
• General responsibilities of front-line managers
b. Communicate those policies and procedures
and supervisors
to employees so they understand them and
are able to apply them to their work. • General rights and responsibilities of workers
c. Explain to employees their workplace rights • (Joint) Occupational Health and Safety
and responsibilities. Committee members (JOHSC)
d. Ensure our employees receive the orientation Your statements should include but not limited
and training they need to complete their work to the following:
safely. • Who owns or is responsible for the plan
e. Engage competent supervisors who are (identify a role such as Operations Manager,
trained and accountable to fulfill their duties to Director of Health and Safety or Company
direct workplace activity, orient new workers, President rather than the name of a specific
provide instruction, complete inspections and person)
investigations, and report and correct unsafe • The duties and functions of the JOHSC
acts and conditions. and how employees will be encouraged
f. Make our employees and contractors aware of to participate in the committee and
known and reasonably foreseeable hazards, investigations
and take all reasonable precautions to protect • Who is responsible to communicate the
them from those hazards. program and its components to employees
g. Provide appropriate Personal Protective • Who is responsible to conduct specific
Equipment (PPE) and require employees to elements (e.g. risk assessments, draft
use it. policies and procedures, coordinate training,
h. Provide employees with access to our safety inspections, etc)
program as well as relevant health and safety • How often the safety plan will be reviewed;
information, including legislation. how employees, supervisors and JOHSC
i. Investigate motor vehicle incidents and members will participate in that review
significant near misses, and implement
corrective actions.
3. Identify Hazards and assessments (e.g., the Joint Occupational
Health and Safety Committee, or the Company
Assess Risks
Owner and the Worker Representative, etc.)
Understanding the driving-related
c. Identify how often risk assessments will be
hazards your employees encounter
completed. We recommend reviewing risks
and determining how much risk each of those
at least annually and after a crash occurs
hazards pose enables the organization to set
(to make sure your previous assessment
priorities for action. Think about the work-related
hasn’t under-estimated risks). Because work
driving employees do. Who is driving? What
circumstances, routes, people and vehicles
vehicles do they drive (personal or fleet)? What
can change frequently, it’s a good idea to
sort of driving do they do (deliveries, passenger
have the safety committee think about new or
transport, client visits, etc.)? In what conditions
emerging risks at their monthly meetings.
does it occur (winter, resource roads, busy
city streets, etc.)? The risk ranking you assign d. Include a copy of the current risk assessment
to each hazard should determine how much output. If you are using the Risk Assessment
effort the company invests to design and apply online tool, print out a copy of the Risk
controls (policies, procedures, practices) aimed Assessment Action Plan Summary and put it in
at eliminating or controlling exposure to that your safety plan binder.
hazard.
There are several tools and resources to help you. 4. Establish Metrics and Set
The Hazard ID and Risk Assessment web section Targets
explains two risk assessment processes you can Completing the risk assessment
use to identify and categorize the hazards your process provides a clearer picture
drivers encounter, and systematically evaluate of the risks your plan needs to minimize. To
associated risks and establish priorities to control learn more about setting reasonable goals and
those risks. measuring progress, see Establish Metrics and
Risk Assessment is an all-in-one online tool used Set Targets.
to identify, evaluate and prioritize the driving-
related hazards your employees encounter. It 5. Build Effective Control
suggests controls you can implement to address
priority hazards and points you to resources to Measures
help you build them. Login and get started. The next step is to write down the
The Road Safety Risk Profile online tool is a quick measures that will be implemented to minimize
way to evaluate risk factors associated with exposure to identified hazards. An effective road
employees (or potential employees), the journeys safety plan has policies that guide the decisions
they make and the vehicles they use. Resulting and actions of drivers, supervisors and managers
scores identify key areas of exposure; feedback (e.g. vehicle selection, orientation, distracted
points you to tools and resources you can use to driving). Safe work procedures describe
address those exposures. more specific steps or practices (e.g. vehicle
inspection, driver assessment, trip planning).
Once you are familiar with risk assessment Some organizations use rules, standards or
concepts and how to apply them, you are ready guidelines (e.g. safe driving rules, driver training
to explain your process in your road safety plan. standard, hiring guideline). Together, these are
Your plan should: the controls that the company and its employees
a. Identify the process you will use to identify will apply to minimize exposure to driving-related
hazards and assess risk (e.g., use the Road hazards.
Safety At Work Risk Assessment online tool) Each of the following sections identifies a topic
b. Identify who or what group will conduct risk or component that a comprehensive road safety
plan must address. There are questions and • Do they need to complete training so they
decision criteria that you should consider as you have the skills to deal with the winter driving
develop control measures. Links connect you to they encounter?
helpful tools and resources, and in some cases • Do some driving roles require a minimum
provide examples you can copy and adjust to amount of experience? Does that vary with
suit your needs. Remember, as you build your the type of vehicle they use and the driving
controls, the objective is to clearly explain what conditions they will encounter?
people in your company will do to prevent work-
related crashes and associated injuries. Checking driver abstracts is a basic way to
see whether an employee is legally authorized
to drive (i.e. has a suitable and valid licence).
Drafting Policies and Procedures
Abstracts also show penalty points the driver has
Policies and procedures play an integral been assessed and the associated violations. The
role in your plan. To sharpen your policy plan should explain:
and procedure writing skills check out the
• How often employees will be required to
Building Strong Road Safety Policies and the
provide a current driver’s abstract – pre-hire,
Safe Work Procedures web sections. Take a few
every three years, annually or quarterly
minutes to become familiar with the Hierarchy of
Controls. This framework will help you identify • Who will review abstracts
the range of tools or methods that are available • Penalty point thresholds – what steps the
to eliminate or minimize exposure to driving- company will take when an abstract shows a
related hazards, and which ones are most likely driver has received penalty points, how many
to be effective in accomplishing your goals. Learn points is “too many”, etc.
more in the Controlling Hazards section of our
• That employees are required to tell their
website.
employer when the employee’s licence is
suspended or if they have a medical condition
Confirm Driver Qualifications that could affect their ability to operate a
Each employer is required to ensure motor vehicle
that their employees are qualified to For more on checking driver records, go to the
operate the vehicles they use for work. Your Driver Qualifications pages.
safety plan should have policy and procedures
describing the standards and processes the Most employers recognize that simply having
organization will use to confirm its employees a valid driver’s licence isn’t sufficient evidence
have the necessary skills, behaviours and that an individual has all of the right driving
certifications for the driving you assign them. skills and behaviours. Another way to evaluate
competency is to observe their skills and
If employees drive a variety of vehicles in a behaviours during ride-alongs with supervisors
range of circumstances, they may need a variety or third-party instructors. Your policy should
of qualifications (e.g. class of driver’s licence, explain:
specific endorsements, driver training, etc.). The
policies and procedures you develop should • The process that will be used to evaluate each
address the following questions. driver’s skills and behaviours to determine if
they are appropriate for the driving they will
• Does the employee have a valid licence? Is it do at your workplace
the appropriate class? Do they need additional
endorsements? • How often that will occur (e.g., at time of hire,
every two or three years)
• Will they tow trailers or haul loads that require
special certification? • What will be done to address any skill gaps
those evaluations identify
For more on practices that belong in your Make sure your road safety plan includes a
road safety plan, review the Confirm Driver method of ensuring employees are properly
Competence. The Driver Assessment Tool is a informed about the vehicles, policies, processes
hands-on driver evaluation tool available for your and people in their new workplace.
use.
Young or New Workers
Provide Necessary Training Your road safety program should be
It’s rare that an employee arrives designed to apply to all employees who
at a workplace knowing everything drive in the course of their work, but it
they need to know to do the new should give special consideration to young or
job correctly, and as the employer expects - new workers.
that includes driving. Employers have a duty Young workers usually don’t have the driving or
to provide the orientation and training their life experience that older, seasoned drivers have.
employees need to safely complete driving And, young workers are often at greater risk of
assignments. Unless it’s addressed elsewhere in injury because of inadequate training, orientation
the company’s procedures (e.g. in the human or supervision, because of inexperience or
resources hiring or on-boarding process), your because of a lack of awareness of workplace
road safety plan is a great place to describe how rights and responsibilities, and a reluctance to ask
employees will get the orientation and training questions. Your safety plan should address these
they need. To build that procedure, consider the questions.
following questions.
• What process will the company use to evaluate
• What general driving skills do all employees driving skills, and identify training needs?
need? Which vehicles, routes or circumstances
require specialized skills? • What extra training and orientation is
necessary to prepare these workers for the
• What education, training and instructional driving they will do? Can the organization
resources are available to provide and build augment training by mentoring new hires?
those skills?
• What additional supervisory controls will be
• What methods are most effective in put in place? Will supervisors do more ride-
developing requisite abilities? What methods alongs or coaching sessions during the first
will you use to verify competency (e.g. “show three to six months of each young or new
me” evaluation, written test, oral quiz)? workers employment?
• How often will education be reinforced and • Are there certain driving assignments (e.g.,
updated? routes, vehicles, schedules, duration, etc.)
It is important to ensure that education and supervisors cannot assign a new or young
training fit your employees and our workplace. driver until they have demonstrated necessary
It needs to be targeted, timely and useful to the skills?
employee. • In some organizations, drivers are asked to
operate out of multiple work hubs, travel
Conduct Thorough Orientations between regions and work at different sites.
Receiving a thorough orientation of If driving rules and protocols vary from
their workplace is a critical factor in the location to location, what measures are in
success of every new hire. Even when place to ensure drivers are oriented to local
you hire a driver who seems to have a wealth of procedures?
driving experience, they won’t be familiar with
the unique characteristics of your workplace.
• Any vehicle or vehicle type that an employee • self-assessment to confirm fitness to drive
has not previously operated is a new. For before operating a vehicle
example, even though your employee has • not smoking in work vehicles
shown their abilities to operate a 2014 one-
ton van, they don’t necessarily have the skills • transportation of flammable, volatile or
to operate the 2019 three-ton delivery truck. otherwise hazardous materials goods
Does your safety plan include measures to
orient workers to new vehicles, routes and Distracted Driving
locations? Driving while distracted is a leading
cause of crashes, injuries and fatalities.
General Driving Rules Talking or texting on a phone while
The driving employees do is governed driving is the biggest part of the problem. Too
by legal requirements – the Ontario many drivers – owners, managers, supervisors
Highway Traffic Act and Regulations and others. and employees of every sort – engage in cell
Although you expect employees to know and phone conversations, fiddle with the navigation
apply those rules, there is significant value in the system or eat, drink or smoke when they should
company simply stating it expects employees be giving their full attention to their driving
will obey those laws when driving for work. responsibilities.
The company may also have specific driving Your road safety plan should include clear
practices it expects employees to apply. Clarify policies and procedures explaining how
expectations in a set of straight-forward one or employees will avoid driving while distracted.
two-sentence driving rules. Key topics to address Learn more on our Distracted Driving web page.
include:
• seatbelt use Fatigue Management
• observing and obeying posted speed limits Fatigue is a leading contributor to
• compliance with Electronic Communication crashes. Acute and accumulated driver
Devices laws and the company’s Distracted fatigue present significant hazards in many
Driving Policy workplaces especially those with night or early
shift driving, long-duration driving, or long work
• prohibition against operating a vehicle when days with site to site driving or long drives at
impaired by fatigue, alcohol or prescription/ either end of the shift.
non-prescription/illicit drugs
Your road safety plan should describe the steps
• expectations of the conduct and activities of the organization and its employees will take to
passengers if allowed (e.g. no horseplay) recognize, address and combat fatigue. To help
• whether employees are permitted to carry develop your policies and procedures, visit our
pets in work vehicles Fatigue Management section.
• cargo securement
Impairment
• ergonomics – adjusting mirrors, seat and
headrest before driving, taking breaks during While fatigue is an increasingly
long trips, organizing and stowing items in the common factor that affects a
cab, etc. worker’s ability to safely perform assigned
driving, employers need to also be prepared with
• rules for operating a motor vehicle on a work
policies to also deal with impairment by alcohol
site or in restricted zones
and drugs, including prescription drugs and illicit
drugs such as cannabis.
As a starting point, employers should develop Vehicle Selection
and communicate policies stating: Whether they are company-owned or
• The company’s definition of impairment employee-owned, make sure vehicles
(which must meet or exceed legal definitions) used for work are fit for the purposes
• That employees may not drive while impaired, they are used. Work vehicles need to be of
and that the company will not assign nor a suitable type and configuration and have
permit employees to drive while impaired the right equipment so they are capable of
performing intended tasks. See Employee Use of
• That any worker with a physical or mental Own Vehicle for Work example policy.
impairment which may affect their ability to
drive safely must inform his or her supervisor There is an increasing array of vehicle
or employer of the impairment, and must not technologies and features that can improve the
drive if the impairment may create an undue safety of work vehicles. Learn more about what
risk to the worker or anyone else. those features do, and which ones make sense
for your operations.
• That a person must not enter or remain at
any workplace while their ability to work is
Vehicle Inspections
affected by alcohol, a drug or other substance
so as to endanger the person or anyone else, Employers are legally required to
and that the employer will not permit a person see that vehicles used for work are
to remain at any workplace while the person’s inspected before the start of the shift, and as
ability to work is affected by alcohol, a drug or necessary during the day to ensure the safe
other substance so as to endanger the person operating condition of the equipment. Regular,
or anyone else. thorough inspections identify defects before
they can contribute to a crash.
Learn more at Canadian Centre for Occupational
Safety. Your safety plan should include a procedure
describing:
Journey Management • How often work vehicles will be inspected
Driving is one of the riskiest activities • Who will conduct inspections
your employees will undertake. A journey • The steps involved in inspections, and the
management process will help your organization items to be inspected
find ways to avoid exposure to driving-related
hazards, and identify the steps for managing • The process or form that will be used to
risks when driving is necessary. record inspections
Journey management policies, procedures and • The process that will be used to report
practices are crucial elements of any successful mechanical concerns or defects requiring
road safety plan. To get started, visit our repair to the supervisor or employer
Journey Management web pages. Pay particular • What conditions or defects will preclude a
attention to Trip Planning and Check-In Systems vehicle being used for work
employees can use whether driving (working)
Go to our Vehicle Inspections web section to
alone or with others. Take advantage of the
access a variety of forms available for your
example forms – modify them so they fit your
use, as well as tips on how to conduct effective
organization’s needs.
vehicle inspections.
Vehicle Maintenance To help protect all parties, state that employees
Workplaces demand a lot from must insure their vehicle according to the correct
vehicles. Regular maintenance helps those rate class, and that employees provide the
vehicles perform reliably and ensure that defects employer with a copy of valid insurance before
don’t contribute to downtime – or a costlier using that vehicle for work.
crash. To make sure employees are clear on
how the organization expects vehicles to be Rental Vehicles
maintained, write down the process in a vehicle Safety obligations also apply to rental
maintenance policy. vehicles (including hourly rentals)
Quite often, the vehicle’s Owner’s Manual will used for work. If your organization will be using
describe recommended maintenance intervals. rental vehicles for work, provide guidance on
how those vehicles will be selected, inspected
Employee-Owned Vehicles Used For and used. Your procedures should address such
as:
Work
• What approvals or authorizations are required
An employer’s duties to ensure
before a vehicle is rented / used for work?
employee safety while driving for work
apply equally whether that employee is driving a • How will the company ensure rental vehicles
company-owned or employee-owned vehicle. are configured for intended use and equipped
for road and weather conditions (e.g. has
In practical terms, your road safety plan should
emergency kit and winter tires)? Can a
be constructed so that its policies, procedures
preferred vendor reliably meet your needs?
and practices can be efficiently applied to
both fleet and grey fleet vehicles. Early in the • Will the driver inspect the rental vehicle
document, state that the plan applies to both before using it? How will they deal with
vehicle types, and their drivers. If there are deficiencies?
special requirements, exclusions or exceptions
that apply to grey fleet vehicles, state them in the Vehicle Emergency Kits
specific policy or procedure.
A properly stocked and maintained
To make sure that employee-owned vehicles vehicle emergency kit is great way
used for work are fit for purpose and measure to ensure each driver is prepared to deal with
up to company requirements, explain those roadside emergencies. What belongs in those
requirements in a policy. For an example policy, kits depends on the driving circumstances and
see Employee Use of Own Vehicle for Work. conditions that driver is likely to encounter. Each
work vehicle should carry a basic emergency kit,
Insuring Employee-Owned Vehicles and add items to handle winter driving or travel
Used For Work in remote locations.

The safety plan is also a good

place to state the types (e.g. liability, collision, Supervision
comprehensive, cargo, etc.) and amounts of Supervising mobile employees
insurance coverage that grey fleet vehicle owners requires a little more ingenuity than
must have in place before they can use their supervising location-based employees.
vehicle for work. Those requirements may, or may It’s difficult to observe a worker when their
not, match the amounts the company applies to mobile workplace is many kilometres from the
company-owned vehicles. supervisor’s office. Nonetheless, employers have
duties to provide necessary supervision.
Your plan should explain the steps that
supervisors will take to meet obligations.
Questions such procedures should address • An effective mechanism for investigating
include: incidents, learning from them and
• How will supervisors make employees aware implementing appropriate corrective actions
of known and foreseeable driving-related
hazards? Disciplinary Process
• How will supervisors satisfy their duty to Although a road safety plan is
ensure the safety of drivers under their developed and presented as a tool
supervision? for success, every organization
could encounter circumstances in which an
• Will supervisors conduct regular ride-alongs
employee fails to comply with legal or company
to observe and evaluate driver skills and
requirements. It may be necessary to implement
behaviours?
disciplinary measures to secure correct
• How often will such “inspections” occur? What behaviours. All parties – employers, supervisors
items will supervisors observe and evaluate? and drivers – benefit when the organization
• What documentation is necessary? What thinks about what those measures will be, and
feedback is provided to each employee? writes them down in a policy or procedure well
before such situations arise.
Learn more at Provide Necessary Supervision.
In terms of road safety, your process or policy
should contemplate the following questions.
Contractor Management
• What range of measures may be implemented
If your organization hires contractors
– coaching discussions, training and re-
or sub-contractors, the safety plan
training, temporary suspension or restriction
needs to explain how the company
of driving assignments, letters to employee
will interact with those contractors to meet
files, termination?
accountabilities (e.g. pre-hire contractor
evaluation, periodic inspections). If contractor • What actions will be taken if an employee
employees work with your employees or another incurs moving violations and/or accumulates
employer’s workers, establish processes to too many driving penalty points? How many is
ensure work proceeds in a safe and coordinated too many?
manner (e.g. establish prime contractor). Include • What action will be taken if an employee is
a contractor management process that explains involved in repeated at-fault crashes?
those practices and processes.
• What steps will the company take in response
to serious driving infractions (e.g. that result in
Report and Investigate Motor Vehicle the company vehicle being impounded or that
Incidents cause substantial property damage or injury)?
As unwelcome as they are, motor vehicle • If the company determines that because
incidents are opportunities to learn about the of repeated driving non-compliance, it is
gaps in your system that enabled or allowed necessary to assign an employee to duties
the incident to occur. To take advantage of such that do not include driving, what steps will
opportunities, the organization needs to be the employee and company undertake before
prepared with: those privileges and work are returned?
• An emergency response process
• An understanding of reporting requirements
• A policy explaining which incidents will be
investigated
6. Putting It All Together existing plan. Build the policies and procedures
in the format that managers and employees
Now that the team has invested considerable
are already accustomed to seeing. Use similar
effort in a plan, the next step is to assemble the
document layout, headings and fonts so that
product. If your organization already has a safety
road safety easily becomes part of the existing
plan, your work should focus on integrating the
plan.
road safety elements you’ve created into that

In collaboration with WorkSafeBC. The information contained in this document is for educational purposes only. It is not intended to provide legal or other advice to you, and you should not rely upon the information to
provide any such advice. We believe the information provided is accurate and complete; however, we do not provide any warranty, express or implied, of its accuracy or completeness. Neither IHSA, WorkSafeBC, nor Road
Safety at Work shall be liable in any manner or to any extent for any direct, indirect, special, incidental or consequential damages, losses or expenses arising out of the use of this form. September 2018.