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Driving Out Of Control
- 1. Driving Out of Control: A Look of the Effects of Stressors on Urban Bus Drivers of the Rochester Transit System
- 2. Introduction
Editor's Notes
- This is the first part of proposal to the RTS towards improving drivers’ experiences, mental and physical health and to impact daily business practices at RTS. Final impacts will include Worker’s Comp costs Attrition, rehiring and training Retirement Health costs Human costs (behavior, Fares collected wear and tear on the buses
- I was a driver, friend who is a driver for school bus and one for RTS I was appalled by the statistics when I began this research I was also alarmed by the lack of or severe response to drivers by the management
- Bus drivers: Highest ranking health issues Positive correlations have been established between drivers’ work and the nature and the size of health problems due to ergonomics high psychological demands low autonomy, low support psychological problems They retire early due to medical disability (if they even reach the age of retirement) or job dissatisfaction Take more frequent leave of absences and sick days The duration of their absences are longer Physical health problems are well documented and include cardio vascular disease gastrointestinal disorders musculoskeletal problems. Have a higher work disability rate (twice as high as most civil servants), Have a risk of musculoskeletal disorders that is four times higher (than civil servants) Left service at a rate of 90% after 18 years of service for health reasons Mental health issues include Alcohol and drug use Depression Sleep disorders Family problems Fatigue Tension Mental overload Post Traumatic Stress Disorder In rare situations, paranoid ideation Kompier (no date) lists the top 6 reasons for drivers leaving the profession as 71% to have improved working hours 52% job stress (strenuous and rushed) 43% pay too low 35% family problems attributable to work schedule 32% health complaints 26% more interesting work
- Isolation and social support Passenger interaction limited Drivers maintain a professional relationship w/ passengers Minimal empathy to drivers from management, RTS non-drivers, riders Limited access to other drivers Limited access to those people in personal lives (scheduling, can’t always talk via phone, no opportunity) Social support is a form of stress reducer
- These can all delay the driver and prevent him/her from keeping on schedule and are unavoidable, unpredictable and out of the drivers’ control and cause the driver to react immediately while still making every effort to maintain the mandatory route schedule: Weather traffic road conditions customer interactions road accidents emergency vehicles and situations RTS scheduling rarely makes adequate allowances for these issues On time reports and navigation system – used to discipline instead of adjustment tool for scheduling also inaccurate drivers have no layovers encourages unsafe driving practices Ahead or behind schedule – riders, other drivers and RTS management angry No management support and little driver control Customer relations affected – not being able to take the time to answer questions breaking harder not waiting for passengers to sit before moving not having the time for customer interactions Drivers face the complicated task of keeping to the schedule (not running ahead or behind schedule) remaining service oriented to the customers driving safely This conflict of responsibilities causes a huge amount of stress among urban bus drivers. With few breaks in the day for drivers for recovery time, the stress builds throughout the day. ” It’s like riding a unicycle, dealing a deck of cards and spinning plates on a pole, it’s impossible. Something has to give. The customers end up being neglected and then they call in and complain because you don’t have the time to take care of them. I can ride the unicycle and deal the cards but I can’t spin the plates too, it’s impossible” Breaks - layovers and spread Much needed mental and physical break (rest room, food, drink, move around, phone calls) Spread – too erratic – too much/little time, can’t get home, can’t eat or take a break, stressful time off Affects physical and mental health
- Exterior distractions Bus maintenance physical comfort Illness mental health issues road conditions pedestrian and vehicular traffic Weather Accidents emergency and repair equipment The interior distractions are more related to driving a bus such as passengers entering, exiting, asking questions, even misbehaving, payments (fares are huge), interior space controls and fare box malfunctioning Ergonomics Temperature ringing of the bell Impact of bus malfunctioning Interactions with passengers, especially aggressive passengers, caused notable stress and fatigue in drivers. Fear of passenger aggression or attack is the primary cause of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in municipal bus drivers
- Drivers are listed as leaving service at an earlier age, having a higher work disability rate (twice as high as most civil servants), have a risk of musculoskeletal disorders that is four times higher (than civil servants) and left service at a rate of 90% after 18 years of service for health reasons They retire early due to medical disability (if they even reach the age of retirement) and take more frequent leave of absences and sick days Health problems due to Ergonomics high psychological demands low autonomy, low support psychological problems cardio vascular disease, gastrointestinal disorders and musculoskeletal problems. Cardio Vascular Disease sedentary lifestyle more obese have irregular eating habits smoke poor social networking including lack of control or managerial support tight schedules and long shifts due to long spread breaks relationship problems, poor social support and interaction, negative rider interactions alertness associated with driving increase of decision making and input into managerial decision making decreases systolic blood pressure, heart rate and self reported stress. Gastrointestinal Stress is a major contributing factor to gastrointestinal problems sedentary lifestyle poor eating habits strenuous work load and irregular schedules Musculoskeletal disorders were reduced from 255 cases to 10 with a sharp reduction of these stressors: stress due to high mental demands job dissatisfaction little decision making control low managerial support frequent job specific problems Musculoskeletal disorders causes: poor posture ergonomics of the seat, controls and cockpit driving position long hours behind the wheel vibration repetitive driver movements Bovenzi and Zadini (1992) list design deficiencies that cause musculoskeletal disorders Vibration a constant, static, seated position pedal location limited or no movement of the steering wheel lack of adjustability of the lumber support weakened springs of the seat (which reduces vibrations)
- Mental Issues: Alcohol and drug use Depression Sleep disorders Family problems Fatigue Tension Mental overload Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Paranoid ideation (in rare situations) The most frequently associated mental complaints of drivers are depression and anxiety More severe conditions of paranoid ideation and psychoticism are related to lower back pain and service length Post traumatic Stress Disorder has been directly related to passenger physical assault all related to psychosocial costs of the occupation few opportunities to indulge in a mental breaks Little human interaction lack of choices and managerial support drivers’ specific mental work load high pressure under strict scheduling Gastrointestinal disorders high blood pressure urine-adrenaline and cortisol levels Monotony is also linked with the use of drugs, drinking and smoking. Drug use pain relief sleep induction job strain lack of control and low managerial support scheduling especially with the use of stimulants (to remain awake during driving) Alcohol usage is linked to coping with these stressors and increases with the amount time served as a driver and is associated with driver burnout Increased levels of drug use is also associated with stress
- Scheduling – spread and layovers More time in schedule to make adjustments Driving demands – poor maintenance on busses, traffic, weather, passengers, physical and mental demands