Fleet Data Depot: How Congestion Affects Fleets

Welcome to the second installment of Fleet Data Depot, where we provide quick snapshots of information, trends, and analysis relevant to the fleet market. 

In the last 10 years, mid-sized cities' populations have grown, and according to the 2020 U.S. Census, U.S. metro areas grew overall by 9% from 2010 to 2020. With the increase in population, congestion has increased, causing fleets to increase travel time during commuting hours. Wejo’s Historical Traffic Patterns solution calculated the travel times of over 30 million journeys across a select group of 10 mid-size U.S. cities for both congested conditions and times with free-flowing traffic. Wejo found that, on average, journeys are 29% longer in the 10 mid-size cities due to congestion.

Sending fleets into daily congestion causes lost or misused time, leading to a decrease in efficiencies and an increase in emissions and the risk of accidents. Eliminating unnecessary trips through congestion, utilizing data to optimize the allocation of fleet resources, and finding alternative paths will save time and money.

Routing solutions are only as good as the data they leverage. Congestion data can provide real-time data for those solutions to help make drivers aware of the most congested sections of the road in their areas of travel and prepare and modify routes to avoid congestion. Additionally, ensuring that drivers are scheduled to drive on roads with less congestion can help increase the safety of your drivers and fleets.