Safety Training and Road Accident: Opinion Survey of Petroleum Tanker Drivers in Awka South, Anambra State, Nigeria

Abstract

The safety attitudes of petroleum tanker drivers (PTD) operating on Nigerian roads constitute a threat to the lives of road users. The mandate of this paper is to assess the views of petroleum tanker drivers operating in the organized petroleum transportation industry on the effect of training on road accidents. Specifically, it examined; the impact of pre-employment training on safety knowledge, factors that militate against the understanding of pre-employment training, unsafe driving attitude and assimilation level, and reasons for low adherence to implementation of road safety procedures among drivers. Domino Accident Theory was adopted to elucidate the research and 38 respondents were selected using a convenience sampling technique. Results showed that only 1 (2.6%) PTD agreed that the knowledge gained from pre-employment training has reduced his alcohol and drug abuse. In Figure 2, (50%) respondents opined that a low level of education negates proper comprehension of pre-employment training offered by their organizations. In Figure 3, the majority of the respondents, (26.3%) regard multiple vehicles overtaking as the major unsafe driving attitude exhibited on the job, while Figure 4 indicated that the belief in fatalism is primarily responsible for low adherence to safety procedures among most (39.4%) PTD. To eradicate these challenges, management should: adopt practical methods to address drug and alcohol abuse among petroleum tanker drivers, evaluate post-training programs, employ drivers with requisite formal education, and formulate training policies that will eradicate the belief that accident prevention is beyond human control.