Can the Best Get Better?

Hornsby Travel runs bus and coach services in and around Scunthorpe in the UK. Since going live with GreenRoad last year it has been the poster child for changing driver behavior by using the carrot rather than the stick approach.

Among Hornsby’s accomplishments are that, measured against other small to medium-sized passenger transport operators, it achieved a fully green team of drivers in the quickest time, just four weeks.

Furthermore, Hornsby accomplished the lowest GreenRoad average score during the 12-month period up to November 2012. Complementing this, Hornsby had the highest percentage of green drivers within the active driver group.

At its recent annual get-together with the driving team, Nick Hornsby, general manager acknowledged the team’s great success. “I was over the moon when the team burst into spontaneous applause as I announced that our drivers were the best in class in the country, he remarked.

Hornsby recognized many outstanding individual drivers with wine and vouchers. The driver who won the award for the most improved driver had cut his score from a very high risk 134 to stabilize at just five.

“A Polish driver on the team who won an award told me he had never won anything before in his life. He was quite choked up with the occasion. Never underestimate the power of recognition. For all the great benefits in reducing risk and cutting fuel, probably the most powerful impact GreenRoad has had here at Hornsby is how it has unified our team with a common goal,” added Hornsby.

The secret to Hornsby Travel’s success is using GreenRoad as a force for good and only emphasizing the positive aspects, said Hornsby. “We have never used GreenRoad as a disciplinary tool. Using a soccer analogy, we use it to coach the drivers to adjust and adapt their driving to the standard that is required by passengers. GreenRoad allows us to encourage and congratulate drivers on their driving performance.

“Because there is a small team of just 30 full time drivers I am able to spend time chatting to each individual every day. I have the luxury of spending time on the buses so I can understand each driver’s abilities and their driving style. That way we can work together using the information from GreenRoad to target small adjustments that can make a huge difference,” he added.

Hornsby was quite taken aback to notice that the drivers went away from their annual get-together to go on and make even more improvements to their driving performance. Prior to the event the team score was 13 then it nearly halved over the following three weeks to just seven. Truly a team that should be walking tall with pride. Congratulations from all of us at GreenRoad!

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