The A-Z business fleet guide – N is for Navigation

Navigation should be a key consideration for anyone involved with a small or medium-sized company’s fleet as it is an opportunity to bring about efficiencies and cost savings.

Whether your fleet consists of cars used by staff to reach meetings or comprises vehicles necessary for mobile service provision, ensuring employees take the optimum route is important.

GPS technology has improved markedly in the last few years, meaning centralised teams can plot out a preferred route that takes into account traffic, speed limits, road works and other known variables.

You’ll also want to make sure your staff on the road know exactly where they are going the moment they turn on the ignition, not having to pull over to the side of the road to check a map or make a call back to head office.

Having the right technology in place to aid navigation should ultimately mean that less investment is needed in specialised routing personnel as systems behind the scene will be analysing data and plotting the best route in real time.

Navigation is also an important consideration given that laws exist stipulating how long a staff member can be behind the wheel for any one period of time.

For example, UK laws state that in any working day the maximum amount of driving permitted is ten hours. EU laws, meanwhile, mean after a driving period of no more than four and a half hours a driver must immediately take a break of at least 45 minutes.

If you’ve found this article useful then make sure you visit our complete A-Z of business fleet terms, which provides a complete glossary so you can make an informed purchasing decision.

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