Telford fleet chief takes safety lead to specify ESC on all vehicles

Electronic stability control (ESC) is billed by road safety experts as the most significant life-saving advance since the seat belt - and increasingly fleet managers are waking up to its crash avoidance potential.

The Europe-wide ‘Choose ESC!’ campaign is being promoted in the UK by RoadSafe, which is working with the police and a raft of other agencies to encourage all companies and organisations to implement best practice occupational road risk management programmes.

Earlier this year a fleet survey by Bosch, which invented the anti-skid technology, revealed that the majority of fleet decision-makers said the technology should be a standard feature on all new cars.

However, currently in the UK ESC is standard on less than half of all new cars sold (48%).

But, Ann Dukanovic, fleet manager at Telford-based Kaba Door Systems, has taken the industry-leading step to ban any vehicle without ESC from being purchased after experiencing the benefits of the life-saving technology for herself.

All replacement vehicles ordered since July last year for the 197 cars and vans on the company’s fleet are now fitted with ESC as standard, and she has called on all fleet decision-makers to experience the system for themselves so they can understand why it is such an important innovation.

After witnessing a demonstration of ESC, Mrs Dukanovic told the summer 2008 issue of RoadSafe magazine: “I now insist that ESC is fitted to all vehicles. I would not drive a vehicle without this great safety feature myself and I care enough about my drivers to ensure they don’t either.

“I have fitted ESC to try to pre-empt any crashes. There is no point waiting until someone is killed before saying you need ESC.”

The company’s van fleet, which is made up of a range of Volkswagen models, features load-adaptive ESC, which changes vehicle braking characteristics according to the distribution and weight of loads.

The car fleet is also predominantly Volkswagen, but there is a wider choice of other car brands, including BMW, Ford, Honda, Toyota and Vauxhall. All vehicles are funded on contract hire through ING Car Lease.

Although, the European Commission says mandatory ESC will be phased in from 2012, Mrs Dukanovic said: “2012 is a long way away. I think manufacturers should aim to make the system standard by 2009.”

Research by the Department for Transport has suggested that ESC-equipped vehicles are 25% less likely to be involved in a fatal crash than those without the technology. That equates to 380 fewer fatalities and 7,800 less injuries a year. Last year 2,946 people died on Britain’s roads and 244,834 people were injured.

RoadSafe director Adrian Walsh said: “Vehicles skidding is one of the largest causes of road crashes. Research shows in normal driving conditions ESC could reduce crashes by more than 20%, while in wet or icy conditions crash reduction rates could be cut by between 30% and 40%.

“ESC is vital in cutting the number of deaths of injuries on Britain’s roads. All fleets as well as private buyers should insist on the technology being standard equipment on the next car or van they buy.”

Twenty five times a second sensors on a vehicle compare whether the driver’s steering input corresponds to the actual direction in which the vehicle is travelling. If the vehicle moves in a different direction, ESC takes over instantly and applies measured braking pressure to individual wheels. If necessary, it also reduces the engine power to bring the vehicle under control, thus counteracting a skidding incident.