• BUMPER CARS
• I LIKE DRIVING IN MY CAR… (ON MY OWN)

• HARD DAYS LIGHT

• ANIMAL TRAGIC
• FUEL’S GOLD
• SEEING ‘RED’ OVER HIGH FUEL COSTS
• DRIVING “CONDITIONS”
• MANY HAPPY RETURNS?
• KICKING THE CO2 HABIT
• ‘GREEN’ FINGERS
• FROM AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL TO GROUND TRAFFIC CONTROL
• CULTURE SHOCK
• DON’T DRIVE DROWSY
• ‘FOLLOW THAT STAR!’
• PULLING POWER
• The Darling Budget of March - 08
• Courtesy Cars - March 08
• Green Survey - Feb 08
• New congestion charge angers industry - Feb 08
• Midlands Excellence Award win - Jan 2008

HARD DAYS LIGHT

Daytime Running Lights (DRL) will mean that drivers will have to take extra care on the roads, not less, when they become compulsory on all new European cars in just over two years time, argues Masterlease.

Daytime headlamps have been a factor of life in northern European and Scandinavian countries for many years because of the shorter hours of daylight, but from January 1 2011, the UK, Belgium and other more southern European territories will have to fall into line with 18 other countries worldwide by introducing DRLs onto their roads to cut fatalities and reduce accidents.

Research reveals that safety can be improved by between 3 and 15 per cent by DRLs. A study in the Netherlands predicted this would equate to 5,500 fewer fatalities and 155,000 less injuries, across Europe.  But leading fleet company Masterlease which manages 210,000 vehicles across 17 territories argues that this can only be achieved if drivers are extra vigilant after they are introduced.

“DRLs are a sort of Harry Potter cloak in reverse – many people assume they will provide a cloak of ‘visibility’. Consequently, many drivers may feel that they can be seen by everyone and so subconsciously take less care than they normally would,” says Nick Brownrigg, CEO of Masterlease Group.

“Indeed, there is also an argument of ‘conspicuity’ for other road users – motorcyclists and cyclists who, according to safety groups may start looking for lights rather than looking at the true road conditions. If they don’t see the headlamps, they may assume they can simply pull out. We therefore all need to be extra vigilant to make sure this does not happen.

“The visibility of road users is a huge issue and the fleet industry will be potentially exposed to additional risk because it will have the biggest proportion of DRLs on the roads, being all brand new cars. Being vigilant and training drivers about the DRL issues and conspicuity mitigates the risk of potential prosecution for corporate manslaughter,” he adds.

Safety is one argument against a broader introduction of DRLs. Motoring organisations and pressure groups for other road users argue that the environment and individual’s pockets will suffer.

Drivers could be £160 per year worse off in terms of extra fuel required to power the lights around the clock. Masterlease’s own figures suggest a rise in carbon dioxide emissions from between 0.5 and 1.5 per cent and that a company with 100 vehicles  each averaging 30,000 miles per annum with an average fuel consumption of 35 mpg at £5.50 per gallon could be looking at an additional fuel bill of between £2,300 and £7000 per year.

Brownrigg adds: “Critics, including the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents in the UK (RoSPA) say the jury is still out on DRLs safety credentials and there is also a question mark over extra costs to fleets in terms of extra fuel used. But our argument is you cannot put a price on human life.  We are supportive of any initiatives that protect lives on the roads. We all need to be vigilant but we don’t need to wait until 2011 to do that. We should get into good driving practices such as double checking the road is clear before we pull out. We can also overcome the extra carbon and fuel costs by eco or smarter driving which means we drive slower and make better use of the gears and better read the road ahead. This kind of vigilance will save lives, money and the environment now – not just after January 1 2011.”

Ends