Making Your Business’ Delivery Fleet More Sustainable

If you’re trying to run a sustainable business, especially one that sells goods to customers, then the process of delivering those goods is one that requires a lot of consideration. A lot of businesses build their own fleets, whether big or small, so they can have more control over the environmental impact of their deliveries. However, what exactly can you do to keep your fleet sustainable? Here are a few directions to think in.

Choose Fuel-Efficient Vehicles

Your choice of vehicles is the first and often most impactful choice when it comes to reducing the potential environmental costs of your fleet. Choosing electric vehicles, hybrids, or hydrogen-powered vehicles is not only a lot more sustainable, but it’s becoming increasingly viable for businesses, especially with the growing range of electric vans well-suited for local deliveries. If your delivery drivers are a little longer, then you might not be able to go electric, but you should still consider vehicles with better fuel economy.

Improve Your Journey Routing

Efficient route planning is a huge part of sustainable fleet management. Finding the shortest, least congested routes with the help of GPS technology and telematics can help you always find the best routers. Furthermore, a vehicle delivery service can help you ensure your vehicles are well-positioned, distributing your vehicles across key locations to reduce travel distances and the associated fuel consumption. Effective fleet management in your headquarters can allow your team to route dynamically, updating drivers based on real-time traffic and weather changes to ensure they don’t get stuck.

Teach Eco-Friendly Driving Habits

The driver has a major impact on how fuel-efficient their journeys are. There are plenty of eco-friendly driving habits that you can ensure your drivers are trained in so that they can reduce fuel consumption and emissions. These changes can include things like reducing idling time, maintaining steady speeds, and avoiding sudden acceleration or braking, which can lead to significant savings in fuel usage. Training them in the routine maintenance of their vehicles can also help improve their sustainability, keeping their tires properly inflated and engines tuned so that they are as efficient on the road as possible.

Optimise Your Logistics

While a lot of the tips to keep your fleet sustainable focus on the vehicles and driving, the cargo also matters a lot. Reducing unnecessary weight in vehicles helps improve fuel efficiency, so businesses should evaluate how they load and distribute packages. Using lightweight, space-efficient packaging can help reduce overall cargo weight, leading to lower fuel consumption. Of course, any business looking to make their deliveries more sustainable should also look at the material choices they make in their packaging. There are plenty of biodegradable, recyclable and reusable materials that are worth taking a closer look at.

There is an inherent ecological cost that comes with delivering products and, indeed, with running a business of any kind. However, there’s also a lot you can do to mitigate those costs with the tips above, so put in the work, and you can contribute to a more eco-friendly business environment.

this is a collaborative post.