You should always exercise good business judgement while offering delivery services to ensure your safety and those of other Canadian residents!
Being on the road naturally comes with risks and hazards! As such, it’s very important you take precautions and measures to reduce risk and stay safe on the road!
Most importantly, anyone driving or riding is obliged to follow all laws, signage and rules, including management of your speed on the road. Furthermore, it is important to observe your surroundings and ensure safe road positioning to minimize road risk, ensuring that delivery runs are completed safely and without harm to yourself or others.
Here are some tips on how to be a safe, low-risk driver or rider.
Before getting on the road…
Understand the road rules
Road rules ensure the safe and efficient movement of traffic on roads. It is crucial to understand the rules and laws that apply to your state before getting on the road.
As a courier on the Skip network, it is your responsibility to be aware of and understand all local road rules applicable to you:
Maintain your vehicle
A major part of being a safe driver is having a safe vehicle.
Visit our post on how to maintain your vehicle for more information.
Observe your surroundings
Scanning is the key to good observation while driving. This is the process of ensuring that your eyes are constantly moving, by checking one area for a few seconds and then moving your eyes to another area. This allows any potential hazards to be identified allowing you to act accordingly.
When scanning the road, look:
- In the distance
- At the road surface
- To your left and right
- Regularly at your mirrors and instruments.
Manage your speed appropriately
It is important that you drive at a speed within the speed limit, that will allow you to react quickly if a hazard is encountered. Where potential hazards are present, reducing your speed increases your reaction time.
In difficult conditions such as when it is wet, icy or the road is unstable, slow down as it will take longer for your vehicle to come to a complete stop.
Position yourself on the road safely
When driving, you should maximize the distance between yourself and other vehicles. An example may be moving away from any parked cars to avoid any opening doors and pedestrians, or moving to the left when approaching the crest of the hill to create a ‘buffer’ from oncoming traffic.
Maintain a crash avoidance space
Couriers should maintain a crash avoidance distance – Travelers Canada recommends keeping a three-second gap between yourself and the vehicle ahead. In poor driving conditions, it is recommended to increase your crash avoidance space to at least four seconds. This gives you more time to react and respond to any hazards that may arise.
There is never a need to drive in an unsafe manner
While we offer an estimated delivery time when you accept an offer, please note that Skip’s technology updates in real-time. This means that the estimated delivery time is ever-changing to accommodate any unforeseen occurrence such as weather conditions, slow traffic, etc. to accommodate these factors. Skip regularly updates Stakeholders to ensure clarity on estimated delivery times so that couriers know there is never a need to drive in an unsafe manner to make the estimated time.
