Zonar, the creator of an already-popular GPS fleet management system, is now offering a fuel economy tracker to its other functions. Those other functions give managers an unprecedented level of control and automation over processes like inspections and maintenance needs monitoring. With the new function, managers will be able to quickly determine which route from A to B is the most fuel-efficient. With gas prices climbing and the economy still struggling to recover from a recession, every little bit helps. Cutting fuel costs by taking the best route translates into real savings, and this tool finally allows fleets to do it easily and quickly.
Here are the basics of the fuel economy tracker: The Zonar system works by logging sample data when a vehicle’s motion changes. For example, if a delivery truck continues at a steady 60 mph for five miles, only a few samples register. However, if a truck is traveling through the city, stopping at lights, changing lanes, and making frequent turns, samples register every few seconds. Since more speed and direction changes means lower fuel efficiency, Zonar’s system marks those routes as worse for fuel consumption.
This particular GPS fleet management software actually already includes a few other measures that improve fuel efficiency. Managers can set each vehicle’s tracker to send text message notifications if its driver is using poor driving techniques—accelerating too quickly, braking too hard, or leaving a vehicle idling for too long. When drivers know their vehicles are tattling on them, they are far less inclined to use these gas-guzzling techniques.
Zonar is certainly poised to become an even more popular GPS fleet management system than it is today, as grateful managers take advantage of the ability to lower fuel costs by rerouting vehicles.