EROAD survey finds half of businesses hampered by the ability to track and measure sustainability performance

Transportation technology services company EROAD, with its purpose of creating safer, more sustainable roads has just released the results from its second annual sustainability survey.

Report highlights

• 9 in 10 businesses have already started taking action through sustainability initiatives
• 84% of businesses have seen at least one positive impact as a result of taking sustainability action
• 3 in 5 businesses are being asked to demonstrate sustainability performance during vendor selection processes
• Over half of businesses say they’re hampered by the ability to track and measure sustainability performance
• Battery electric vehicles are expected to make up almost 1 in 3 light fleet vehicles by 2025
• 1 in 4 heavy fleets expect to completely remove older Euro 3-4 standard vehicles from their fleet by 2025

EROAD, a telematics company that offers fleet management software and products designed to improve driver safety, manage vehicle fleets and reduce costs associated with driving, gathered data and insights from 893 key business decision makers across Australia and New Zealand to facilitate the report.

For 84% of businesses that have started acting, sustainability initiatives have delivered tangible business benefits across a range of measures including: customer satisfaction, employee participation, brand recognition and increased productivity.

While challenges remain, one thing is clear – businesses need to start setting targets and measuring performance now or risk being overtaken by the competition. 3 in 5 businesses say they’re asked to provide sustainability performance during vendor selection – and this rises to 8 in 10 for majority heavy fleets.

Businesses that operate a fleet of vehicles, of any size or shape, will face mounting pressure to decarbonise over the next few years as customers and investors seek out organisations who can show their green credentials.

Andrew Davies, General Manager New Zealand said, “What we’re seeing is that businesses want to do the right thing. We’re already seeing many of our customers, including heavy transport, taking steps to make their business more efficient and transition their fleet and assets to lower emissions alternatives”.

9 in 10 businesses say they’ve started taking action through sustainability initiatives, but half of the businesses surveyed said that they struggle with either data availability, the ability to measure impact or linking sustainability to ROI.

“Tracking performance and the availability of data to measure achievement of sustainability goals is vital if businesses are to be supported in reducing emissions,” says Davies.

EROAD announced last year that it had been granted partial funding by the EECA Low Emissions Transport Fund to develop a Heavy Fleet Decarbonisation tool. The tool aims to provide insights to fleet managers that will support them to reduce their emissions and decarbonise their fleets.

“Climate change may present a number of challenges, but it is also a huge opportunity for our industry. EROAD is here to help our fleet customers to grow, adapt and make the most of that opportunity”, adds Davies. ”That means our technology and products will also need to adapt and the EECA co-funded decarbonisation tool is just one of the ways we plan to do that.”

The results from the survey show a positive shift towards a lower emissions future for our transport sector in both Australia and New Zealand. On average, businesses surveyed expect 1 in 3 light vehicles to be Battery EVs by 2025 – and 65% of heavy fleets expect to have at least one low emission vehicle within the same timeframe. However, when 76% of fleets expect to still be running one or more petrol/diesel vehicles by 2025 it’s important not to lose focus on other ways to reduce emissions.

EROAD’s General Manager Australia, Konrad Stempniak, adds, “There’s no one-size-fits-all approach for decarbonising transport. There are many ways for fleets to reduce operating costs and emissions – whether they’ve begun transitioning to alternative fuels or not. But it starts with having accurate data and insights that can be turned into action.”.

EROAD’s suite of telematics solutions capture fleet data through highly accurate in-cab technology. By layering on products like fuel card management, advanced analyst reporting and vehicle maintenance and inspection tools, EROAD is providing its customers with tools to manage their fleets more efficiently and safely.

Read the full report here: https://www.eroad.co.nz/blog/telematics/the-road-to-sustainability/

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About EROAD
EROAD Limited (ASX: ERD; NZX: ERD) (“EROAD”) purpose is safer and more sustainable roads. EROAD develops and markets technology solutions to manage vehicle fleets, support regulatory compliance, improve driver safety and reduce the costs associated with operating a fleet of vehicles and inventory of assets. EROAD has a proven SaaS business model and is experiencing continuing growth in installed units and revenue. EROAD has operations in New Zealand, North America and Australia with customers ranging in size from small fleets through to large enterprise customers.  For more information visit https://www.eroadglobal.com/global/investors/