What can eco-driving do for sustainable road transport? Perspectives from a city (Singapore) eco-driving programme

Eco-driving with focus on driving style to save energy and enhance environmental quality can be applied to the private vehicle sector, reaping benefits that include fuel/energy savings of up to 16%. Eco-driving is the soft approach, not taken on the same level as vehicle technology advancement, in terms of lowering fuel consumption. In the Singapore's context, eco-driving is yet to be well-developed. Results presented were taken from a Singapore eco-driving programme that existed since 2011 with 116 participants. The data were obtained before eco-driving training and immediately after the training under instructor's supervision. There is evidence to support the contention that application of eco-driving tips in the driving style does not compromise journey speed, contrary to myths that eco-driving causes slower speeds. Results also showed that reduction of both fuel consumption and carbon emissions are achievable in excess of 10%. Hence, eco-driving training has the capability to reduce road transport energy and emissions without the need for vehicle renewal. In an urban setting such as Singapore, the promising results suggest the potential to reduce road transport carbon emissions by 12%, making it a worthy mitigation measure to be adopted at an extensive scale towards greater transport sustainability.