Operating HGVs can be challenging for any business, but those working in urban areas across the UK often require a more bespoke solution, such as a multi engine type (covering ICE, hybrid and electric) and a different approach to vehicle sizes to meet emission, safety and local operating requirements.
In this article, Danny Glynn, managing director of Enterprise Flex-E-Rent, considers the problems and issues facing operators and makes suggestions to help run fleets in urban areas efficiently and economically.
Businesses operating in urban areas may therefore need a more nuanced approach to how they operate and ensure compliance in different urban areas. This might involve considering different vehicle configurations and sizes, improved route planning, enhanced driver training, and a greater level of on-board equipment such as cameras, telematics and other driver aids.
In our experience, there are six key priorities for HGV operators to consider:
- Road and vehicle safety standards
It is important to understand the current and future compliance requirements in which your business operates, particularly road safety standards like London’s updated Direct Vision Standards (DVS) and HGV Safety Permit Scheme as well as FORS, CLOCS (the latter for businesses operating in the construction and infrastructure sectors) and noise pollution.
Vehicle safety standards are constantly evolving across national and local requirements, so businesses need to stay up to date, whilst managing that difficult challenge of balancing safety versus cost.
Sensible questions any business can ask themselves include: do you operate a standard national specification and safety level on vehicles, or should you equip vehicles just to meet local requirements such as the additional requirements for London? Equally, should you review your fleet age profile to operate younger, cleaner vehicles that are also compliant with European GSR safety standards?
A robust analysis of operating locations and minimum fleet safety requirements at the outset, encompassing every likely scenario, can save time and cost down the line.
- Maintenance, compliance and replacement
Wherever your HGVs operate, the importance of running a safe, compliant and well-maintained fleet cannot be overstated. Equally, due to stop-start driving and increased idling activity in urban areas, enhanced and bespoke maintenance regimes are always recommended.
There might also need to be a focus on ensuring all your Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) are checked regularly to ensure they’re in good working order.
It’s also important to keep up to date with any changes to the Guide to Maintaining Roadworthiness, ensuring you are implementing any updated recommendations to your Preventative Maintenance Inspections (PMIs) such as the recent changes to laden roller brake testing.
- Emissions standards
Another major consideration for businesses operating HGVs in urban areas is vehicle emissions, especially in cities that have implemented Clean Air Zones (CAZ) or low-emission regulations like the ULEZ / LEZ in London. These now extend to towns and cities across the country, with several other urban areas exploring the potential of adopting similar initiatives, such as Birmingham and Sheffield.
Operators may need to juggle conventional diesel, cleaner internal combustion HGVs and emerging EV models, depending on route and use-case. Mapping out requirements to pinpoint the most efficient and suitable vehicle can be very important.
This is likely to mean that, as EV HGV technologies are developed in the coming years, you may need to run a fleet with mixed powertrain systems for a period of time. Flexibility in your ownership model will be key.
Equally, employing telematics and urban-efficient driver training can help to reduce emissions.
- Route planning
Efficient route planning is key to defining the right vehicles. There are many technologies on the market that can assist with this assessment and its day-to-day management.
It can be useful to evaluate whether switching to lighter/compliant vehicles or redesigning and retiming routes makes sense, especially if there are timing restrictions on when HGVs can be used on certain roads. Creating more centralised distribution hubs outside low-emission zones may be required to help business drive efficiencies and stay compliant, so perhaps consider using small EVs to do those last mile or inner-city activities
Urban restrictions will affect the fleet and it’s important to identify early how to mitigate those challenges.
- A flexible approach to financing
There can often be extra cost associated with urban logistics, so managing these costs means analysing budgeting considerations for higher CAPEX (e.g. for vehicle upgrades/replacements for DVS compliance) and possibly operating cost changes.
There are several points worth considering: is it worth exploring government incentives for zero-emission HGVs? How important is it to remain flexible in your funding as requirements change? Might your business do better by developing more of a mixed fleet with a range of vehicle size and engine types?
It is important to balance current requirements with an awareness of what risk the business might face if things change suddenly. Ownership, leasing and rental all have a role to play, so it can be vital to understand which one (or which blend) is best for your business both today and tomorrow.
- Working with the right partners
SME operators with smaller fleets can especially benefit from clear planning to support their needs when driving HGVs into urban spaces. Drawing on supplier expertise to supplement in-house teams or finding flexible options for accessing different vehicle types and sizes, are ways to enable even smaller fleets to adapt quickly. Choosing partners with a flexible, problem-solving approach will help them to be cost-effective and agile.
Urban transport is constantly evolving. Additional Clean Air Zones are likely to appear in future or regulations might change. Flexibility, both in funding and approach, can help businesses adapt to those changes and remain successful.
