In the quest for greater fuel economy for fleet vehicles, there is one problem, all fleets must address: JackRabbit Starts. These types of starts rob your vehicles of fuel efficiency that could be costing your organization plenty. While this is certainly true of all fleets, it is especially true of fleets that operate in areas where your drivers are doing a lot of stopping and starting. This could include any of the following:

• In-town delivery services
• Local route drivers
• Large city drivers who face rush hour stops and starts

For the most part, JackRabbit starts are viewed as aggressive driving behavior. Not only do they cost your fleet a great deal in wasted fuel. They can also create negative associations for your business within the community.

What are JackRabbit Starts?

Essentially, JackRabbit starts occur when drivers push down hard on their accelerators, so they can shoot forward with speed. You see it all the time with frustrated drivers trying to be the first “out of the gate” when signal lights turn green. It is also widely used when speeding up to merge into Interstate traffic from on-ramps, when passing slow-moving vehicles, and when leaving areas of heavy congestion on the Interstate in rush hour traffic.

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The Smithsonian’s National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute recognizes the invaluable role Myanmar Flying Foxes play in the overall ecosystem’s health, but they also understand how the creature is often the culprit in spreading fatal diseases to humans. In an effort to learn more about these animals, the institute sent Dr. Marc Valitutto and Dr. Jennifer Kishbaugh out to Myanmar with one goal. The duo was tasked with capturing several bats, extracting samples from the animals, testing for viruses and then tagging the bats with GPS tracking devices.

Experts hope to monitor the movements of these Myanmar Flying Foxes to gain deeper insights into how the animal interacts with its environment. Data from the GPS tracking devices will be used to help protect both the animals and humans who live around them. The group hopes to work closely with local communities to discover safe areas for bats to roost that can also help prevent the spread of diseases.

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Cutting costs and keeping them under control is important for fleets of all sizes. The larger the fleet, the more important even minor expenses become, which is why it’s important to optimize tire performance – so you can save greater amounts of money.

These are a few things you can do to improve tire performance, extending the life of your tires, preventing accidents, and saving your fleet money.

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Warranties and extended warranties, especially when buying used fleet vehicles, can make all the difference in the world for keeping expenses low in the initial months you own your new vehicles. These are just a few benefits of vehicle warranties and extended warranties:

• Allows you to buy used vehicles without worries over most mechanical issues.
• Reduces costs for smaller fleets that might not be interested in self-insuring vehicles.
• Improves fleet vehicle resale values potentially (especially beneficial in fleets that rarely keep vehicles beyond three years, according to Fleet Financials).

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Because fleets involve so many vehicles, every penny of fuel wasted by drivers comes at huge costs to the overall fleet. Which is why it’s important to identify these seven fleet fuel wasters and act to prevent them from becoming financial problems for your business as a whole.

1. Discipline Drivers Deviating from Routes

Most routes are planned meticulously to take advantage of the flow of traffic at certain times of day, the number of miles driven, the frequency of stops and starts, and even the likelihood of delays from trains, school zones, etc. When drivers deviate from those routes, it creates chaos when it comes to mileage and fuel efficiency and can cost your business big money if many drivers do this. Have a discipline plan in place and follow it when drivers don’t follow the rules.

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