Lightfoot 17+

Promotes a poor driving style

Lightfoot is used by the company I work for. It is purely to raise mpg for the company and nothing else. It promotes a poor driving style which doesn’t allow acceleration to join,say, a dual carriage way as the acceleration required to get up to speed triggers the amber lights and that knocks your marks down. The expectancy to join a 60/70 mph road at potentially 30 mph and accelerate at such a slow rate is simply dangerous. As a retired advanced police driver I can only say that the driving style required goes completely against the grain and is a hazard to other road users. The app itself is ok,it works and shows how a bad Lightfoot driving style has given you a high percentage and deems you an elite driver (which you definitively are not driving this way) but quite why the use of Lightfoot is deemed an appropriate tool for drivers is beyond me.

Dangerous

As a fuel saving device in urban areas it is excellent however it does not promote safer driving. Driving a slow moving fully laden vehicle in urban areas your not driving more than 20mph anyway.
If your route is predominantly motorways and duel carriageways you have no hope of achieving a good score. In order to maintain elite driving status you are entering motorways and dual carriageways at very slow and dangerous speeds. Not all slip roads are long enough to build up speed in a restricted vehicle. As well as this when you have to accelerate to enter high speed roads the box tells you off right when you are joining the road which is very distracting. I found myself very distracted by the lights on the dash. I think you need to rethink this system.

Developer Response ,

Hello,



Lightfoot is not based on your speed, but how efficiently you get to that speed. However, there are times when driving inefficiently is always going to be necessary - such as joining fast-moving traffic. This is why you only need to reach 85% to achieve Elite Driver status, there's plenty of scope to go into the amber/red and even get a few penalties if you need to. Ultimately, Lightfoot is there to help you make informed decisions about your driving so you can adopt a more efficient style whenever it's safe to do so.



The device should be situated just outside of your line of vision, so you're able to glance at it like you would your speedometer without it being a distraction

Dangerous

The colour LED system on the dash encourages the driver to drive in a manner that is simply incompatible with other road users and means that anyone driving using this system is a serious danger to other motorists and themselves. The focus is purely on making fuel go as far as possible for the company that has had it installed. Any hopes of joining fast flowing traffic safely by means of a slip road are unrealistic in most cases. I can’t imagine the defence of “but the box told me too” being taken too seriously by any insurer once the inevitable RTC happens. Due to the difficulties it presents for the driver during day to day use it is more a distraction than anything and should be placed in the same category as using a mobile phone while driving.

Developer Response ,

Whilst Lightfoot is helping fleets to become more efficient, our technology is not just about saving fuel and reducing emissions - we help make fleets safer too. The Lightfoot device guides you towards smoother driving and helps break dangerous driving habits like speeding and harsh braking, leading to fewer accidents and less vehicle damage.



However, as the one in control of the vehicle, you should always use your judgement as Lightfoot cannot see the road in front of you, so there may be times you need to go into the amber or red - like when you're joining fast-moving traffic. You only need to score 85% to hit the target and get rewarded for your driving, giving you plenty of scope to drive inefficiently for short periods of time when this is necessary to be a safe road user.