Greentomatocars, London’s largest green private hire service, is giving passengers safer and more comfortable journeys thanks to a sophisticated system that warns drivers when they stray from good practice.
GreenRoad’s driver safety system monitors more than 150 different movements and detects when a driver performs a manoeuvre such as sharp cornering, swerving, harsh braking or sudden acceleration. Drivers can monitor their driving via a simple to use dashboard tool, so they can improve their skills, encouraging good driving habits on a daily basis.
Drivers are alerted by a simple ‘traffic light’ system that sits on the dashboard – a green light means driving is safe, amber that it is straying away from the safest driving practices and a red light indicates that a risky manoeuvre has just been undertaken.
Greentomatocars already prides itself on the safety of its drivers but wanted to promote a culture of continual improvement so installed GreenRoad’s performance management system in 300 of its vehicles this year. Installing the system was straightforward, with all 300 vehicles being equipped within a fortnight earlier this year after a successful trial was concluded.
So far the private hire company, which runs a fleet of hybrid, electric and hydrogen vehicles, has been pleased with the results as driving standards are monitored every minute and standards are continually improving.
Julia Thomas, Managing Director of Greentomatocars, said: “Safety of our customers and drivers is the top priority for our business. We already have rigorous recruitment and induction processes to ensure only high quality drivers join our fleet, however we were looking for something the drivers could use for on-going personal development which would benefit them and our customers.
“The great advantage of GreenRoad is the easy access of information for the driver, meaning it can be used as a self-learning tool. Drivers have access to their performance via app and web per journey every day and in an industry where drivers can be waiting for their next passenger, this is well used. This is in addition to the traffic lights system in the car, which shows the driver in real time; whether they are driving according to the standards we have set for braking, accelerating and cornering.”
“As a company, we can then view the progress of the fleet as a whole, highlight drivers who may benefit from further one on one training, with the aim of giving a better, safer passenger experience.
“It is early days in terms of evaluating the benefits of the new telematics system but the enthusiastic reception to it from drivers and the service delivery team who manage them, who can both now work toward clear targets, is very encouraging.”
Driver Habtamu Behailu was one of the first to try out GreenRoad and he performed so well he achieved ‘Fleet Elite’ status – GreenRoad’s recognition scheme for the safest drivers, measured over 500 hours on the road.
Habtamu Behailu said: “I am really pleased with the telematics device and it has certainly helped me improve as a driver, as it gives tips to improve my driving and has made me more aware of my actions, which is good for me and good for the safety of my passengers. The system also helps us monitor fuel consumption, which is good for the environment and this is a key concern for greentomatocars as we are London’s original green private hire car service.”
Chris Horbowy, GreenRoad’s Director of UK Sales, said: “We are delighted that greentomatocars has chosen GreenRoad and believe that thousands of its customers will enjoy safer, smoother journeys thanks to our system.
“It is great that a forward-thinking company, which has already done a lot to reduce its carbon footprint, is also taking further steps to increase fleet efficiency and it is a fantastic example of GreenRoad at work making roads safer.”
GreenRoad was established in 2004 to help companies improve driver safety and reduce overall costs and risks. Since then the company has monitored over 6 billion miles and more than 500,000 driving years.
