General Election 2015: Could The Vote Impact Your Fleet?

With transport policies overshadowed by bigger issues such as immigration, taxes, NHS, defence, jobs, education and housing, you could be forgiven for thinking the outcome of the General Election may not have much of an impact on your fleet.

Fixing our roads, cutting motoring costs and helping drivers appear to be way down the political priority list. It's all about reducing the cost of public transport or building high-speed railways.

And for those of you thinking about voting on May 7th, you are most likely to be swayed in the voting booth by promises of cutting the cost of fuel and increasing speed limits.

But with the political parties in the UK yet to release their manifestos, what do we know about who is likely to deliver in the areas that could impact your fleet?

The current Government - a coalition between the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats - has invested heavily in road building and maintenance, making millions available to councils for surface repairs, although the state of the nation's roads remains a major issue for drivers.

The coalition has also scrapped the tax disc, announced that??the paper driving licence will be removed and started a digitalisation of the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) as it looks to cut red tape and costs.??There's also been a fuel duty freeze, which has helped petrol to hit a five-year-low.

Labour have already started the process of launching an inquiry into petrol pricing on the forecourt to make sure that falls in the price of oil are being passed on to motorists, and they plan to prioritise funding better in order to fix potholes on local roads.

But as the election looms nearer, we are starting to hear of other transport policies that could have an impact on the day-to-day running of business fleets.

A Labour government, for example, will allegedly introduce a powerful HGV Safety Charter, which will call on all HGVs to be fitted with safety kit, including rear-view cameras, rear warning signs for cyclists and flashing light beacons.

The Lib Dems have announced they would introduce 10 mph zones outside schools and a ban on high emission vehicles by 2040. How this affects the transport industry is not discussed in this announcement, which focuses on the benefits of cleaner, greener transport policies. These include fast tracking support for the electric vehicle market, increased vehicle duty taxation for heavier polluting vehicles and direct road user charging models.

And if UKIP managed to come to power they would scrap HS2 and public toll roads, and require foreign vehicles to purchase a Britdisc before entry into the UK. The revenue from Britdiscs will be used to contribute to the upkeep of the UK's roads ??? something you may agree needs more funding if we are ever to be a pothole fee nation.

UKIP will also ensure that speed cameras are used as a deterrent only and not a revenue raiser for local authorities, but with council departments strapped for cash, is that such a good idea?

The Green party policies, meanwhile, take a sweeping hand through the use of fossil-fuel vehicles. Interestingly, they recommend that transport companies share loads and encourage back journeys to move goods more efficiently. However, the planned increase in fuel tax, vehicle purchase tax, road charging and parking levies will inevitably affect the cost of running practically every business, and the goods we all buy ??? is it a price we are willing to pay for a cleaner, quieter, environment?

Any party that helps you keep your costs down should be a vote winner. Irrespective of who wins on May 7th, however, you can be certain of one thing...

Vehicle tracking will always make a positive impact on any fleet business - click here to find out more.??

Scott Hutchins is Vice President of Sales in the UK for Navman Wireless and is a contributor to the Navman Wireless blog. He has worked with telematics since 1999 and covers a whole host of topics regarding a range of issues from across the industry.??