TREVOSE, PA–  The CEI Group, Inc. announced a new DriverCare Web-Based Training lesson is available that teaches drivers how to save fuel and reduce the amount of climate-changing greenhouse gases their vehicles emit.

Named ECOdriver, the 25-minute online lesson, complete with interactive exercises and a final test, focuses on three fuel-saving strategies:

• Easing off the pedals to avoid speeding, jack-rabbit starts, and hard braking and maintain a steady highway speed;

• Checking tire pressure monthly to keep it at optimal levels, and

• Organizing travel by consolidating short trips, planning more efficient routes and removing on-board vehicle clutter that aids energy-sapping weight.

By following the techniques the module recommends, students learn that they can reduce their fuel consumption by as much as 25 percent a year.  To view the module's key learning points and make a purchase, go to www.drivercare.com/training.

"The high cost of fuel and increasing concerns over global climate change make ECOdriver a particularly timely lesson, both for vehicle fleets and individual drivers who may be struggling to stay within tighter budgets," said Ed Corbally, CEI director of risk and safety services.

Each gas-saving strategy is illustrated by a hypothetical scenario focused on people who learn how to improve vehicle gas mileage:  a teenaged driver, a fleet manager, and a married working couple.  Along the way, students learn a number of enlightening facts, including:

• Every 5 miles per hour driven over 60 miles per hour is like paying another 20 cents per gallon of fuel, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

• Driving with underinflated tires reduces fuel efficiency by as much as 4 percent a year.

• Eliminating 100 lbs. of unnecessary gear from inside a vehicle can save as much fuel in one year to take a 400-mile trip.

One of the lesson's interactive exercises asks students to input their own driving profile and calculates how much fuel they could save from a combination of gas-saving techniques.  A second exercise compares how much fuel, money and greenhouse gas emissions they could save a year when they buy a more fuel-efficient vehicle.

"A powerful message in the lesson is that by applying the techniques ECOdriver teaches, even drivers of less fuel-efficient vehicles can make a dramatic change in their fuel costs and environmental impact," said Corbally.