Driving efficiency in our fleet

As we extend our network to millions more homes and businesses across the UK, there is increasing demand on our fleet for service and install visits to customers’ homes. With a fleet of over 4,000 vehicles we cover a lot of miles and use a lot of fuel each year. The performance of our fleet will play a big role in achieving one of our 5 in 5 sustainability goals; to grow our business without increasing our carbon footprint.

Encouraging our fleet users to drive more efficiently and more safely not only helps us to use less fuel and produce less emissions, it keeps them safer. We’ve got a good track record of increasing the efficiency of our fleet, from bringing in higher MPG vans, reducing the average CO2 of our vehicles and cutting out journeys. In 2017, we took it one step further by rolling out a new driver tool called Lightfoot.

Lightfoot uses a traffic light system to advise the driver of how safely and efficiently they are driving via a small box which sits just below their windscreen. The aim for the driver is to try and keep the lights green.  The live feedback provided by Lightfoot helps to tackle the problem many Fleet Managers face;  endless amounts of data provided by telemetry devices but little opportunity to give [timely/direct] feedback to drivers.

Since launch, Lightfoot has been rolled out to nearly 95% of the Virgin Media fleet. The environmental benefits of this tool have been significant, Rob McCann, Sustainable Growth Manager at Virgin Media explains; “With Lightfoot, it’s expected the business will save a million litres of fuel each year through improved driving efficiency – equating to approximately 2,500 tonnes of CO² emissions, enough to fill 52 Sydney Opera Houses.” After one year, Lightfoot has already helped to improve our drivers’ miles per gallon, an easure of efficiency, by 10%.

For Dave Hodsdon, Head of Claims and Insurance, the benefits of the tool stretch beyond its sustainability credentials; “Since roll out there has also been a real improvement in driving techniques. We took Lightfoot on to help us ensure that every driver comes home safe and if we can make that journey more efficient as well, then that’s a great win-win”.

Lightfoot is delivering big savings in costs and emissions and supports Virgin Media’s Zero Harm culture through reductions in accidents. This is great news but we’re keeping focussed on maximising the benefits of Lightfoot and finding new ways to increase the efficiency of our fleet and cutting out journeys.