Fleet operators around the world are being asked to back a new campaign to end road deaths and pollution.
Road safety charity Brake will launch its Global Fleet Champions campaign on Monday 11 February as part of its wider work to make transport safer and more sustainable.
The free-to-join partnership initiative, overseen by road risk experts, aims to stop the millions of deaths and injuries and the serious environmental damage caused by vehicles used for work purposes each year.
It is being launched in memory of the millions of people who have lost their lives as a result of the movement of freight or transit of people on roads.
World Health Organization data released in December shows 1.35 million were killed in road crashes in 2016, up from 1.25 million in 2013.
Many of these crashes are thought to involve vehicles being driven for work purposes.
Global Fleet Champions aims to raise awareness of the responsibility of organisations with at-work drivers to prioritise safety and sustainability of movement.
It also seeks to build these organisations’ capacity to implement safety policies, and to enable government regulation and enforcement of road safety.
The campaign has five pillars: Driver behaviour (sponsored by Allianz); Journey routing and modal choice (sponsored by Verizon Connect); Incident analysis and intervention (sponsored by Verizon Connect); Community outreach (sponsored by Arval); and Vehicle procurement and maintenance.
Fleet champions will be able to access free advice and resources on each of these topics as well as regular webinars discussing road safety best practice.
They will also be able to enter the new Global Fleet Champions Awards, which will sit alongside Brake’s existing UK Fleet Safety Awards and Australasia Fleet Safety Awards.
The Global Fleet Champions Awards celebrate best practice in safe and healthy mobility for fleets anywhere in the world, including in low- and middle-income nations where occupational road risk management is evolving slowly.
Awards will be given across five categories and will be issued throughout the year at ceremonies in the nation in which each award-winner is based.
Brake is inviting entries from organisations operating anywhere in the world, running any size or type of fleet.