This project tested “WayPoint,” a web-based, non-verbal cognitive assessment tool, which has been shown to identify people who are at risk to drive various kinds of commercial motor vehicles. Waypoint Research Inc. (WRI) developed norms for drivers of long haul and local trucks. Test data was compared with the following criterion measures: preventable crashes, crash severity, and performance on a driver training range. WRI also replicated previous research showing a relationship between sleepiness and “WayPoint” score.
The test assessed the match between a driver’s channel capacity (speed of information processing) and his or her “situational awareness” (how aware the person is of the visual field). Potential applications for trucking companies that operate fleets of heavy trucks include driver selection, identification of drivers who would benefit most from training, a diagnostic for the kind of training that would be most effective, and for feedback to the driver.
Truck drivers from seven different truck fleet operators took the “WayPoint” test on the web in this project. The research was done in cooperation with seven trucking companies.
The revised Final Report for this project, addressing comments from committee members’ reviews, was submitted in October 2006. This project is completed.
The final report for this IDEA project can be found at:
