Green fleet management should be made a top priority by any business that puts vehicles on the road. Green fleet management involves managing vehicles with a view to minimizing their fuel emissions, fuel consumption, and costs.
However, many businesses find it difficult to make their fleet greener without reducing driver efficiency or productivity and without increasing transportation costs.
Thankfully, the good news is that there are several easy things you can do to make your fleet more environmentally friendly. The following pieces of advice can help your business implement environmentally friendly fleet management practices:
Choose the Right Vehicles
When looking for ways to make your fleet of work vehicles greener, you first need to examine the efficiency of your current vehicles. If you have an aging fleet, then now might be the time to upgrade to newer vehicles. Newer vehicles are not only more fuel-efficient than older vehicles, but they’re also manufactured with higher standards of environmental efficiency in mind. Vehicle manufacturers are continually looking for new ways to make their vehicles more eco-friendly. Electric or hybrid options are just two of the recent developments we’ve seen.
Not only is it important to choose a vehicle that is eco-friendly, but it’s also important to choose one that suits your needs. There’s no point in buying a huge lorry if all your company needs is a small van. If you’re unsure of what type of truck suits your needs, then contact an IMT Dealer. Nichols Fleet Equipment is IMT Dealers who work with their customers to build trucks that are perfect for them. From brand bed liners to special compartment layouts and customized accessories, they have something to suit your needs.
Optimize Truck Routes
One simple way you can make your fleet greener is to use GPS mapping software to optimize your drivers’ routes. Optimizing drivers’ routes will not only lower fuel consumption, but it will also reduce the number of miles your fleet travels. Route optimization can also lessen the amount of time your drivers are traveling between destinations. This allows businesses to provide a more efficient delivery service to their customers.
Invest in Driver Training
It’s a good idea to talk to your employees about how they can maximize fuel efficiency while they’re driving. Teach your drivers to accelerate slowly, brake gently and to follow the maximum speed limits. These practices can lower your operating costs and conserve fuel.
Don’t Forget Fleet Maintenance
Research has shown that vehicle maintenance can help the environment so if you’re trying to make your fleet greener, then make sure that all of your fleet vehicles are maintained on a regular basis. A truck that is operating correctly is much more likely to be a cleaner and more environmentally friendly truck.
Provide Incentives for Green Drivers
If you want to make your fleet greener, then you should consider offering incentives to drivers who follow your company’s fuel-efficiency practices. Drivers are much more likely to follow these practices if they’re rewarded for doing so.
Although it costs money to offer these types of incentives, they are a small price to pay for running a more environmentally friendly fleet. Not only that, but the amount of money you save on fuel will more than offset the additional expenditure. Cash incentives can also improve employee satisfaction levels and employee retention efforts.
Managers of fleets are in a unique position to make huge changes when it comes to making their company more environmentally friendly. Upping sustainability in fleet maintenance and fuel consumption can go a long way to reducing a company’s overall environmental footprint. If you’re in charge of a fleet and you want to make it greener, then why not try some of our advice above?
