Eliminate excess cargo in your fleet vehicles

By Elisa Durand, December 23rd, 2011 @ 12:22 am

One of our truck specification experts and I were discussing the recent Automotive Fleet article on reducing vehicle weight. Since this gentleman’s responsibility is to design vehicles that fulfill the driver’s job responsibility without being overloaded, underspeced, or overpriced, this topic was understandably of great interest to him.

Mike Antich’s reference to “rolling warehouses” is all too true in our business. While drivers certainly need the appropriate tools to successfully complete their job responsibilities, it’s too easy to end up with pounds of items that just aren’t needed. The result is a overly heavy vehicle that consumes excessive fuel, incurs repairs (and tire replacements!) more quickly, and causes additional harm to the environment.

Consider declaring one of your New Year’s resolutions a commitment to early spring cleaning. Asking drivers to take a quick look at what they are carrying (rather, don’t need to be carrying) is a no-cost way to have a positive impact on your fleet’s bottom line. What better way to bring in 2012?

We wish our readers Happy Holidays and looking toward a bright New Year!

To contact Elisa, click here.