Stuart O'Brien, Author at Fleet Summit - Page 20 of 53
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Stuart O'Brien

Green fleet tech provider Lightfoot to attend CV Show 2022 

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Lightfoot, the innovative British green-tech company and provider of the UK’s leading in-cab driver coaching and rewards platform, will be exhibiting at this year’s Commercial Vehicle Show at the NEC Birmingham. 

Taking place from 24th-26th May, the CV Show will address the key topics and latest developments affecting the fleet industry, with live theatre discussions, a series of expert panels, and over 200 exhibitors. 

You’ll find the Lightfoot team on Stand 5F101, ready and waiting to answer your questions on everything from fleet decarbonisation to fuel savings and road safety, and to demonstrate Lightfoot’s cutting-edge fleet management technology.  

Get in touch with the Lightfoot team to book your slot now.

The WhichEV guide to EV charging made easy

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Charging your EV should be easy. In fact, it should be as easy as the experience people have putting petrol in their internal combustion cars. But some of the time it isn’t. This is frequently used by EV haters as an excuse to avoid switching to an EV, or even to vocally criticise them on social media.

However, a lot of this is merely a cultural change. In the same way that you need to avoid putting petrol in your diesel car (and vice versa), an EV owner needs to know their CHAdeMO from their CCS, their AC from their DC, and other characteristics of their vehicle’s charging capabilities. This WhichEV guide is here to help you navigate the cultural shift, to help you make EV charging easier.

Click here to read the full article.

Do you specialise in Fleet Management Software? We want to hear from you!

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Each month on Fleet Management Briefing we’re shining the spotlight on a different part of the fleet market – and in May we’ll be focussing on Fleet Management Software solutions.

It’s all part of our ‘Recommended’ editorial feature, designed to help fleet buyers find the best products and services available today.

So, if you’re a supplier of Fleet Management Software solutions and would like to be included as part of this exciting new shop window, we’d love to hear from you – for more info, contact Chris Cannon on 01992 374096 / c.cannon@forumevents.co.uk.

Here’s our features list in full:

May – Fleet Management Software
Jun – Telematics/Tracking
Jul – Contract Hire & Leasing
Aug – LPG/Alternative Fuel & Fuel Management
Sept – EV Infrastructure
Oct – Duty of Care
Nov – Grey Fleet
Dec – Service, Maintenance & Repair

£30 million allocated for highway decarbonisation projects

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Cutting-edge, innovative ideas to decarbonise the country’s highways are the key aim of the £30 million Live Labs 2 competition, announced and funded by the Department for Transport (DfT).

The funding will support pioneering projects looking at ways to decarbonise local highways infrastructure in regions across the UK. There will be a particular focus on making the construction, maintenance and running of the UK’s roads more sustainable.

Now in its second round of funding, the competition, organised by the Association of Directors of Environment, Economy, Planning and Transport (ADEPT), is the latest move in the government’s drive to create cleaner air and reach net zero emissions by 2050.

The launch of the second round of the competition follows the success of the first £22.9 million Live Labs programme which launched in May 2019 and supported the creation of 8 local projects testing innovative solutions on local roads.

Previous projects included:

  • fibre cables that detect vibrations from vehicles and dynamically change signal junctions to combat congestion
  • trials involving drones to detect potholes in Kent
  • plastic roads in Cumbria to boost value for money in the construction of highways

Staffordshire County Council also secured the expertise of 2 industry leaders to install plant-based living walls to tackle roadside emissions. The walls act as natural filters made from plants and mosses as part of a national clean air trial.

Meanwhile, Buckinghamshire Council and Suffolk County Council demonstrated how the application of smart transport technology can be expanded to offer greater social value than initially anticipated.

Their project involved repurposing road sensors, typically used to monitor traffic volumes and weather conditions, to be used in adult social care.

The technology was additionally used to allow vulnerable people to live independently for longer by installing the sensors around a house to monitor daily activities, sending signals to carers when needed.

Paula Hewitt, ADEPT President, said: “ADEPT is delighted to be able to move ahead on Live Labs 2 with this new round of DfT funding and support. The highways and transport sector is the UK’s single biggest carbon emitter and although we are seeing a transition to electric vehicles, there is a huge gap where we are yet to tackle road infrastructure and maintenance.

“Local authorities are perfectly placed to lead the drive to create net zero highways and local roads from the bottom up. The Live Labs format has proven particularly successful for highways authorities, enabling rapid change, innovation and experimentation.

“Following the success of the first ADEPT SMART Places Live Labs programme, Live Labs 2 aims to build on the partnerships between DfT, councils, commercial partners, SMEs and academia to deliver scalable zero carbon objectives with potential for commercialisation and applicability to diverse areas across the UK.”

The ADEPT Live Labs initiative demonstrates the government’s commitment to investing in innovation to decarbonise the UK’s transport network, with the aim of making it greener and more efficient for all.

By issuing significant investments for each project, the fund aims to help local highways authorities and enterprises develop and propel their ideas to market even quicker.

UK told to brace for Easter bank holiday traffic hotspots

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The RAC says drivers are collectively planning an estimated 21.46m leisure journeys by car this coming weekend, the highest number for an Easter bank holiday since the the organisation first started tracking motorists’ plans in 2014.

Good Friday – the first bank holiday since the start of the year – looks set to be the single busiest day of the long weekend with drivers planning in the region of 4.62m separate leisure trips, followed by bank holiday Monday (3.96m) with Saturday and Sunday each seeing around 3.63m journeys by car. An additional estimated 5.6m trips will be taken by drivers at some point between Friday and Monday.

The RAC together with transport analytics specialists INRIX are predicting some extremely busy roads, with the Easter getaway likely to be made worse by the impact of closures to some parts of the railway network. Major engineering work between London and Birmingham is likely to push more people onto the roads, including those making their way from Manchester and Liverpool to Wembley to watch the semi-final of the FA Cup on Saturday. Expected rail strikes in Scotland and the north of England could also make matters worse.

INRIX data suggests that the M6 north between Liverpool and the Lake District, south towards Stoke-on-Trent, the M25 between Surrey and the M40 exit, and the A303 near Stonehenge could see some of the worst congestion, with drivers urged to set off as early as they can or to delay their trips until the end of the day to stand a better chance of a smoother journey. Inevitable breakdowns also risk causing additional long queues, so the RAC is strongly urging drivers to check their vehicles are ‘road-ready’ before setting out.

In addition to the expected traffic jams, drivers also face the costliest Easter on record when it comes to petrol and diesel prices with 6% of drivers saying they’re not planning a car trip at all over the weekend for this very reason. Separate research by the RAC also suggests that the high pump prices might affect people’s trips in other ways – one-in-five drivers (20%) said they plan on driving a shorter distance this Easter than in previous years, with the same proportion saying they’ll be cutting back on other Easter expenditure because of high petrol and diesel prices. More than a quarter (28%) said they’re planning on using their cars less, while a third (33%) will be deliberately driving more economically to try to keep their Easter fuel spending down.

The research also found that only a fifth of drivers (19%) say they always check their cars are ‘road-ready’ before making an Easter trip, increasing the potential for breakdowns to ruin the start of many people’s breaks. Half of drivers (51%) said they sometimes checked their cars over before setting out but an alarming 30% said they never do. The RAC is therefore reminding people that spending just a little time checking their vehicles’ oil, coolant and tyres can prevent a very inconvenient breakdown.

Bob Pishue, INRIX Transportation Analyst, said: “Even with a significant increase in petrol prices, we expect a large jump in holiday driving compared to the last few years. Drivers should expect congestion on major roadways around urban areas and popular destinations. Knowing when and where congestion will build can help drivers avoid the stress of sitting in traffic.”

National Highways customer services director Melanie Clarke added: “This is the first bank holiday of the year, so we expect the roads to be busy with people looking to make the most of a long weekend. To help keep disruption to a minimum, we’re lifting more than a thousand of miles of roadworks.

“The last thing anybody wants on the way to their destination is to have a vehicle breakdown. That’s why it’s really important people spend a few minutes checking the condition of their tyres before setting off.”

EV sales for March up 79% year-on-year

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By James Morris, WhichEV

Almost 40,000 new electric cars were registered in March 2022, an increase of 79% on the previous year.

While the increase was spread across a number of popular models from Stellantis, VW and Hyundai – the sales data from Tesla really stood out.

Considering the average price of a new petrol or diesel car in 2021 was around £22,000, the big sellers in March 2022 were the Tesla Model Y and Model 3 – occupying number 1 and 2 spots for March.

On a ‘year-to-date’ basis, they are now the 6th and 7th best selling cars, respectively. What makes that unusual, is that a Model 3 will cost you an average of £45,000 and the Model Y closer to £55,000.

In the past, that kind of money would normally be reserved for executive cars from Mercedes, Lexus and BMW – none of which have a model in the Top 10 so far this year.

Looking at the growth in EV sales, it’s worth noting that the overall car market declined by more than 14% – driven mostly by a drop of more than 55% in diesel registrations.

With diesel prices close to £1.80 a litre and most energy suppliers still offering electricity at lower rates overnight, we’re only going to see an increase in momentum from polluting, fossil fuel cars to cleaner, cheaper-to-run EVs.

Rapidly declining resale values on fossil fuel cars, over the coming years, will only see the rate of change accelerating.

Click here to read more.

University of Bath champions ‘powerful’ solution for reducing fleet emissions

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Chris Brace, Professor of Automotive Propulsion and Director of the Institute of Advanced Automotive Propulsion Systems (IAAPS) at the University of Bath, has heralded Lightfoot’s revolutionary approach to improving driver performance as a game-changer for petrol and diesel fleet vehicles.

Commenting on the industry-leading in-cab driver coaching technology, Professor Brace said: “For millions of vehicles on the road, Lightfoot is one of the only ways to reduce the amount of NOx in the real world due to its ability to change driver behaviour in real time.”

Research undertaken by the Institute of Advanced Automotive Propulsion Systems shows a direct correlation between Lightfoot’s real-time driver feedback and the amount of emissions that are emitted by vehicles with internal combustion engines. The studies make it clear that adopting a smoother, safer style of driving through Lightfoot’s guidance actively leads to a reduction in CO2 and NOx within fleets.

Read more about the University of Bath’s analysis of Lightfoot.

Meet, network and learn at the Fleet Summit

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The 13th & 14th of June will be the most beneficial two days out of the office for you as a fleet professional – Secure your free pass today!

The Fleet Summit allows you to enjoy;

– Meet with providers that can support your projects, plans, and events.
– Learn from insightful and educational seminar sessions
– Network with peers who share your daily challenges
– Overnight accommodation
– An evening drinks reception, networking dinner with entertainment
– Lunch and refreshments throughout

All of this will be provided to you entirely for free.Here are what previous attendees had to say;

“Excellent event. Really good to meet suppliers and see new innovation that’s on the market and what’s coming up for the future” – City of London

“This was my first summit, and I really enjoyed it. Great to network. I have already set up accounts with new suppliers to enhance my business going forward” – ThinkBDW

“An excellent, well-organised event providing informative seminars with the ability to meet with several suppliers all under one roof” – Cancer Research UK

Visit our website for more information or confirm your free attendance here.

Paul Hollick, Chairman of The Association of Fleet Professionals, joins Lightfoot as new MD

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British green-tech company Lightfoot, the leading provider of in-cab fleet coaching technology and a one-of-a-kind driver rewards app, has appointed Paul Hollick (pictured) as Managing Director.

Paul Hollick is Chairman of the AFP and was formerly MD of Miles Consultancy Limited. He joins the fleet management solution company at an exciting time following the investment of Volpi Capital in Lightfoot last year. This has allowed for ambitious growth plans, including the development of a new suite of products for both ICE and EV fleets, as well as international expansion into the EMEA markets and further afield.

Hear what Paul Hollick has to say about joining the team at Lightfoot

Drivetech invests in its digital future with new look

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Drivetech has been investing significantly in its operations over the last year to revolutionise the way it interacts with customers and help keep today’s drivers safe behind the wheel.

The UK’s leading driver training provider, part of the AA, has completed a rebrand to reflect the businesses greater emphasis on digital services that includes the process of transforming its customer portal. This supports the rapidly evolving fleet sector, with greater reach, a wider service offering and a strong digital future alongside its more traditional and successful on road driver training.

Charlie Norman, managing director at Drivetech, comments: “The driver behaviour, coaching and training industry has undergone a significant transformation over the past couple of years, with a noticeable uplift in digital training, in particular as a result of the pandemic. To reflect this change, Drivetech has unveiled a new logo that visually represents the passage of data transferring to reflect the ongoing integration of driver training with advances in technology, and the analysis of data to inform and further enhance safety.”

Norman explained: “We have increased the range and choice of online driver coaching and training interventions we can provide and are focused on improving core systems to support this expansion in range and customer benefits. We are committed to offer a range of modern and dynamic services and will strive to continue to deliver our driver training to the highest standard. We want our customers to benefit from a seamless service that better integrates valuable data at each point of the journey.”

As part of its digital transformation, Drivetech has recently launched several virtual assessments and training modules to support drivers. The offering includes a choice of online assessments depending on the type of vehicle driven and EV Co-Driver, an innovative way of communicating, educating and reinforcing EV best practice to help drivers get the most out of their vehicles and stay safe while behind the wheel. Drivetech has also launched Driver’s Mate, a comprehensive series of 90-second videos that champion and reinforce on-road safety practices to encourage better behaviours by refreshing driver awareness to deliver impactful change.

Similarly, Drivetech’s driver offender course delivery business, in conjunction with many UK police forces and UKROEd, has seen a major shift to digital delivery versus classroom based, so the rebrand also reflects changes here.

For more information about Drivetech, visit: www.drivetech.co.uk.