In the ever-changing climate of the trucking industry, where efficiency and managing costs drive company success, advancements in trucking software are helping many fleets find new opportunities to improve operating practices. To adjust, fleets are using the data they collect to their advantage to identify weaknesses in their operation or to find opportunities to cut costs or improve operational efficiency.
Setting metrics is a great way fleets can measure the effectiveness and success of their fleet management strategy. Many fleets use them to observe and document fleet management metrics in critical areas of operations, such as driver behavior, fuel costs, vehicle maintenance, and more.
With toll management services, you can learn several important pieces of information about your business and its operating costs in relation to toll usage and other related costs if you use it. Here are a few ways you can leverage your toll management service to gain valuable information about your business.
Toll activity & toll usage by vehicle
When you manage your fleets’ toll usage with the help of a toll management service provider, it’s easier to gain visibility into the frequency your trucks are using tolls across the county and how much you’re spending each month on tolls. Having access to an online platform that’s specific to tolls makes it simple to track individual vehicles to see when and where they’re using tolls and the costs associated with the usage. You can track toll activity by type, date, plate number, toll agency, and exit plaza. This information can help you change the way your entire fleet operates by focusing on the vehicles that cost you the most and whether drivers are taking the most efficient routes. It can also help you more effectively incorporate toll costs in your customer invoices.
With a list of trucks and devices in the designated vehicle, it’s easy to keep track of your trucks and manage the transponder associated with them, along with toll spend. Based on several factors that might affect a truck’s toll usage, like a change in route, you can simply adjust the vehicle’s transponder so that it best matches its operating area.
Toll violations & citations
Ask any fleet manager, and they will all tell you that dealing with toll violations and citations is a pain and time-consuming – not to mention, a hit to the bottom line. With the support of toll management services, when you get a violation which isn’t often if you are using a provider, you can upload that violation to the online portal and assign it to the specific vehicle that is responsible. Specifically, with Bestpass, any time a violation is received, it’s added to the violations & citations tab of the portal with the time, date, vehicle, fee, status, and documentation of the issue. If a truck receives a violation and its plates aren’t registered with the toll management provider, the vehicle can be quickly added to the company account to prevent further violations. It’s important to keep track of any repeating issues, whether that be repeat violations across your fleet or reoccurring issues with specific drivers.
Why these metrics matter
Now more than ever, it’s important for fleet managers to access and analyze information and costs quickly. By using toll management services, you, as the fleet manager, will have essential insights related to where you could be overspending on tolls, trucking route optimization, and violation costs. The more visibility and understanding you have, the better you can grow, manage and maintain your fleet.
