Learnmoore Driving

Driving can be a strenuous task, and any tools which can help surely are a great pro?

However automatic headlights and daylight running lights which are fitted to many vehicles now can actually pose significant risk for some drivers.

When lights are set to auto, they will turn on when light is less than a certain amount.  They have developed over the years and are now very sensitive to light changes.  However do they really work when they are needed?

I have noticed more recently many drivers are not turning on their lights in poor weather conditions, in fact this is particularly an issue in the recent rain and fog conditions we have had on UK roads in the last few months.  Looking at the vehicles which do not have their lights on, the vast majority are cars with automatic lights.

The other issue can be that when daylight running lights are on, on the front of the car, there are no tail-lights on many newer models.  I believe that daylight running lights are a great pro for road safety and offer better viability for other drivers and other road users.  However when the rain sets in, the daylight running lights are on on the front, but not the rear putting drivers at risk.

Additionally there is a tendency to forget about headlights with cars that offer automatic lights.  This means that when in rain or foggy conditions the driver has to manually remember to apply the lights or fog lights.

I also believe that this leads to less thought going to the road conditions on the road, or viability in general, as it has been taken out of the driver’s hands.   Additionally when travelling under a short bridge or tunnel, the lights tend to turn on then off quickly, which could be misinterpreted as a signal to other drivers.

See and be seen, consider the conditions, a good driver can leave the lights on automatic, and alter them when necessary.  I turn my lights on as soon as I get in the car, and then consider if I need to turn them off rather than on.

Your fleet’s travel through the vortex of time and space on a daily basis, however how close are we to a tardis?

It might sound odd, but we’d all like a teleporter or a tardis.  Increasingly businesses are cutting business mileage by encouraging ‘death by conference call’, skype or similar technologies.  This is great for reducing your risk, however as we know sometimes there is no other practical way other than to be there in person.  For some businesses the only way is in person, the one to one human touch, the product demonstration or delivery of quality service.

So what does the future hold?

Two key elements of change are about to explode in a big way for fleets, and although we have seen some starting to be interested there are many reasons why these are going to be industry practice shortly.

1. Fuel technology in vehicles.  Although hybrids have been with us for some time now, they have been slow on the uptake, but the technology on the market this year and next is gathering huge momentum.  The Vauxhall Ampera or Chevrolet Volt is a huge step forward.  It is electric with a range extender in the form of a petrol built in.  With practical day to day use of 400 miles range and averages around the 100miles to the gallon, on petrol, this really is a car with a difference.  Previous hybrids made some difference to fuel consumption, and provided cheaper tax, no London congestion charges and a niche market for the few, however Vauxhall and Chevrolet have created a vehicle which is very quick, very economical and with all the advantages of the above.  The drawback? Cost as ever, at a shade under £30k it is not cheap, and leasing deals are eye wateringly expensive.  But this is the first of it’s kind, and costs will come down, it provides a solution to high fuel costs and reduces CO2.  The future is exciting though, electric cars are coming of age, and really do offer practical solutions.  Even fully electric cars like the Nissan Leaf have been slow off the mark, which is odd, it is such a great car! Beautifully quiet and smooth to drive, very low running costs, but small 120 mile range and so expensive.

There is a car though, which is just about to be released in the UK.  It has all of the benefits of the cars above, quiet, cheap to run, low or zero CO2, but critically has no disadvantages to my knowledge! 265 miles range, truly desirable, as quick as a BMW M5, luxurious, yet on par with prices of competitors.  This is going to be such a milestone in motoring.  When I heard about this car I learnt as much as I could, if I could afford one, I’d order one tomorrow in a heartbeat.

The new Tesla Model S is truely exceptional.  It looks fabulous, 416bhp of power, 443lb ft of torque all of which is available from zero revs.  A remarkable 265 miles range, that’s London to Durham, or Glasgow to Stafford, Aberystwyth to Kings Lynn on a single charge.  It will take up to 8 hours to charge, lets face it you’ll be asleep, but if you use a quick charger this could half, and cost just less than £10 to charge up!  In theory if you used renewable energy like wind, solar or tidal power this would be nearly zero CO2.  It is a full 5 seater car with an option of 2 additional seats for childen in the rear, a great sized boot plus an additional boot upfront.  It has a huge LCD screen which replaces most of the buttons on the dash board, which is inc-readable to look at, and the most expensive one goes on sale in the US at £50k-£80k.  Now this might sound a lot but the car about the same size and specification for performance is the BMW M5, which is £71k with no options added, and a journey of 265 would cost around £63 in fuel if you drive like a nun, more realistically it would cost £70 in super unleaded.

Although this sounds like a land of make believe, if one of your drivers does 30,000 a year in your average diesel car I estimate that you would use about £3500 of fuel give or take a few pounds.  The Tesla would cost around £1130 in electricity to do the same miles, and there is no road tax.  That’s a £10,000 saving in fuel alone over four years ownership.  Now the price tag is high, but this will become mainstream soon.  This is one of very few electric cars built specifically for electric power.  If the range can be the same as a diesel or petrol car, and cost one third to fuel, the next few years are going to be very interesting.

So until then?

2. Fleet Driver Training.  Well your fleets can benefit from driving more efficiently and safer with driver training, and this applies to petrol, electric, diesel, hybrid or hydrogen.  Ultimately the way you drive saves energy, irrespective of the source.  planning ahead, avoid stopping where it is safe, controlling the acceleration and brake, all of which reduces incident rates, makes drivers more aware and safer as well as anywhere from a 5%-25% savings on energy costs.

When new technologies of hybrid and electric cars are introduced, training is also key to ensure that you get the most from them.  We have spent a lot of time driving as many of the new cars as we can to ensure we know how they work, and how to get the most from them.

Large insurance brokers often offer great discounts, or even fund driver training.  With all the advantages of meeting health and safety, reduced time off work, decrease in incidents and savings on fuel, quality driver training is usually well offset by the savings to your fleet.

Increasingly fleets large and small are delivering driver training and seeing the benefits, are you been left behind?  Can you afford not to develop or assess your drivers?

So short of offering a tardis or teleporter, are you keeping up to date and taking advantage of new technology and training.

The next month brings high risk factors for Fleet Managers, the combination of clocks changing, cooler weather and Christmas factors including alcohol and added stress of the time of year needs to be considered.

Clocks change this coming weekend which is a sign of darker nights setting in, although the change is designed to use the most from our short daylight in the UK, driving in morning and nights will both become darker in the next month.  This can make driving more tiresome, and also requires a higher level of concentration, it is more difficult to see cyclists and pedestrians in particular.  Headlights should be checked and kept clear, headlight levels should be considered when carrying loads, a torch should be on hand and charged ready if needed.  Do you know your breakdown number if needed?

Colder weather, is going to be a feature of any late Autumn early Winter.  Tyres and general car maintenance need to be checked and a survival kit is very wise.  Most importantly is the way your fleet drivers react to the changes, in particular journey planning.  It is likely that clearing the windscreen, and general viability and conditions require more time.  Ensure this is factored in to the schedule, do you have an adverse weather policy? Are drivers aware on increased following distances and longer stopping distances?  Low friction surfaces mean adopting a more relaxed style of driving so the schedule should reflect this to ensure that fleet drivers are safe and prepared.

“The Christmas Factor”, although Christmas is a good time for families to get together we all know the extra stress this can cause.  This is just as important from a fleet manager’s perspective.  A number of factors increase risk on the run up to this time.

• Work/life balance, employees are planning for Christmas and there are extra stresses of this in terms of planning for the event, this could be a big distraction and create even more tenancy to rush.  Many businesses offer a shopping day to encourage focus on your business to allow for this.
• Parties, Alcohol, Colds and Drugs.  All of these increase risk and the Christmas party is eventful enough without the day after been a car crash in literal terms.  Reminding driver’s of their responsibilities and how much time alcohol stays in the system is a good idea.  Prescription drugs as well as recreational can affect driving alertness, so some businesses introduce random testing or just visual reminders.
• Cold weather, low friction and ill prepared.  All increasing risk.

In conclusion this is the time to take action and at least increase awareness, this could prevent loss of business hours, reputation and injury or worse.

Now is the time, the weather is turning on Friday to cold, cold cold.  Save yourself some time, before you breakdown or have an incident!  If you drive for work, or are a fleet operator this is the perfect opportunity to get ready for the winter.

Simple checks on your car can be made.

Tear wear indicator

Tyres – Critical for traction wet, dry, hot or cold.  The next few weeks will be the point where you will need to rely on them more than ever.  Check the build in tyre wear indicator, it should not be level with the top of the tyre if so get them changed.  Why not go to the local garage and check the pressures too, before it’s too late? Remember that if your tyres are illegal this could result in a fine of up to £2,500 and 3 points PER tyre, and don’t forget the spare!

Lights and electrics, now is the best time to check your bulbs and electrics on the car.  Just think is it better now, or when you are on a dark road late at night?

Windscreen and fluids.  Cracks in the windscreen can be affected by the cold and become worse.  Washer fluid is best neat out of the bottle or as advised on the bottle, but stock up now and check its temperature rating -40′C is great! Antifreeze should be topped up if needed too, however if it’s gone down, there may be leak in the system, take it to the garage to check.  Oil and brake fluid checks are wise too.

Ice scraper, gloves and food stocks. The car should be stocked for the worst, before the worse happens! Blankets, hi viz, food stocks and de-icer is wise, but a spare jacket and water supplies are wise too.

What about winter driving course? Skid pan? Ideal time to get the practice in!

Simple and effective driver training shown in a revealing graph below.  This was a regular fleet driver in a Skoda Octavia 1.9TDI, on the first drive, they drove a 2.8 mile route in their normal manner.

On the second run, our trainer has encouraged fuel saving techniques, even on the first attempt we showed savings of 19%.  That’s a considerable saving for any fleet, work out this across your fleet, however contrary to popular misunderstanding their average speed actually increased too, not only making it more economical but also slightly quicker.

How Driver Training can Deliver for your fleet

After another attempt on the same route with a coached drive, the fleet driver completed the last run without any tips or hints from the instructor.  The results speak for themselves, 31.3% reduction in fuel, 22mph average speed increased from 18mph from the first attempt.  This driver does 25,000 business miles a year, theoretically the savings could mean over £925 in fuel alone at current fuel prices AFTER training costs are subtracted.

When you consider driving in this manner and with the techniques used also encourage a more relaxed style of driving and smoother, it encourages safer driving, planning ahead and can also show a reduction in wear and tear costs too.

With rising costs in motoring, especially in fuel costs can you afford not to?

Driving for fuel saving at Millbrook

Our recent visit to Millbrook included training and development of driving in the most economic way possible.  The lessons were learnt from driving among the hybrids and electric cars a diesel van.

It proved that although planning ahead on a road is important, the most critical thing is to improve smoothness.  The Millbrook driver achieved a lower fuel consumption than ourselves as well as been quicker around the track.  Their main point is that eco driving does not need to mean slower at all.  Increasing speed smoothly, and carrying the momentum on the track produced the best fuel savings.  Of course on road this is not always safe or possible, however this was a great learning curve.  Hills were the biggest improvement, maintaining a smooth accelerator progressively up the hill and were coming off the accelerator just before the top produced the best results.

We offer on-road driver training to improve your fuel savings, and generally see at least 15-20% savings, often with increased average speeds.  However there is nothing like driving on track to learn new techniques.

We also had the opportunity to drive hydrogen vehicles, all electric and new low carbon engines.  The new Focus estate with a 1.0 turbo petrol engine was a real eye opener.  It had 125ps, which was a surprise, and on the track it was very flexible and economical, we believe that this is the way of things to come.

The third prosecution for Corporate Manslaughter has been made for a firm in Manchester following a case where a man fell though a fragile roof panel in 2008.

This should act as a warning to businesses who fail to take measures to ensure employees safety at work. It puts the responsibility for this at the door of directors and management. It is believed in the driver training industry and health and safety professionals that driving for work is one of the riskiest areas that businesses fail to plan for.

This steel manufacturer in Manchester will face fines of £484,000 and of course the reputation which comes with such failings. Of course a family has been affected by this which is the most important element which begs the question? Are you doing enough? Risk Assessments and measures should be made across  business  and driving is often overlooked.

see http://www.businesscar.co.uk/story.asp?sectioncode=1&storycode=9244&c=2&theme=0

Fleet driver training, what is in it for your business? According to Department for Transport 1052 people per week were slightly and seriously injured or killed by drivers who drive for work.  Figures advise that in 2010; 10 were killed, 102 injured and 940 slightly injured due to driving for work.

How does this affect your business in…

• Lost business hours for sickness/leave
• Morale
• Meeting business target
• Corporate reputation and social responsibility (CSR)
• Risk of fines, imprisonment
• Insurance costs

If your business employs anyone who drives for work, even if its to pick up stock, make deliveries or relies on driving for meetings or management then most believe that checking licenses of your drivers will suffice in order to ensure you meet the legislation required by an employer in this situation.  Although this is best practice and is more than some businesses do it only touches the tip of the iceberg in terms of what is required to ensure you are covering your risks. Even this needs to be done with care, have your employees got the correct, valid or clean license?

Under Health and Safety law risk assessments need to be made for your corporate drivers.  The question is how to make this assessment?

Many choose online options, which is better than nothing and certainly may highlight high risks to the business.  Of course these need to have follow up plans and ways to manage these risks.  However we believe that the only way to really assess the risk is on-road what other way can you truly assess your driver’s risk?  What are their skills like behind the wheel? This can be daunting to many, however this is why our highly trained assessors are there to put employees at ease, and we understand many drivers will have years of experience and skills behind them.

The other benefit of  on-road assessment is following this we can offer coaching in reduction of risk and further recommendations including

• Fuel savings (up to 25% in some cases)
• Planning to reduce incidents
• Vehicle maintenance
• Individually coached approach
• Demonstration drives
• Highlighting issues with attitude and coaching to look to improve this

Many business even with relatively small fleets monitor drivers with telematics or GPS systems now which provide feedback on their driving and whereabouts, combined with driver training is the most effective way of developing a culture of road safety and development of your fleet.  This often includes reduction of fuel, mileage and wear and tear on vehicles.

Cost/Benefit

Taking out all of the other factors, just a few percent of fuel saving alone can offset the modest cost of training or time out of the business, let alone potential reduction in incidents and wear and tear. Considering your health and safety and corporate manslaughter obligations are considerable potential costs to your business this is often a very cost effective method of managing on road risk.

For further information or quote for your fleet please do not hesitate to contact us on 07999 992141 or fleet@learnmooredriving.co.uk

I have spent the last month in London and have been shocked by pedestrians, but some cyclists in particular attitude towards road safety. Although I believe the whole nation could improve safety on our roads it is definitely more apparent in London traffic.

Red lights

Many cyclists wait on a red light just in front of the cars, vans and other vehicles on the road.  However some do jump the light, it makes no sense as the red light is there to protect that line of traffic from the other stream(s) of traffic, but why do some cyclists decide to jump the light? From driving around London I estimate that approximately 50% of all traffic lights had at least one cyclist jump the lights.  What can we do about it? Especially as latest figures suggest that death and serious injury is on the rise from cyclists and pedestrians.

If a car jumped the lights and knocked over a bike you would blame the car driver, but if a bike went through a red light and was hit by a car?

iPod

All road users are victims to their favorite music been played through headphones, but when cyclists and pedestrians are so vulnerable why would you remove one of the senses (hearing) which protects you from the perils of the road? Combine this with other issues like no lights at light on a bike, jumping red lights you are asking for trouble.

Protection

On a motorbike it is a legal requirement to wear a helmet and very wise to wear leather protection, a legal requirement for an MOT, head and tail lights.  However riding something with less power and more vulnerable no legal protection is needed? Why is this?

Road markings/Highway code

The highway code restricts cyclists just like cars/motorbikes from the pavement, no entry signs and one way streets, but some cyclists choose not to obey this.  So what is the outcome of a bike been knocked down due to them going through a no entry sign?

Blindspots

Large vehicles in particular (like a 12 tonne double decker!) have huge blind spots.  Do you really want to cycle down the side of one? Really? however I see this all of the time, one cyclist was killed due to this just outside the Olympic park a few weeks ago.  This shows a lack of understanding or education which is desperately sad, but so easy to resolve.

There is the flip side to this though of course, I have been on numerous London buses, and I have carefully watched their driving.  Although some are better than others, their mirrors are very poorly checked and most cyclists are hindered by their lack of observations also.

Solutions

I believe there are numerous solutions however we need to act quickly 3,085 cyclists were seriously injured and 107 killed in 2011.  That’s nearly 9 cyclists killed or seriously injured a day on our roads.

• Mandatory and/or better education for pedestrians (like Staffordshire’s efforts)and cyclists (like Bikeability)
• Enforcement and/or tighter regulation like a licensing system/registration of bikes
• More awareness of the issue particularly in London
• Local authority schemes to promote road safety for pedestrians and cyclists
• Better Driver Training for New drivers and Fleet/Corporate drivers in order to develop safer attitudes towards cyclists and pedestrians.

Putting training in to practice we are providing our services to help in the London 2012 Olympics, I cannot wait. Keep a look out as we will have updates though out the games. London traffic provides its own challenges, however this great practice in anyone’s driver development.

At Old Trafford the Olympic venue for football with 3-series BMW.