STERLING, Va. Teaching newly hired drivers how to safely operate a motorcoach shouldnt end when theyve successfully completed the companys training course for new drivers.

Instead, the classroom and behind-the-wheel training that most operators offer their recruits should be considered just the beginning.

"You (also) need a very good in-service training program because you need to train them after theyve been hired," safety consultant Tom Carrigan of Deacher Consulting Group told operators at the sixth annual Safety Management Seminar sponsored by the United Motorcoach Association.

He said regular follow-up training should be conducted for all drivers and special sessions should be developed for individual drivers who require additional one-on-one training to eliminate specific problems.

In addition, he emphasized that drivers also need to be monitored on a regular basis to make sure they are not overlooking or ignoring company policies and procedures or picking up bad habits.

"Many fleet managers wait for a crash and then react to it by looking into bad driving habits," he added.

The monitoring, which can be done by ride-along observations, video cameras, onboard recorders or other methods, are good ways to find out if a driver has developed any bad driving habits that could lead to an accident or other problems.

Carrigan said some long-time drivers tend to repeat and stretch dangerous driving habits because they have been doing it for a long time without any negative consequences.

"With following too closely, four seconds eventually becomes three and a half seconds and three and a half seconds becomes three seconds," he said. "If you leave drivers out there long enough, theyre going to get comfortable."

He also recommends that all training courses - the material and the drivers in attendance - be carefully documented.

"The lack of documentation may come back and bite you some day," he emphasized. "The driver who follows too closely can come back and say they were never told about that four-second rule."

With proper documentation, the driver can be shown that the rule was discussed during an in-service training session that he or she attended.

If an accident does occur, the driver should not only be quizzed about how it happened but also be encouraged to discuss things that possibly should or could have been done differently to avoid the incident. Such a discussion is likely to uncover a bad driving habit that could be corrected so a similar incident is not repeated.

Carrigan also reminded operators of the importance of training drivers on new models of coaches that are added to the fleet and when new equipment is installed on existing buses.

Additionally, instruction classes should be held for specific issues such as driving in bad weather, what to do if a front tire blows, and proper seat and mirror adjustments.

"If you stick with it long enough, drivers will realize their performance really matters," Carrigan said.