Better Driving Could Save More Fuel Than Electric Power
Tuesday, 10. August 2010
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You can forget going green with your next car in order to save fuel and kick out fewer CO2’s according to the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM – is it me or does that sound like a cat food?). They suggest that drivers and businesses could save much more by simply using better, more efficient driving techniques, such as advanced anticipation, intelligent route planning and speed control which if used together could cut fuel consumption by up to 50% as well as getting from A to B quicker. According to Simon Elstow, IAM Drive & Survive Head of Training ‘Companies no doubt consider green credentials when buying new company cars, but they may not realise how much more efficiently their employees could be driving them.’ They add that efficient driving reduces wear and tear, service and maintenance costs, improves re-sale value and could lead to less frequent changing of the car. Mr Elstow pointed out that running greener vehicles is only doing half the job, driver training is just as important. Diesel cars are back to being more popular than petrol taking a 50.6% market share in July, mainly achieved through business registrations. Hybrid cars also saw a dramatic increase in July of 52.6% taking 1.4% of the new car market. Do you have any views on driving styles, should better driving skills aimed at saving fuel be part of the driving test? By Graham Hill
