Category Archives: Fuel Economy

Alternative Fuels: What does this all mean?

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Who hasn’t heard the term “Going Green in 2011”? By now it is common knowledge that “green” is the new black, and fleets could be one of the biggest targets for critics in the near future. You don’t have to go very far to hear about how to go green, reduce your carbon footprint, and save energy. You simply un-plug electronics, carpool, and recycle, right? But what about the alternative fuel messages filling the airwaves? Are the solutions for going green on the road just as easy to grasp?

“Increases fuel economy” “Reduces carbon foot print” “Increases energy independence” “Reduces tailpipe emissions”…These phrases are becoming just as commonly discussed as the price of fuel itself. But they often leave fleet mangers asking, ‘what does it all really mean?’ and ‘aren’t these solutions just for the future?’
The energy world and the politics involved can be a confusing and scattered mess of conflicting messages. The only message all the fuel alternatives seem to agree on is their claim to be the “best” sustainable long-term solution.
Vehiclepath GPS, and our team of industry experts, did some research and broke down some fuel alternatives for those of you who are ready and willing to do your part to “go green”. Below are the most common options along with some pro’s and con’s, so you can make the best decision for your fleet.

Electric and Battery

Pros: no tailpipe emissions, domestic
Cons: suffers from grid and battery quality, upstream methods for producing electricity (coal burning and nuclear plants) have pollution that isn’t detected at tailpipe
Compress natural gas (CNG)

Pros: clean, domestic, abundant
Cons: expensive to deploy (infrastructure and vehicle hardware cost mean high price of entry)
Hydrogen

Pros: clean, domestic, abundant
Cons: low on power, requires added compression and featured low fuel economy
Propane autogas

Pros: clean, domestic, abundant, affordable to deploy
Cons: non-renewable fuel source, decrease in energy content.

Overall, every domestic source of energy is good – in it’s own way. For true energy independence, the first step is for fleet operators to adopt a green attitude, do their research and educate their team.
Allowing fleet managers to thread the needle of which fuels work for them will ultimately achieve the reduction of operating costs, freedom of dependence on imported oil and most importantly a cleaner environment.

Blizzard in the Midwest

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A snowstorm hit the Midwest last night leaving approximately 15 inches of snow. The strong winds and heavy snow made driving conditions nearly impossible. Authorities even required that snow plows be off the roads until conditions improved.

Virtually everything in eastern Iowa is shut down. As of this morning (February 2) Iowa Transportation Department reported several closed highways, including Interstate 80. In addition, U.S. Highway 218 was closed in both directions from Iowa City south to the Missouri line.

Although, the snow has tapered off into flurries the main concern now is the 30 mph wind that is expected to continue throughout the day, causing more snow into drifts that had previously been cleared away. Many trucks have been sitting at truck stops all across Iowa, waiting for the weather to clear to continue towards their final destination.

On the bright side though, the groundhog did not see his shadow. Hope Punxsutawney Phil is right and spring comes early. Happy Groundhog Day!

How do they do it? Success for JB Hunt

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As of Friday, January 27, JB Hunt Transport Services, Inc announced 2010 financial results that could be very positive and informative by other truckload and multi-modal carriers (FleetOwner).

JB Hunt’s President and CEO, John N. Roberts III stated, “In 2010, we continued our strategic mission of integrating our distinct and complementary services, while simultaneously maintaining execution discipline in our four business segments.” According to an article in FleetOwner, the company offered a comprehensive approach by taking a ‘horizontal view,’ which consisted of manufacturing and importing, various distribution channels, retail replenishment, and final delivery to the consumer.

As a whole JB Hunt is very pleased with the progress they have made. They will continue to collaborate with their clients and still plan to provide efficiency to their consumers. In addition, JB Hunt will focus on revenue quality and the appropriate addition of assets across the business segments (FleetOwner).

National Weather Service Tweets Citizens to Forecast Help

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Thanks to GPS fleet tracking and Twitter, Mark Twain’s famous quote may be on its way out: “Everybody talks about the weather but nobody does anything about it.”

The National Weather Service is enlisting Twitter users who want to be citizen forecasters—out on the road. NWS meteorologists have come up with a way to gather data from various mobile sources like GPS fleet tracking devices, barometric pressure units that automatically adjust the engine’s fuel/air mix for different elevations, windshield wiper frequency, antilock brake action and headlight usage.

The data are sent via Twitter to the NWS, whose weather wonks are still trying to figure out how to push it to the rest of the weather-watching world. Stay tuned—where to tune will be announced later.

This isn’t the first time we’ve heard about GPS fleet tracking technology being advanced by citizen weatherfolk. Meteorologist/entrepreneur/storm chaser Robert Baron wants to make weather forecasts available on GPS fleet tracking systems everywhere from the dashboard to the cockpit to the fishing hole. He’s come up with a subscription-based service that beams real-time weather data to anyone who has a need to know. They include truck drivers, airplane pilots, fishermen and hunters.

And just as GPS fleet tracking technology has made life easier for cargo and freight haulers, it helps citizen and professional meteorologists extract much more precise data from short-lived weather balloons. Outfitted with a radiosonde, a small device that sends back information on wind speed and direction at different heights, the balloons explode as they reach the upper atmosphere. They’re tracked on the journey by GPS, which helps researchers find the radiosonde and its host balloon back on Earth, if possible. Here’s some pretty amazing information from the official APD blog:

Every day, at the same time, a weather balloon is launched at more than 800 sites around the world. Sixteen of those sites are in or around Antarctica where daily weather balloon launches have been carried out at many bases since the IGY (International Geophysical Year) in 1956/7.

These examples should give you an idea of GPS fleet tracking’s powerful capabilities. Hopefully, never have to use it under dire conditions. But if a vehicle is stolen or otherwise disappears, you’ll be able to see where it is and where it’s been. You’ll also know if a driver is letting the engine idle too long, wasting precious fuel. And any driver’s speed can be observed online, with alerts sent by email or text message if a preset limit is exceeded.

Those are just a few benefits you can expect.

EPA Emissions Rules Give Fleets the “Green” Light

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Even though passenger vehicles have had dashboard malfunction indicator lights for more than a decade, heavy trucks have not. That’s an emissions concern not only for fleet operators, but also for the Environmental Protection Agency.

The EPA has made it law that heavy-truck manufacturers must install OBD (onboard diagnostic) systems by this year “to alert drivers when engine emission systems are malfunctioning or deteriorating,” according to Transport Topics Online. The EPA said its ruling will reduce overall diesel emissions by more than 90 percent.

A dashboard light with OBD is a great idea for alerting drivers about truck emissions problems. But GPS fleet tracking technology is already helping owners reduce emissions, cut fuel costs and contribute to “greening” the planet. Easily installed GPS fleet tracking devices can alert dispatchers when a truck’s idle time exceeds preset limits. Operators can then work with drivers to cut back on idle time as a way to trim overall fleet efficiencies.

Think you don’t need to reduce idle time among your drivers? Think a GPS fleet tracking system is a luxury rather than a smart business tool? Consider these facts about idle time and fuel consumption:

  • Every 10 minutes of idling costs you at least 2/10 (0.2) of a gallon of gas—and up about 7/10 (0.7) of a gallon for an 8-cylinder engine. Every gallon of gas you use you also produces about 19 pounds of carbon dioxide.
  • As you spend more time idling, the average temperature of the spark plug drops. This makes the plug get dirty more quickly, which increases fuel consumption by 4 to 5 percent.
  • Excessive idling also lets water condense in the vehicle’s exhaust, leading to corrosion and a reduction of the life of your exhaust system.
  • More than 10 seconds of idling uses more fuel than restarting the engine.
  • Idling causes significant and unnecessary emissions of particulate matter, hydrocarbons, and greenhouse gases. This pollution causes asthma, acute respiratory infections, and lung cancer.
  • A Canadian study found that engine idling accounted for 3 percent of Ontario’s fuel consumption.
  • A City of Toronto study found that more than a third of parents idle their vehicles while waiting to pick up their children.

The message here is clear: Stop idling for more than 10 seconds straight to save gas, money and the environment. GPS fleet tracking will help you get the job done. If you don’t want to answer to the EPA, GPS fleet tracking is the way to “go green” now. Learn more..