Is Your Fleet Winter Ready? Tap Into Hyper-Local Temperature Mapping

By Daniel Lewis, Data Scientist at GEOTAB

The USDOT Federal Highway Administration data reports an average of 1,863 deaths, 136,309 injuries, and 536,731 crashes yearly due to cold and icy roads, on bridges in particular. Added to the 500 million-plus hours of weather-related delays on highways each year and with winter upon us, Fleet Managers are preparing for a possible loss in sales, and consequently dissatisfied customers. New technologies like hyper-local temperature mapping, enabled by Geotab’s vehicle tracking devices, provides a way to actively monitor road conditions without additional infrastructure.

The temperature change and presence of precipitation can potentially lead to dangerous ice formation on road surfaces. In the colder months, temperatures often fluctuate above and below freezing, making it challenging to prioritize locations for road salting. Bridges often drop in temperature faster than other roadways due to exposed upper and lower surfaces. With more than 600,000 bridges spanning America, hyper-local temperature mapping technology provides a crucial advantage to fleets and future smart cities, both financially and operationally.

The estimated cost of weather-related delays to trucking companies ranges from 2.2 billion dollars to 3.5 billion dollars annually. These technologies, like hyper-local temperature mapping, will aid in directing maintenance crews to areas of highest priorities, as well as help drivers en route based on current and expected road conditions, which will significantly lower these numbers.

Category: Driver Stuff, General Update, News, Safety