A new survey of 1,000 Republic of Ireland road trip travellers has revealed where businesses could be doing more to support workers when they have to undertake long car journeys for their work.
The research, undertaken by iCarhireinsurance.ie, polled those who do not regularly drive for a living about their road trip habits and preferences.
The results highlight that those who undertake road trips mainly for business are willing to commit to long trips for their employers. The average length of a trip business travellers are willing to make is nine hours.
Travelling for such long periods of time can result in driver fatigue, although business travellers do take regular breaks within the AA recommended “every two hours” window.
The average time between road trip stops for business travellers is one hour and forty-five minutes.
Currently, employees could be doing more to refresh themselves on business road trips to ensure they remain alert on the roads.
Asked what their regular activities were when stopped on road trips for work, business travellers gave the following responses:
· Using the bathroom (88%)
· Eating (81%)
· Drinking caffeinated beverages (76%)
· Filling up the petrol tank (71%)
· Drinking non-caffeinated beverages (37%)
From this, it appears that business travellers’ go-to approach for staving off fatigue is caffeine, with over three-quarters saying this is what they reach for when stopping off.
In contrast, just one-third (34%) wake themselves up with a walk, and only 14% have tried napping to overcome tiredness.
The survey also revealed what employees want when they have to undertake a road trip for work.
Quizzed on who they’d like to have accompany them, 57% said they’d ideally like to take their partner along on lengthy journeys. Just 1% said they’d want to undertake a road trip with their work colleagues.
The most popular way of navigating for business travellers is via a phone app, which is the chosen method for 47% of such travellers.
Ernesto Suarez, CEO of iCarhireinsurnace.ie, says about the research: “Results from our survey highlight that Republic of Ireland workers are willing to go the extra mile when travelling for work.
“When asking employees to undertake road trips, it can often be advantageous for employees to hire vehicles, especially if they are taking long trips overseas. Having clear policies on the use of private cars and rental vehicles, how they are booked and paid for, as well as guidance on how to expense ancillaries, such as meals on the road, fuel and car hire excess insurance ensures that no-one is left out of pocket.”
