Error parsing XSLT file: \xslt\FacebookOpenGraph.xslt Mike Waters' blog: 17 March 2011 - Life in the fast lane
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Mike Waters' blog: 17 March 2011 - Life in the fast lane

Date: 17 March 2011

Mike Waters is senior insight & consultancy manager at Arval, the leading vehicle leasing and fleet management company.

Its anecdotal evidence and I have no research to prove my point, but I have to say that in recent months I've noticed a marked reduction in the speeds of other drivers on the motorway; something that seems to have coincided with the increasing price of fuel.

Visiting the pumps is no fun for UK drivers with the price for both unleaded petrol and diesel averaging more then 130p a litre. So with drivers getting less fuel for their money, could it be that they are reducing their speeds to limit the frequency that they have to refuel?

Interestingly Spain is proactively trying to influence drivers towards this kind of behaviour and has introduced a lower speed limit on its motorways to reduce fuel use. Under the new rules, the maximum limit on motorways has been cut from 120 kph (75 mph) to 110 kph (68 mph).

Of course, driving at lower speeds isn't just good for the wallet, it's also safer and greener. I have been talking for some time about the direct link between the environment and safety as safer driving tends to be more efficient as well as reducing the likelihood of accidents and minimising costs.

Contrary to popular belief, it is not the heavier traffic on motorways that causes accidents, but the way that people drive. Long motorway journeys can sap driver concentration and increase the chances of an accident, while the faster a driver is travelling, the higher the risk.

Despite this, in the UK it looks as though we may not be following the stance taken by the Spainish. Transport Secretary Philip Hammond recently suggested that driving faster on motorways could cut journey times and boost productivity hinting to an increase in the limit rather than a reduction.

Irrespective of whether my theory is right or wrong, and regardless of what happens to the motorway speed limit in the UK, its worth remembering that driver behaviour can have a big impact on vehicle costs, whether it relates to fuel, maintenance or fines. While factors around us such as fuel prices and speed limits can change, we still have a major role to play in influencing our vehicle related costs.

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