PROJECT: LEARNING FROM NEAR MISSES AND APPLYING THE PRESSURE

The National Bulk Tanker Association (NBTA), through the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator’s (NHVR) Heavy Vehicle Safety Initiative (HVSI), has delivered a project focused on using real-world trailer data to improve heavy vehicle safety outcomes.

For too long, safety analysis in the heavy vehicle industry has been largely reactive—focused on investigating incidents after they occur. This project demonstrates a more proactive approach: using existing in-vehicle systems to identify risk earlier and at scale.

The project brings together two complementary workstreams:

• Learning from Near Misses – analysis of Electronic Braking System (EBS) and Roll Stability System (RSS) events to identify where vehicles are operating close to safety limits
• Applying the Pressure – analysis of Tyre Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS) data to better understand tyre condition, alarm behaviour and early indicators of tyre-related risk

Overview

Using data from participating fleets, the project analysed tens of thousands of near-miss events and more than four million wheel-level TPMS records to build a clearer picture of real-world safety performance.

The analysis shows that existing trailer systems generate large volumes of safety-relevant data that can be used to:

• Identify high-risk routes, locations and operating conditions
• Detect emerging issues before they result in incidents
• Improve maintenance practices and system reliability
• Support better decision-making across fleets, drivers and regulators

Key Insights

• Near-miss events provide a practical leading indicator of safety risk, allowing earlier identification of high-risk locations and operating conditions
• Tyre performance varies by wheel position, with inner tyres more prone to under-inflation and outer tyres operating at higher pressures and temperatures
• True TPMS alarm events are rare, with the majority of system messages representing routine status reporting
• Data quality and system health are critical factors in ensuring safety systems operate as intended

Project Outputs

The project has delivered both public and industry-facing tools:

• A public interactive findings report presenting key insights, maps and analysis in an accessible format
• A private interactive dashboard for participating fleet managers, enabling deeper exploration of their own data and supporting day-to-day operational decision-making

View the public findings:
https://rollscope.seceda.au/pub

Industry Significance

This project demonstrates that the heavy vehicle industry already has access to the data needed to improve safety outcomes.

The opportunity now is to move beyond data collection and focus on turning data into insight, and insight into action.

By adopting a more proactive, data-driven approach, fleets and industry stakeholders can better understand emerging risks, improve system performance, and ultimately reduce the likelihood of serious incidents on the road.