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4 Improving Performance

4.1 Introduction

This section outlines practical suggestions for improving the performance of the government vehicle fleet, particularly the environmental, economic and social (safety) aspects of fleet vehicles. Suggestions for improvements are made at the following levels:

  • central government (relating to data collection and actions for central agencies)
  • individual organisations (at senior management and at procurement officer/fleet manager levels).

A set of suggested indicators is provided for assessing and tracking improvement of fleet performance.

4.2 Practical ways of making improvements

4.2.1 General comments on vehicle characteristics

Engine size

In general, the smaller the engine capacity and the smaller the car, the better the fuel consumption (EconoDrive, EECA, 2001). Cutting back fuel consumption means less carbon dioxide and other emissions are produced per kilometre travelled. Vehicle size also affects the level of materials used in manufacture.

Research shows that pool car vehicle use is usually confined to a single person driving, on average, 2.5 hours per day for about 125 kilometres per day (EconoDrive, EECA, 2001). For this level of use a 1.3 litre (or 1,300 cc) vehicle is likely to be enough in many circumstances.

A number of smaller cars score highly in the safety stakes while some larger vehicles do not. This is particularly true for the harm caused by the car to other road users, such as pedestrians or other vehicles. However, the opposite may also be true in that larger vehicles may be more robust and therefore safer for the occupants of the vehicle than a smaller vehicle might be. (Safety features of the government fleet vehicle are discussed in Appendix D, Section 11.10).

Fuel type

The high number of petrol-fuelled vehicles in the fleet means selecting fuel-efficient vehicles is the most effective way to reduce environmental impacts related to fuel type. Although not reflected in the LANDATA figures, the emerging use of hybrid vehicles in the government fleet is one approach to reducing fuel usage. Similar benefits are offered by downsizing fleet vehicles to smaller engine sizes.

As the quality of New Zealand diesel improves (with the reduction in sulphur content), the selection of diesel vehicles - particularly European ones - is likely to increase. Vehicles able to operate on clean diesel will offer environmental benefits by reducing carbon dioxide emissions from the fleet, while providing an acceptable level of emissions for other gases and particulates. Research and development into the use of biofuels continues, including the production of ethanol from the New Zealand dairy sector. Discussions are also taking place at central government level on the introduction of a required minimum ethanol content within petrol.

Although the use of cleaner, alternative fuels such as compressed natural gas (CNG) and liquid petroleum gas (LPG) is currently limited in New Zealand, organisations such as the New Zealand LPG Association are trying to change this.

Environmental benefits associated with fuel type are generally heavily influenced by advances in technology in the vehicle and fuel industries. Legislative requirements for fuel and the use of additives are a key influence on the environmental impacts associated with vehicle fuel type. From a procurement perspective, keeping up with technology and legislative developments in this area is a good idea.

Fuel economy

Improving fuel efficiency of the fleet is closely related to downsizing vehicles. Although non-public service departments and territorial local authorities may need larger vehicles for some tasks, much of these fleets could still be downsized to reduce fuel use. Improved fuel economy is a key consideration across the entire fleet, both for environmental benefits and to save costs. The most significant improvements are likely to result from appropriate vehicle selection, but putting in place regular and more frequent vehicle maintenance and replacement programmes will also help.

Getting better information at an individual fleet level, and making improvements accordingly, is most likely to reduce the environmental impacts from fuel consumption for the overall government fleet. The fuel efficiency of fleet vehicles is an important factor that may already be considered for economic reasons during procurement. More value is likely to be placed on improved fuel economy during this process as fuel prices go up.

FleetCheck audits make several key recommendations, including maintaining vehicles regularly and more frequently, and implementing a vehicle replacement programme that reduces the vehicle age and resulting inefficiencies from older models.

Vehicle emissions rating

Emissions ratings are commonly described as codes that reflect emission standards usually developed by Australia, Europe, USA or Japan. European emissions codes may be indicated by a 'Euro' number - the higher the number, the lower the emissions of carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons, nitrous oxides and particulate matter. The Vehicle Exhaust Emissions Rule 2003 sets out standards as requirements in New Zealand. As an example, from 1 January 2006 all light petrol vehicles are required to meet Euro III, rather than the previous Euro II standard.

Buying Euro IV vehicles instead of Euro II or III would mean a significant reduction in emissions contaminants. The potential for reducing the environmental impacts related to vehicle emissions is related to vehicle selection, replacement and maintenance. However, the standards set by the New Zealand Vehicle Exhaust Emissions Rule are currently relatively low compared with requirements for emissions control technology legislated in Europe, Japan and the United States - although they are likely to become more stringent with time. So vehicles available in New Zealand may not be high performers in terms of reducing contaminants. On this basis, vehicle maintenance becomes a key factor in reducing environmental impacts of the government fleet. Older vehicles are also likely to be high emitters and should be replaced.

4.2.2 Central data collection - LANDATA

Collecting information from the LANDATA database for this report involved a manual search of fields. This type of search would be easier and more repeatable if some changes were made to the database. It is understood that the Ministry of Transport is considering a review of the database, and it may wish to consider the following suggestions to improve LANDATA's usefulness for assessing the sustainability of the government fleet:

  • Adding a government category in the 'customer type' field, so vehicles owned or leased by government can be more easily identified.
  • As the way in which fuel consumption information is obtained and presented varies according to the vehicle country of origin, expanding the fuel consumption fields to allow fuel consumption to be entered in the following formats:
    • urban
    • extra urban
    • city
    • highway
    • combined consumption.
    A simpler approach may be to pass legislation that requires vehicle manufacturers to supply fuel economy information in a specified format, such as combined fuel economy
  • Recording actual kilometres travelled, to enable an accurate baseline to be measured for the carbon footprint for the whole government fleet.
  • Ensuring organisation names are entered consistently, with prompts or drop-down menus (assuming that a separate government 'customer type' field is introduced), and a list of organisation names (or other criteria such as emissions standards, safety ratings) to choose from. Consider how new organisation names would be converted or referred to, especially if a government organisation changes its name.

4.2.3 Central agency support

Central government, particularly the Ministry for the Environment, could consider how it might help make the following tools readily available to all government organisations. These tools could help procurement managers and fleet managers apply sustainability considerations easily and consistently, using relevant New Zealand data:

  • A process/database/website to give emissions ratings and fuel consumption figures for new vehicles (supported by a legislative requirement for new vehicle manufacturers to provide standard fuel consumption and emissions levels for vehicles sold new in New Zealand).
  • Clear guidelines against which to benchmark fleets, along with whole-of-life costing information down to the level of vehicle makes and models.
  • A tool such as a database or spreadsheet that could be used by all government organisations to compile selection lists of vehicles that would meet sustainable procurement requirements.
  • A tool such as a database or spreadsheet that could be used by all government organisations to record actual data from monitoring their fleets. This would outline the information an organisation should be collecting and would also give consistency across the entire government fleet - so information from each organisation could be combined to give a meaningful, accurate overview.
  • Sample processes to incorporate sustainability considerations in tenders and template clauses for government agencies to include in their motor vehicle contracts. These processes and templates could be written to include Govt3 environmental and social objectives for sustainable vehicle procurement and would be particularly useful for smaller organisations with limited resources and funding. A standard approach would outline the information an organisation should consider during procurement and would provide consistency across the government fleet. Using a standard approach may also help increase the purchasing power and availability of eligible vehicles, due to the significant combined vehicle numbers.
  • Offsetting options for government fleets. One way of addressing environmental impacts of vehicle fleets is to think of how to offset those effects, such as planting trees to offset carbon dioxide emissions. Offsetting impacts was not mentioned as an option by any of the organisations surveyed. A number of organisations offer offsetting programmes, including:
    • GreenFleet programme maintained by the Sustainable Business Network (www.greenfleet.org.nz)
    • EBEX21 (Landcare Research carbon emissions tool)
    • Trees for Survival programme (www.treesforsurvival.org.nz)
    • Shell and BP Oil international schemes.

4.2.4 Individuals

Individuals in government agencies can help improve the performance of their organisation's vehicle fleet in a number of ways, outlined below.

Senior management and change agents

  • Investigate the business case for more environmentally responsible choices.
  • Demand and provide better information about current practices and fleet performance.
  • Ensure that a value-for-money approach to fleet procurement and management includes environmental considerations.
  • Demonstrate commitment through transport and vehicle choices - lead by example.
  • Commit to and actively participate in the Govt3 programme or equivalent.
  • Look for opportunities to demonstrate and publicise good practice within the organisation - recognising the culture change element.
  • Share stories and learn from others.

Procurement officers and/or fleet managers

  • Ensure your agency has developed a Fleet Management Plan. The Ministry of Transport can help agencies develop these plans.
  • Collect consistent and useful fleet data to inform procurement policy and practices. Use fuel use/odometer data for calculating fuel consumption rates, greenhouse gas emissions, and other pollutants. The vehicle emissions data should also be used for comparing trends per vehicle and within different departments. Fuel consumption rates (l/100 km) should also be calculated and trends compared. Allocating costs on a per vehicle basis can enable vehicle comparisons to be made. Get data on the types of transport used instead of organisation-owned vehicles. Report on total vehicle use within the wider context including travel using taxis, hire vehicles or other modes, as well as recognising the success of any initiatives to reduce vehicle use/environmental footprints.
  • Analyse and use fleet data to help decision-making on vehicle procurement and fleet management - what is the data telling you about fleet utilisation? What information can your fleet manager (internal or external) provide you to assist in sensible choices about procurement?
  • Incorporate environmental and safety criteria into fleet procurement tenders and contracts. Consider replacing mid/high-range engine capacities (>1600 cc) with vehicles of a smaller engine size (many journeys are over short distances and typically have only one person in the vehicle). Set minimum standards as part of the vehicle procurement policy - vehicle size, fuel efficiency, safety rating, emissions rating. Introduce a requirement to responsibly recycle or dispose of waste oils, old tyres and other parts, and include these criteria in maintenance arrangements.

4.3 A set of indicators

4.3.1 Overall high-level indicators

Below is the basic set of indicators that will enable tracking and reporting on the sustainability of the overall government fleet:

  • total number of vehicles in fleet
  • average engine size
  • average age of fleet vehicles
  • average fuel consumption (at the overall fleet level, manufacturer ratings provide an adequate indicator) for entrants in past 12 months
  • a fleet average fuel consumption (for all vehicles in fleet)
  • percentage of vehicles that exceed the current minimum standards requirement
  • percentage of vehicles with four-star safety rating
  • carbon dioxide footprint of the fleet (requires kilometre-travelled data)
  • number of hybrid vehicles in the fleet
  • number of alternative fuel vehicles in the fleet (LPG, bio-diesel).

Having hybrid and alternative fuel vehicles shows an organisation is committed to sustainability and progressive practice.

Disposal and recyclability indicators are not included at this level, as data to date show this area is not well developed. These have been included in the individual agency indicator list as process indicators.

4.3.2 Individual agency indicators

Below is the basic set of indicators, including both outcome and process indicators, that would enable tracking and reporting on the sustainability of the fleet at the individual agency level:

  • kilometres travelled in fleet vehicles per FTE (full-time equivalent staff member)
  • cost per kilometre
  • volume of parts, waste oil, tyres recycled or disposed of responsibly (currently difficult to measure)
  • fleet vehicle-related accidents/injuries/fatalities
  • fleet audit completed (process indicator)
  • environmental indicators specifically included in procurement policy; for example, emissions standards, fuel economy targets (process indicator)
  • environmental criteria specifically built into vehicle procurement decisions through weighting scheme or other (process indicator)
  • environmental criteria specifically included in contracts with vehicle supplier and fleet management firms (process indicator)
  • maintenance contracts include clauses related to waste oil, tyre and parts disposal (process indicator)
  • use of alternatives to car travel: for example, taxis, walking, public transport, teleconferencing (may be difficult to track accurately but tracking and reporting the activities will support new behaviours)
  • shift in staff commuting behaviour - through a staff travel survey (supporting indicator).

4.3.3 Required measures

To accurately assess the sustainability performance of the fleet itself - at a government or individual organisation level - the following information should be collected for individual vehicles. Tracking measures per vehicle enables vehicle comparisons to be made.

Fixed

  • Vehicle registration number (or some means of unique identification).
  • Year of purchase/first registration.
  • Make and model (include sedan or wagon, and so on). The way of describing each vehicle type should be consistent throughout the fleet and guidelines should be provided.
  • Fuel type.
  • Vehicle fuel economy rating.
  • Engine size.
  • Transmission type.
  • Emissions rating.
  • Vehicle safety rating.
  • Purchase price or lease costs.

Variable

  • Distance travelled for each vehicle (from odometer readings or fuel receipts, vehicle booking system, and so on). Annual record as a minimum; monthly reporting allows better management.
  • Number of vehicle occupants per trip (could be tracked through a vehicle booking system).
  • Fuel use.
  • Maintenance and repairs records (frequency and costs).
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