Are Companies Putting Driver Facing Cameras In Their Trucks?

Why don't these anti-camera people ever get upset that they're on camera 95% of the time they're in public? Every store, restaurant, gas station, amusement park, sports venue, public transportation, major sidewalk, and major intersection is heavily monitored 24/7/365 by cameras.

For me it's because I'm not in my underwear or worse when those cameras are pointed at me lol

Why don't these anti-camera people ever get upset that they're on camera 95% of the time they're in public? Every store, restaurant, gas station, amusement park, sports venue, public transportation, major sidewalk, and major intersection is heavily monitored 24/7/365 by cameras.

For me it's because I'm not in my underwear or worse when those cameras are pointed at me lol

So...you are in your underwear parading around in your cab without pulling the curtain? Really? If you cover the lens with the curtain or better yet with a piece of black electrical tape, your privacy cannot be violated. Even so, as Dan accurately stated, they are critical event triggered.

You are not even trying to understand how they work or the real reason they are there.

Baffling.

Why don't these anti-camera people ever get upset that they're on camera 95% of the time they're in public? Every store, restaurant, gas station, amusement park, sports venue, public transportation, major sidewalk, and major intersection is heavily monitored 24/7/365 by cameras. From the time you leave your front door until you return to your home you're on camera almost continuously. Why doesn't this freak these people out?

They're ok eating and shopping and going on vacation with their families and doing it all on camera. But to put one in the truck? That's just outlandish somehow. It's not until they're being paid to drive someone else's truck and put in a position where they could kill innocent people at any given moment that their "freedom instinct" kicks in and suddenly now they demand their privacy.

Pretty baffling.

These days, you go to your buddy's house and you're on camera. Not only that, we all realize it too. It's our society and we know it is present in stores; I think it's just change. People don't have cameras in their cars. They don't have one in their bedroom. They are used to waving at the camera when they see themselves after walking into Walmart (or is that just me?), being watched whistling to themselves while pumping gas, watching how surveillance cameras helped catch an infamous criminal on TV. But not "Truck driver is held accountable for devastating crash after surveillance cams catch him texting".

So...you are in your underwear parading around in your cab without pulling the curtain? Really? If you cover the lens with the curtain or better yet with a piece of black electrical tape, your privacy cannot be violated. Even so, as Dan accurately stated, they are critical event triggered.

You are not even trying to understand how they work or the real reason they are there.

Baffling.

Well first off, I never said I wasn't trying to understand them. I have to say, I don't really appreciate that. I'm giving my opinion on it and just because I have a differing opinion doesn't mean I'm not trying to understand more about the issue.

Secondly, most trucks have 2 sets of curtains. The middle curtains behind the seats, and the window curtains that pull around the driver and passenger doors, and come together at the front of the dash. Those curtains make the area feel much less cramped when trying to change clothes than the middle curtains do.

And third, I understand that the cameras are triggered by a critical event. I also understand that there is still a camera pointed at the direction I'm changing clothes, that I don't have full control over. That is the entire point for me personally.

And frankly, I don't understand all of the hate for the people that don't like having a camera in the truck like that. Of course it's the company's property and they can do whatever they want, but I still have the right to feel uncomfortable about things like that whether anyone disagrees with me on the issue or not. So talking down to people that don't like them is honestly pretty crappy.

Prime is adding front facing cameras to drivers who have a history of critical events. I don't think they'll ever have driver facing cameras because they said it's a liability.

Why don't these anti-camera people ever get upset that they're on camera 95% of the time they're in public? Every store, restaurant, gas station, amusement park, sports venue, public transportation, major sidewalk, and major intersection is heavily monitored 24/7/365 by cameras. From the time you leave your front door until you return to your home you're on camera almost continuously. Why doesn't this freak these people out?

They're ok eating and shopping and going on vacation with their families and doing it all on camera. But to put one in the truck? That's just outlandish somehow. It's not until they're being paid to drive someone else's truck and put in a position where they could kill innocent people at any given moment that their "freedom instinct" kicks in and suddenly now they demand their privacy.

Pretty baffling.

Brett, I think it's more that the truck is also your living quarters that bothers people. Yeah there are cameras in public but when you go home, you go back to a place of privacy.....you can't say that with a truck.

Personally I don't care either way, I dealt with the DriveCam at my previous job and after awhile I would forget that it was even there. I think it's inevitable that a reg will come along mandating it. It's happening to all safety sensitive positions, they are now putting them on ships bridges and they want to put them in airline cockpits. It is what it is

So...you are in your underwear parading around in your cab without pulling the curtain? Really? If you cover the lens with the curtain or better yet with a piece of black electrical tape, your privacy cannot be violated. Even so, as Dan accurately stated, they are critical event triggered.

You are not even trying to understand how they work or the real reason they are there.

Baffling.

Well first off, I never said I wasn't trying to understand them. I have to say, I don't really appreciate that. I'm giving my opinion on it and just because I have a differing opinion doesn't mean I'm not trying to understand more about the issue.

Secondly, most trucks have 2 sets of curtains. The middle curtains behind the seats, and the window curtains that pull around the driver and passenger doors, and come together at the front of the dash. Those curtains make the area feel much less cramped when trying to change clothes than the middle curtains do.

And third, I understand that the cameras are triggered by a critical event. I also understand that there is still a camera pointed at the direction I'm changing clothes, that I don't have full control over. That is the entire point for me personally.

And frankly, I don't understand all of the hate for the people that don't like having a camera in the truck like that. Of course it's the company's property and they can do whatever they want, but I still have the right to feel uncomfortable about things like that whether anyone disagrees with me on the issue or not. So talking down to people that don't like them is honestly pretty crappy.

No hate. Frustration because when an opinion isn't entirely based on fact and first hand experience, it is lacking credibility.

Thanks I know how the curtains work...the set around the windshield, they can easily be pulled across so the entire camera is covered. The cab facing component is small and very unobtrusive. When the ignition key is off, most of the cab facing units are disabled. If still uncomfortable, a piece of black tape can cover the lens.

You want to be offended, on you. These things are a great teaching tool, reduce accidents, can provide proof of innocence in the event of a crash and they save lives.

Let's just agree to disagree because this is just the tip of the iceberg as you will see in the next five years.

Dan, very well said my friend! Excellent summary of the realities behind the monitoring that truck drivers are subjected to.

"Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety." Ben Franklin

Interestingly enough, the liberty old Ben was enjoying was earned by countless men who were giving up their freedom, their homes, and leaving their families to live in tents while starving, freezing, and dying of wounds and diseases to fight the wars that gave him that liberty and freedom he so cherished.

Our economy and luxuries today are enjoyed in no small part because of the hard work and sacrifices that truckers make. We're the lifeblood of this economy, quite literally if you will. There's a price to be paid for that. Not only do most truckers leave their home, family, and friends to live on the road and work the equivalent of two full time jobs, but they risk their lives in one of the most dangerous jobs in the nation today.

As Dan pointed out, we're doing dangerous work while surrounded by millions of innocent people every day. You have to expect to be monitored and held accountable for your actions. To discipline someone after the fact is too late. You have to be proactive to make sure drivers are doing their jobs safely.

I'm confident that if you received a phone call that someone you are close to was killed by a truck driver you'd want to know all you could about the accident, including whether or not it could have been prevented. That's the key here - prevention.

You have every right to say you refuse to be monitored while you're working. But you won't be given a dangerous job that puts the lives of innocent people at risk. Some jobs call for people who are willing to go above and beyond the commitments most people would ever consider. You have to decide if you're up to the task or not. Most people are not. There's no shame in that.

Let's just agree to disagree because this is just the tip of the iceberg as you will see in the next five years.

What do you mean the tip of the iceberg? What freedoms and privacy do you think you have as a truck driver today? They drug test you anytime they like, you get physicals every two years max, they track your every movement in real time, they monitor your engine and controls, they scan your truck with all sorts of advanced equipment every time you go through a scale house, they have company policies that dictate what you can do on your free time sometimes, they can inspect or search your truck anytime without cause, and a million other things.

Not to mention you're already on camera everywhere you go.

Not to mention, aren't you carrying a cell phone in your pocket most of the time? You know, that device with a GPS chip, accelerometer, microphone, photo camera, and video camera all of which can be activated remotely without you knowing it?

Come on, man. Be serious. If you have some illusion that you have any sort of privacy whatsoever at this point then it's clearly that - an illusion. I'm not saying you don't have the right to feel how you like about it. But I am saying don't kid yourself about this whole privacy thing - that's long gone.

Point being that there is a natural evolution to it. Surveillance and privacy will erode more over time and more is coming.

Let's just agree to disagree because this is just the tip of the iceberg as you will see in the next five years.

What do you mean the tip of the iceberg? What freedoms and privacy do you think you have as a truck driver today? They drug test you anytime they like, you get physicals every two years max, they track your every movement in real time, they monitor your engine and controls, they scan your truck with all sorts of advanced equipment every time you go through a scale house, they have company policies that dictate what you can do on your free time sometimes, they can inspect or search your truck anytime without cause, and a million other things.

Not to mention you're already on camera everywhere you go.

Not to mention, aren't you carrying a cell phone in your pocket most of the time? You know, that device with a GPS chip, accelerometer, microphone, photo camera, and video camera all of which can be activated remotely without you knowing it?

Come on, man. Be serious. If you have some illusion that you have any sort of privacy whatsoever at this point then it's clearly that - an illusion. I'm not saying you don't have the right to feel how you like about it. But I am saying don't kid yourself about this whole privacy thing - that's long gone.