GreenRoad, the leader in driver performance management, released the 2012 Fleet Driver Performance Data Benchmark Report providing in-depth analysis of fleet driver performance as captured by GreenRoad technology. Based on data representing over 70,000 fleet drivers worldwide, the report offers a snapshot into fleet driver performance with comparative data going back to 2010. For the third consecutive year, the worldwide average GreenRoad Safety Score improved from a score of 29 in 2010 to 21 in 2012, a 28 percent improvement.
According to GreenRoad data, new GreenRoad drivers show even more substantial and immediate improvement. In 2012, new GreenRoad drivers improved their Safety Scores nearly 50 percent within six months. Immediately after the GreenRoad in-vehicle feedback service is turned on, the new GreenRoad driver Safety Score average is 17. After six months, the average score improves to 9, a 47 percent improvement. GreenRoad data is based on the GreenRoad Safety Score which is automatically calculated through the use of sophisticated in-vehicle and smartphone-based technology that captures and tabulates risky or fuel inefficient driving events; the lower the Safety Score, the safer the driver. Driving is measured across five major categories: braking, acceleration, corner handling, lane handling and speeding.
"This aggregate fleet driver performance data gives us valuable insights into fleet behavior across the U.S.," said Karen White, senior vice president of customer solutions for GreenRoad. "This year our customers began using our new smartphone apps giving them even better access to their data and easier visibility into the specifics of their driving behavior. We believe access to data is a powerful behavior change agent and we are beginning to see this in the 2012 benchmark data."
In the U.S., no single driving event dominates the Safety Score; instead corner handling (29 percent), harsh braking (26 percent) and speeding (26 percent) are the most common risky or inefficient events. Acceleration and lane handling follow, each at 10 percent. This sharply contrasts with the 2011 data when speeding was by far the most dominate risky event type at 40 percent of the total.
"We believe the use of our smartphone apps have helped drivers become more aware of their risky speeding behavior and we are seeing those drivers modify their behavior, thus resulting in an evening out of the Safety Score mix for 2012," commented White.
The 2012 data shows that U.S. fleet drivers are performing well throughout the year; there is no notable Safety Score variation on a month-to-month basis. However, Safety Scores do show variation by time-of-day with scores as low as 2 in the early morning hours and climbing to a 9 during peak rush hour periods. "This day-part range is exceptional," said White, "any score lower than 20 is considered safe, 'green' driving."
