The 25 people in the Fleet News Power List are all doing their bit to improve the fleet industry.

Alistair Darling deserves his place at the top as it is his changes – and those of his predecessors – that have created the current shape of the fleet market and will continue to do so in future.

After all, if there wasn’t a hefty financial incentive to move to a greener car, covering lower tax and reduced fuel bills, how many fleets (and their drivers) would have made the changes they have recently introduced?

Money talks, especially in the fleet market, and without the driving force of a strong economic argument for going green, the industry may never have realised the emission reductions it has achieved recently.

New ministerial arrival Lord Adonis may still be getting his desk in order at the Department for Transport, but he holds a position of huge influence over fleets, particularly with his brief for low-carbon transport.

His thinking will be particularly influenced by Julia King, vice-chancellor of Aston University, whose King Review of low-carbon cars may well be the blueprint for Lord Adonis’s work schedule during his time at the department.

David Bott, director of innovation platforms at the Technology Strategy Board, isn’t a high-profile figure in fleet, but that doesn’t make him any less influential.

His organisation is directing hundreds of millions of pounds’ research on green technology that fleets will be among the first to drive.

The person tasked with persuading those businesses that it is worth making the change to greener vehicles is Nigel Underdown, head of transport advice, Energy Saving Trust, who takes a well-deserved place in this list after years of dedicated work to ensure fleets understand that the environmental message is also a financial one that is good for business.

Fleets outside London may not think that Mayor Boris Johnson will have an impact on them, but with his commitment to invest heavily to make the capital a centre for electric vehicle use, he is giving suppliers the confidence they need to invest for the future and bring down the cost of their cleaner products for every fleet operator.

Running costs lie at the heart of what makes leasing companies tick and some have been slow to recognise the potential of the green movement in the fleet market.

But David Brennan, managing director at LeasePlan, has been driving a green agenda at the company with a long-term vision as part of a global commitment by the leasing company to providing green services to fleets through its GreenPlan programme.

John Lewis, chief executive of the British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association, has extensive knowledge of the fleet market and the service companies that support it, so his wide-ranging roles in other organisations such as the Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership and the Motorists’ Forum ensure effective communication between fleets, suppliers, industry and Government, to smooth the path to a cleaner future for business.

The Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership is becoming increasingly influential under its director Greg Archer, who leads a partnership of more than 300 organisations including industry, fleets and Government, to accelerate the shift to low carbon vehicles.

Through effective knowledge sharing throughout the industry, the organisation’s work is bringing the reality of low carbon fleets closer every year.

However, while the industry waits for new technology to provide an answer, businesses can make a difference straight away by changing the way they drive, which is why Dan Rapson, programme manager at SAFED, is part of the green role of honour.

His work and that of his team has enabled thousands of van fleet drivers to reduce their emissions and cut business costs through simple training programmes that show how a few simple changes can go a long way.

But it is the fleet industry that has to deliver that change and leading figures such as Steve Helliwell, managing director – logistics, at Amey, are showing how to balance the needs of the business with the environment.

So too are people such as Roy Burke, chief executive of the Government Car and Despatch Agency, whose green policies are reducing costs and emissions, but also showing ministers and senior Government officials who use the service that green transport is a viable alternative.

Dale Eynon has managed a green programme that has cut business travel by millions of miles. As head of fleet operations at the Environment Agency, he has a clear green policy.

However, a green policy is nothing without product and Richard Balshaw, Toyota general manager, fleet, is part of the team that shows what is possible. The new Prius hybrid produces less than 90g/km of CO2 and has a residual value of more than 40% after three years/ 60,000 miles.

After 12 years of persistence with the Prius, this could be the year that the green message finally gets through to the masses.

It is the same story at Honda, where Government affairs and environment manager John Kingston is promoting greater understanding of the potential of greener technology, including the Insight hybrid.

For people such as Gerard Finn, car fleet and business travel manager at Avon Cosmetics, a commitment to the environment has brought more than job satisfaction, it has led to awards. He and Avon won two titles at the Fleet News Awards for management skills, including a focus on green policies.

Colin Marriott, general manager, fleet at Centrica, has also achieved a huge amount for the business with a raft of measures to cut emissions on its fleet of more than 10,000 vehicles.

Concern for the environment isn’t just a recent fad. Hampshire Police fleet manager John Bradley’s work over decades, which led to him becoming the first entrant to the Fleet News Hall of Fame, included testing electric vehicles more than 10 years ago.

Public sector fleets will be more likely to experience green technology in future thanks to the work of Robert Evans, chief executive at Cenex, who is set to transform public sector fleets with grants totalling up to £50 million from the low-carbon vehicle public procurement programme.

Steve Chater, corporate sales director at BMW, has seen the investment the company made in EfficientDynamics technology bear fruit, as its strong business case of low emissions, low running costs and high residual values has seen it beating all-comers in the running costs stakes, while tens of thousands of drivers have been converted to the benefits of simple fuel saving technology, such as stop-start.

But the last word lies with the fleet managers who work at the front line of the transport industry, and who are vital to the growth of demand for greener vehicles.

People such as Brian Barnes, transport services manager at Gateshead Council, and Chuck Ives, head of fleet at Network Rail, have shown the way with best practice ways of cutting mileage, reducing emissions and cleaning up their fleets.

Tom Pakenham, director at Green Tomato Cars, started a mini revolution in the taxi market when he committed to only use the cleanest cars available to reduce emissions.

Another business leader, Simone Mann, co-founder and director of the Commercial Group, transformed her firm when she realised the economic benefits of green business.

Lee Wickens, CSR and quality manager at Addison Lee, has been a great ambassador for what technology can do to deliver business savings,
with efficient use of the fleet driving massive emissions reductions.

Their ideas and innovations provide a picture of a green fleet market that will become more familiar over the next few years, as technology, best practice, innovation and legislation drive a new, cleaner environment in which all business fleets will have to operate.