Vehicle monitoring and driver behaviour
Across North America, more than 20,000 employees have joined together to reduce unnecessary idling of our fleet. The policy is "Do Not Idle" with just five permitted exceptions. Over 75% of drivers have completed training and achieved a 45 percent reduction in emissions.
We have fitted on board telematic devices for recording driver activity in our UK and Spanish coach fleets. Combined with focused training, we educate our drivers to adopt more fuel-efficient driving patterns which lowers carbon emissions. The implementation of the device in the coach fleet combined with our drivers eco-driving, has achieved a 2.8MPG (mile per gallon) reduction per journey in the UK and a fuel saving of over 1 million litres (2%) in our Spanish fleet.
Download the Vehicle Monitoring & Driver Behaviour case study
Alternative fuels and engine technology
Fleet technologies:
We continue to implement pioneering fleet technologies across our business, sharing innovative low carbon solutions to improve efficiencies and achieve sustainable performance.
We are working with Birmingham City Council on a project to deploy 20 hydrogen buses in 2018, and have secured funding for low emissions projects including electric buses.
In addition, we have secured £2.2 million of government funding towards a programme to upgrade 210 buses with emissions traps, which upgrade older buses to Euro 6 standards.
Biodiesel:
We continue to invest in lower carbon fuels using the Spanish network (ALSA). Following a pilot study, Biodiesel is used in some of our fleet. ALSA have extended the use of biodiesel to 30% of the total fleet and achieved a reduction in carbon emissions of 18,478kg CO2e. Biofuel use reduces Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions and environmental impacts but also diversifies our energy sources to reduce the current dependency on oil.
Hybrid Vehicles:
ALSA introduced five electric and Hybrid buses on its routes in 2012. In the following year, the Spanish Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Environment selected the ALSA Híbrido "hybrid fleet" project as one of its 37 flagship Climate Projects that focus on technological innovation to improve the environment by reducing CO2 emissions. The diesel fleet will be replaced by a hybrid fleet and resultant emission reductions will be "purchased" by the Government's Carbon Fund. ALSA was the only transport company to have a project successfully approved.
The Bus Division in the UK has also seen the value of hybrid technology and introduced 18 new Hybrid buses on West Midland bus routes. By using electric vehicles we avoid emitting the equivalent of 30-34 kg of CO2 every day and achieve a 30% reduction in mile per gallon (MPG) fuel efficiency.
The Division has further invested £8.8million in the purchase of 31 brand new hybrid buses to expand the size of our green bus fleet which will further reduce our carbon emissions, protect and improve the air quality of our local environment.
State of the art vehicles in Dundee operate mainly on Service 5, which serves Broughty Ferry, Ninewells Hospital and the Technology Park. Built in Falkirk by Alexander Dennis Ltd, the vehicles are a £2.8 million pound investment by the company, the Scottish Government and Dundee City Council in the city's transport infrastructure.
Engine Technology:
With Aston University, National Express is working in partnership in the development of low emission liquid air engine technology. The underlying principle is to reduce or replace diesel consumption with stored renewable energy reducing the overall carbon footprint.
The National Express UK coach fleets meets the latest Euro emissions standards, by the introduction of Euro 6 vehicles. With built in technology as standard for pollution abatement, this results in lower fuel consumption, lower climate impact and lower emissions (emitting less carbon dioxide (CO2), particulates.
Download the Alternative Fuels case study
