Best iPhone Apps to Save Drivers Time and Money on Gas

Fleet Fuel Management and Green Fleet iPhone Apps

iGasUp ($2.99) displays the 10 closest fuel stations are and where the lowest fuel prices (gas or diesel) are, from you current location. If you plan to fill up later, you can enter your destination’s ZIP code and the app will provide the 10 cheapest fueling options in that area. The app also provides gasoline brands, directions and the distance to each station using Google Maps. Oil prices are provided by Oil Price Information Service, which also provides price data for AAA and Garmin GPS.

greenMeter ($5.99) can measure and analyze your vehicle’s engine power, fuel economy, and your driving to increase efficiency, fuel consumption, reduce fuel costs and lower your environmental impact. Results are displayed in real-time. GreenMeter is an energy management and tracking system designed to provide measurement and analysis to create efficiency.

Truck Drivers Fight the Effects of Rising Gas Prices

Gas prices topped $3 earlier this month, and they haven’t fallen since. While the prices are hard on the average consumer, it’s especially hard on those in the (trucking) tractor-trailer industry, considering most big rigs get about 7 miles to the gallon (MPG). A truck driver can use over 140 gallons of diesel fuel each day he runs his route. Big rigs carry about 250-300 gallons of diesel at a cost of about $3.33 a gallon – or about $1,000 for a fill-up that will take a truck 1,500 miles. Fleet management costs can up add quickly.

San Diego Airport Shuttle Expands Natural Gas Green Fleet

his week, the San Diego Airport announced they have added a new green fleet of parking shuttles powered by compressed natural gas (CNG). The addition of eco-friendly parking shuttle buses is only the latest step in San Diego’s evolving commitment to cleaner renewable fuels. Including this new fleet, San Diego has a total fleet of 24 CNG powered vehicles. The all-new “green” Airport Shuttle Fleet transports passengers between the terminals and the airport’s nearby SAN Park parking lots. The airport also has other alternative fuel vehicles in its fleet, including those powered by electricity and bio-fuel, according to Airport officials.

FMCSA’s CSA 2010 Safety Program Launches

Federal Motor Carrier Administration’s CSA 2010 Safety Program Officially Launched – Motor Carrier Data Goes Public. Federal Motor Carrier Administration’s CSA 2010 safety program rolled out this past weekend, after a federal appeals court denied a suit by several groups of small trucking companies to prevent release of CSA safety data. Shortly after the court […]

Telematics Technology Helping U.S. Farmers Become More Efficient

Thanks to telematics technology, U.S. farmers now have the option to collect and manage information from their field equipment. Modern telematics-based management systems can record data from farm equipment operating in a field, and then transfers the data to the Internet in real-time. Users can access the real-time tracking data from anywhere on the internet – from an office computer, cell phone, or a laptop. Today, most agricultural equipment companies like John Deere are in the process of developing telematics systems.

Best GPS for Golfers – Garmin Approach G5 Handheld GPS

Garmin GPS Device Golf Approach G5The Garmin GPS Approach G5 is an excellent handheld GPS device for someone who wants to improve their golf game. The Garmin GPS system does basically everything but hit the ball. Don’t just take my word for it, the Garmin Approach G5 has excellent reviews on Amazon.com (94 reviews with a 4 star average). The best GPS unit comes with a very valuable 10,000-plus course database. It also includes lifetime free online course additions and updates. There’s no subscription or setup fees, and Approach is compliant with USGA rules.

Can Employers Track Workers Vehicle with GPS Without Their Knowledge?

GPS Tracking and Privacy Rights

Do you think employers should have the right to track worker whereabouts with a GPS tracking device without their knowledge? What if the employer suspects the employee is falsifying time-sheets? What if the employer is the State of New York and is being funded by tax dollars? These are some of the issues at the core of a new lawsuit brought forth by the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) on behalf of a former Department of Labor (DOL) , Michael Cunningham.

Mr. Cunningham was fired in August of 2010 from his $115,000 per year DOL Supervisor job based on information gained from a GPS tracking system that had been placed on his BMW. The GPS tracking device was placed on his vehicle because his managers suspected that he was falsifying his time-sheets – trying to get paid for hours he didn’t actually work. Based on the GPS tracking system data, the NY Labor Dept. fired Mr. Cunningham.

Vehicle Tracking Telematics Systems Can Save Your Fleet Money

vehicle tracking gps systemVehicle Tracking Telematics-enabled GPS Systems of today (2010) offer much more than just real-time GPS location-based data. The most important thing for fleet management is saving money. Considering today’s tough economic times, it’s important to run a business as efficiently as possible. Vehicle Tracking can help you reduce operating expenses while increasing the number of service calls you complete each day. As telematics technology has matured, fleets are now starting to understand the value of the data you can get from telematics and are moving away from just location-based information.

Fleet managers can use telematics-enabled vehicle tracking fleet GPS systems to reduce a fleet’s operating costs in several different ways. Many fleets save money from being able to record accurate time sheets, stopping unnecessary journeys and recognizing and stopping drivers taking long routes.

GPS Tracking By Law Enforcement Without A Warrant – Is it Legal?

Several important court battles over the use of GPS tracking by law enforcement without a warrant have been going on during the last year. The courts have returned different opinions recently.

1) In November 2010, the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit, in a five to four split, upheld a lower court’s ruling that law enforcement agencies need to obtain a warrant to use the “global positioning system” (GPS) to track a suspect.

The federal appellate court denied a Department of Justice request for reconsideration of a three-judge panel’s ruling that warrantless GPS tracking violated the defendant’s Fourth Amendment rights as well as the defendant’s “reasonable expectation of privacy.”

The case involved a D.C. area nightclub owner who was busted for drug possession after police attached a GPS tracking device to his vehicle. Local authorities had monitored Antoine Jones for a month without a warrant before they nabbed him. In a divided decision the court ruled to re-establish Jones’ 4th amendment rights as precedent over what is essentially probable cause, most likely because there didn’t seem to be probable cause for much of the time spent monitoring the suspect.

AT&T’s Green Fleet Management Tips, Strategy and Achievements

Less than 2 years ago, AT&T committed to replacing approximately 15,000 of its nearly 76,000 fleet vehicles with alternative fuel models by 2019. Since then, AT & T has deployed 2,000 compressed natural gas (CNG) fleet vehicles, a major green fleet milestone. The company’s 15,000 alt-fuel fleet vehicle plan will displace 2.5 million barrels of oil, reduce carbon emissions by 211,000 metric tons, and create or save 5,500 jobs, according to the Alternative Fuel Vehicle Institute.

The company expects to spend an estimated $350 million over five years to purchase roughly 8,000 compressed natural gas (CNG) fleet vehicles. CNG vehicles provide a reduction in carbon emissions – approximately 25 percent compared with traditional gasoline vehicles. They are also working with natural gas service providers to build up to 40 new CNG fueling stations to provide the infrastructure needed for the new vehicles. AT&T’s green fleet plan includes an approximately $215 million investment to replace 7,100 fleet passenger cars with alternative-fuel models. The measure will save 49 million gallons of gasoline over 10 years, according to the Center for Automotive Research.

How to Prevent Theft of Fleet Vehicles

Yesterday CJ Driscolls & Associates released a study of the Latin American GPS Vehicle Tracking Systems Market. The study concluded that today over four million Latin American vehicles are equipped with a subscription-based vehicle tracking solution. By 2014, the Latin American GPS Vehicle Tracking Systems market will expand to nearly nine million units in service, which is more than double the current amount of GPS vehicle tracking devices. Yearly hardware and service revenues are expected to grow to nearly US $3 billion.

The CJ Driscolls Study provides valuable information about the market for GPS fleet management, consumer stolen vehicle recovery and telematics solutions in each Latin American country (as well as Central America and Mexico). The study also provides an overview and data on the addressable market size, market penetration and trends, and projected market growth.

Fuel Efficient Driving Techniques for Fleets- Drive Smart, Spend Less

The same car or truck being operated by a different driver (or in a different driving style) can have almost a 10 – 15% difference in fuel consumption. Driving smarter means spending less on fuel. “The largest impact on fuel economy is driver behavior. These include speed, road management and driving style,” said Bob Halfyard, director of safety and compliance at Challenger Motor Freight. Fleet management is realizing the value in actively training their drivers to reinforce awareness about fuel-efficient driving techniques.

Fleet management should make sure drivers are aware of their gas mileage. Rewarding drivers for good driving behavior is a good way to encourage good driving habits. Using technology such as the best GPS Fleet Tracking system to monitor driver behavior, gas mileage, and engine diagnostics is very helpful.

5 Ways Fleet Management Can Save Money and Maximize Efficiency in 2011

To maximize fleet efficiency and determine areas for cost savings on their fleet management investments, this identifies the biggest areas of cost savings for fleet customers during the third quarter 2010, including:

1) Leasing company vehicles vs owning fleet vehicles. Leasing a fleet instead of owning a fleet of vehicles for use by employees saved customers $21 million.

2) Optimizing replacement strategies. Determining the optimal time to cycle vehicles in fleet, given applicable costs can also save millions.

Hertz & Enterprise add all Electric Vehicles to Fleet

Two of the biggest car rental companies in the US – Hertz and Enterprise – will be adding Coda Automotive all-electric Sedans to their car rental green fleet in 2011. The Enterprise Rent-a-Car Fleet will be adding up to 100 Coda Electric Sedans to their car rental locations in California. Hertz said it will be adding the Coda electric vehicles to its car rental vehicle fleet at some Southern California locations and in San Francisco next year.

Hertz said its network of more than 8,300 locations would give it a “unique opportunity” to introduce the all-electric CODA to potential consumers. Hertz is working to set up vehicle charging stations at its rental and car sharing locations, with the aim of rolling out a full-scale electric vehicle rental program in the US and abroad beginning in 2011.

“With one of the world’s largest rental-car fleets, Hertz is uniquely positioned to catalyze the adoption of all-electric vehicles and infrastructure supporting electric mobility,” said Mark Jamieson, Coda’s CFO and CEO, in a statement.

Efficiency Helps Public Fleet Managers Facing Budget Cuts

According to Government Fleet Magazine, the biggest challenge facing public sector fleets in 2011 is budget constraints due to the decline in tax revenues over the past few years. Public entities are funded largely through sales and property taxes — the two areas most devastated by the economic downturn. Successful fleet management for the public sector essentially boils down to revenue versus costs and maximizing fleet efficiency.

Public sector fleets are currently feeling the pressure to lower capital expenditures and reduce operating costs to compensate for tax revenue shortfalls. This is quite a challenge for public sector fleets, as the economic crisis has caused reduced funding resulting in older fleet assets and budget cuts have caused staff layoffs. There is an ongoing push to minimize fleet capital procurements by keeping vehicles and equipment in service longer. All capital expenditures are being intensely scrutinized. Capital purchases are deferred or eliminated completely and in most cases, total capital expenditures are reduced.

75% of Drivers Open to Sharing GPS Data with Insurance Companies

Over 75% of auto insurance policyholders in the U.S. would welcome a telematics-based insurance program, if sharing their driving data had the potential to reduce their insurance premiums, according to the 2010 LexisNexis Risk Solutions Telematics Survey. The Telematics Survey measured auto policyholder receptivity to allowing insurance companies to use data collected from telematics devices in their vehicles to help determine rates.

The LexisNexis telematics survey measured consumer comfort levels around sharing personal driving information compared to other types of personal information from sources including Internet banking, mobile phones and social networking sites. The results showed policyholders more comfortable sharing GPS system driving data with insurance companies than personal information on social networking sites like Facebook.

Additionally the study found that:

* Over 57% of policyholders are comfortable sharing information about events that led to traffic accidents with insurance companies. 57% of policyholders also believe that auto insurance rates should be determined by actual driving data.
* Only 29% indicated they were comfortable with social networking sites storing personal information such as messages and photos posted on websites.

* Policyholders’ main concern is privacy; however they are more receptive to sharing driving data with insurance carriers than they are to sharing personal information with banks, or allowing mobile phone carriers to store text messages.
* 80% of policyholders believe that tailgating should affect rates.
* 59% of policyholders believe that miles driven per year should be used to determine rates.
* More than half of policyholders feel that minor speeding infractions (5 mph over the speed limit) should not impact rates.

Demand For Vehicle Tracking Solutions Increasing

According to a new research report from Berg Insight, by the end of this year (2010), 4.3 million passenger cars in Europe will contain an on-board telematics system. Stolen vehicle tracking is still the primary telematics application, followed by automatic emergency call, driver assistance and auto insurance telematics.

The Berg Insight report on the European car telematics market was quite positive. According to the Berg report, the global automotive industry crisis is behind us, as the market has been improving. Demand for aftermarket vehicle tracking solutions is now coming back to pre-financial crisis levels. The OEM market segment is showing signs of increasing activity. Many programs that were aborted in late 2008 have now been resurrected as car manufacturers are putting new focus on their telematics strategies.

Fleet Management System Optimizes Resources and Make Customers Happier

The Best GPS Fleet Management Systems Cut Costs and Increase Customer Satisfaction.

Do you want to save your company money by running a more efficient business? A good GPS fleet management system can optimize your business resources and make customers happier. GPS fleet tracking devices can capture location data every few seconds and transmit it to back-office software for real-time map display and in-depth performance analysis.

Cut Fuel Costs and Increase Customer Satisfaction with FieldLogix GPS Vehicle Fleet Tracking and Fleet Management System. With FieldLogix you can track your fleet vehicles with real-time fleet tracking, and always know where your vehicles are 24/7.

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