Optimise fuel efficiency across your operation

Lift driver capability through training 

While taking drivers off the road can be a challenge, the payback is often rapid — sometimes within a few months — after which the savings continue.  

Shorter, in-cab coaching options can also help reinforce good driving habits across your team.  

If it’s been a while since your drivers did any training, a refresher could help to reinforce fuel-efficient driving habits.

Measure and manage fuel use  

Most fleets already collect fuel and vehicle data via telematics, fuel cards or basic tracking. It’s worth making time to use this data more actively to identify where fuel is being wasted — and act on those insights consistently.  

Start by tracking fuel use at a vehicle or driver level, not just across the fleet. This makes it easier to see where performance varies and where to focus: 

• Compare fuel performance across vehicles, routes and drivers.   
• Track trends over time to spot changes in performance early.  
• Benchmark performance using metrics like litres per 100 km, per delivery, or per tonne-kilometre. 

Using consistent measures helps separate normal variation from real inefficiency — and gives you a clear baseline to improve from. You can then set targets for the fleet to meet, as well as for individual drivers.

Identify issues and reinforce good performance

Once you can see the differences, you can act on them.

Identify outliers — vehicles or drivers using more fuel than expected — and investigate why. Target support towards lower-performing drivers with simple guidance, training or reminders.

Make performance visible to lift standards across the whole operation and reinforce good habits.

• Use telematics dashboards or built-in driver leaderboards.
• If you don’t have telematics, use fuel card data and kilometres travelled to create your own.
• Share results with your team and encourage improvement.
• Display results in shared spaces like dispatch offices or breakrooms.

Recognise and reward good performance to help build buy-in. This could include rewarding the most improved drivers or recognising strong performance across the whole team when targets are met.

Maintain vehicles for consistent performance  

A well-maintained vehicle can use 10–20% less fuel than a poorly maintained one, while also improving safety and reliability.¹  

Check your fuel records for vehicles with unusually high consumption, as they may have an underlying maintenance issue that has not yet been identified. 

Schedule regular, basic maintenance by a qualified technician, plus ensure drivers are carrying out formal weekly maintenance checks.  

Plan routes and schedules effectively  

For delivery operations, fuel use is determined as much by routes as how vehicles are driven.  

• Use routing or logistics tools to optimise delivery sequencing and reduce unnecessary kilometres. (There are many available at various price points.) 
• Minimise time spent in congestion and stop-start traffic.  
• Where possible, adjust delivery windows or schedules to avoid peak congestion.  
• Review run frequency with your customers to see if it’s possible to reduce unnecessary trips.  

If you’re using a telematics system for route planning, talk to your telematics provider about how to get the most out of it.  

If you don’t have telematics yet, ask your sector body for advice on the best-fit system for your operation, or consider an online platform that doesn’t require a real-time data feed.  

Assign the right vehicle to the right job  

Use your performance data to match vehicles to the work they’re best suited for, rather than what’s available.  

• Deploy your most fuel-efficient vehicles on the longest or most fuel-intensive routes.  
• Identify vehicles that consistently underperform and review whether they’re suited to the job.  
• Newer vehicles are likely to be more fuel efficient — monitor use and fuel to verify.