The following description was extracted from MUARC: The Relationship Between Fuel Economy and Safety Outcomes
This report examines the possible safety benefits from driving in a manner that results in lower fuel consumption and emissions. It attempts to assess the potential of promoting additional motivations to drive safely – better fuel economy and other environmental outcomes, and reduced running costs.
Reducing speeding, lower speed limits and modifying driving style were found to improve fuel economy and other environmental outcomes in addition to improving safety. Community attitude surveys suggest that there will be greater support for measures that aim to improve fuel economy than for those measures that attempt to reduce vehicle travel. In addition, reducing fuel consumption rate without requiring a change in vehicle choice may be more acceptable and more easily implemented in the short-term. Programs such as these that result in reduced fuel consumption in addition to safety are more likely to be implemented because the benefits (in terms of fuel cost savings) flow directly to the vehicle owner.
The case study found that the fuel consumption rate of crash-involved vehicles was higher than that of vehicles not involved in crashes and demonstrated the feasibility of this method. Comparisons before and after training in driving to reduce fuel consumption and analytical studies based on fleet data are recommended as measures of the safety effects of fuel-efficient driving. Studies of the effects of instructions in driving style have the potential to provide useful information about the best ways in which to bring about fuel-efficient driving.