The most critical way a driver can help a fleet limit risk is by controlling his road speed. It’s not enough to make a general statement that your drivers must obey the posted speed limit, because some states have posted speeds in excess of 70 miles an hour. You can enforce a set road speed using the electronic engine controls on your trucks, but what if you use owner-operators?

Too often I hear people say that owner-operator-based fleets can’t effectively control speed. I beg to differ. (In my opinion, there are far too many company-owned fleets that don’t effectively control speed on company-owned equipment.) The only difference with an owner-operator-based fleet is that you need to sell your controlled speed policy and promote it.

Contractual obligations can be an effective way to deliver your message. If you offer your owner-operators cost-effective insurance through your company, then you should add a clause requiring that the vehicle’s electronic speed parameters be set to a specific threshold. The owner-operator should provide proof of compliance when the contract is signed, and agree to be open to periodic checks.

If you pay your owner-operators a fuel subsidy to protect them against fluctuating fuel prices, then you should demand that they give you the best fuel economy their vehicle can produce, which is only achievable with speed control.

If your owner-operators want any kind of fuel subsidy and or fleet insurance rates then this type of co-operation should be a requirement and not an option.

That said, there’s no better salesman for controlled speeds than a successful owner-operator. Jack Webster, one of my guys at FedEx Ground, owns and operates three long-haul tractors. They are electronically governed at 96 kilometres an hour on cruise control and 100 km/h on the pedal.

“My trucks consistently achieve 75% cruise control usage and virtually no over-speed is recorded,” Webster says. “Our year-round average fuel mileage is 7.2 miles per Imperial gallon. If we increased our speed by 5 mph, our year-round average would drop to 6.6 mpg.” Webster says his tire life has increased to the point where he will buy one less complete set of tires for each vehicle over its lifecycle.

“Further, over the many miles we operate in all road and weather conditions we will invariably have the occasional close call,” he notes. “In many of those situations an extra 5 mph is the difference between hitting the moose that suddenly charged out onto the highway and the ‘close call’ with no negative impact.”

Webster shares with his drivers any savings that are obtained through speed management. “The driver incentives are all paid for by the savings associated with the lower speed policy,” he says.

Another one of my owner-operators, Art Jones, has a speed limit set on his truck at 96 km/h on cruise and 100 as its top end. “Before limiting the speed, my part-time driver — who is an excellent driver — used to consume a minimum of 20 litres more fuel more than I did on the same trip, and this is on a short-haul run,” Jones says. “Controlling the vehicle’s speed also eliminates the urge and the opportunity to speed, and I further believe it contributes to fleet safety.”

Need I say more?