Saturday, March 22, 2008
Truckers Slowing Down to Save Fuel
Marketplace: "Coast-to-coast trucker Lorraine Dawson says fellow drivers used to call her 'Lead Foot Lorraine.' But with diesel fuel around $4 a gallon, she and other big-rig drivers have backed off their accelerators to conserve fuel."
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12 comments:
This seems like it would be an effective way to cut the costs of fuel in the trucking industry, however I would imagine that it would have a negative impact on the efficiency of the trucking companies. Right now a few mph slower is not going to have a major impact, but one can only wonder if this will eventually create a drastic extension of delivery time overall. alternately the rising fuel prices could cause the prices of shipping to rise dramatically. either way this trend means big things for the touring, rental, and scenic industries, who deal with shipping and trucking on a daily basis.
To conserve more gas isn't it better to just stay the same speed most of the way instead of changing your speed just a little. I know you use up more gas the more you stop and go. With truck companies almost always on the interstate this shouldn't be hard.
I don't know if this is right so if anyone does know please say so.
Small conscious efforts on a large scale can make a huge difference in contributing to the "Green Movement". Large corporations might be who we blame for global warming, but they are going to be the solution. Teddy brings up an excellent point concerning how slowing down is not necessarily going to benefit the trucking companies when it comes to the speed of delivery. Perhaps there could be some tax incentives for more efficient shipping practices?
My uncle's a truck driver and hasn't worked in a week because people just can't afford to ship things. Slowing down 10mph is like slowing from 300 to 299, the faster you go, the more air want's to stop you. So at $4 adding 1 mile to every gallon at under 10mpg, you save in late fee's easy. Just going to Altoona you would save $6.40 one way, and a truck drive allot more that 180 miles in a day. You save thousands per truck per year.
This may be the first in a long line of methods to conserve energy in transportation. This idea, seems like one of the most reasonable ideas I've read yet, and for that, I really like the idea. It does not really hurt the driver that much, and actually will make a bit of a difference. As Kevin said, doing these small things will definitely start to add up.
initially i thought this would be a good idea, but only now did i realize that lead time on delivery might rapidly increase. if truckers start missing end-of-day pickups and simply wait for the next day (which may stil be an acceptable delivery date), then packages may start showing up later and later.
The article's example isn't the best. Most of the time when I'm driving across PA I see truckers doing 90 at night, easily. For them to drop down to 70, not only is it much safer, they do save A LOT on gas. 80 during the day is pretty common.
Yeah, and Kelli, you're right on the stay constant velocity bit.. But your engine is much more efficient at 50-60 mph versus 80-90 mph when you're burning fuel way faster. Stop and go isn't really the issue here; it's the fact that diesel engines aren't nearly as efficient when they're booking it down the freeway versus obeying posted signs. (A good example is when I'm driving home. If I do 80-90 at a constant velocity the entire way home, I can make it on one tank if I fill up right before I leave and run on reserve. If I do 70, I can make it with plenty of gas to spare.)
This article illustrates how significant the price of oil is to everything else. Comments have already addressed the possible impact on lead times and finished product delivery times. I see this being a push for more energy efficient heavy road transportation technology. Fuel conserving/hybrid technology that has been and is being developed for passenger cars doesn't really carry over to large diesel engines, but I see no reason why diesel electric technology from freight trains coudn't be scaled down. This requires a significant amount of r+d that hasn't been economically efficient, but it may become so soon.
To be honest, I'm glad that they're starting to slow down. Nothing is more terrifying than getting stuck in the middle of two speeding semis. Or actually, cutting in front of a speeding semi so you don't get stuck behind them because you want to speed faster then them.
I have very little if any knowledge at all about driving and fuel consumption, but I am highly aware about the rising prices, as I hear people tell of their gas price fears all the time. I would also think that a steady pace with less stop and go would decrease amount of fuel used, but I also do not know how anyone can be in control of that in many situations. I feel like the price of gas is just one of many worries that many people have in common and that seems to be looming over everyone's heads, as a fear in the distance. And I am sure if I ever own a car, I will be far from pleased about all of this.
although it is a wonderful idea, and it may save a few gallons here and there, i don't think that it is necessarily "The Answer". like many others had said, it is drastically going to slow down the delivery of products across the states. I think that economically and realistically, if this were the case, it might lead to more trucks being put out there to make up for the lost time and distance; which in the end would completely destroy the initial purpose of the idea.
I hit the damn "anonymous" button. i wrote the last one:
"although it is a wonderful idea, and it may save a few gallons here and there, i don't think that it is necessarily "The Answer". like many others had said, it is drastically going to slow down the delivery of products across the states. I think that economically and realistically, if this were the case, it might lead to more trucks being put out there to make up for the lost time and distance; which in the end would completely destroy the initial purpose of the idea"
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