Fleet management trends: 3 goals fleet managers have for 2026

According to the 2026 Fleet Technology Trends Report, adoption rates for GPS fleet tracking, video telematics and asset tracking have all increased year-over-year. Today, three out of four fleet professionals use at least one of these fleet technologies.

Why is fleet technology adoption such a dominant fleet management trend? The answer is simple: When fleet professionals set a goal, technology helps them achieve it.

To demonstrate, let's look at the top three goals among fleet managers, what behaviors are trending to help achieve these goals and the outcomes and impacts of these behaviors for fleets.

Goal #1: Make strategic, data-based decisions

The goal: Make decisions based on data rather than intuition.

The trend: Modern fleet managers increasingly rely on connected fleet management to gather reliable data for effective decision-making. By leveraging advanced connected fleet technology, managers gain a factual window into critical metrics like driver behavior, fuel consumption, and maintenance requirements. This visibility empowers them to move beyond guesswork and make strategic, evidence-based decisions.

The outcomes: Utilizing GPS fleet tracking technology to drive data-based decisions helps fleets achieve several key outcomes:

• Enhanced vehicle performance
• Reduced operational costs
• Enhanced operational efficiency
• Safety-oriented drivers

The impact: By implementing operational changes based on real-time insights, fleet managers can achieve significant cost reductions. Beyond financial savings, one of the primary GPS fleet tracking safety benefits is the ability to proactively identify and mitigate risky driving habits.

Users of GPS fleet tracking saw:

• A 19% average decrease in accident costs
• A 15% average decrease in maintenance costs
• A 12% average decrease in fuel costs

GPS fleet tracking users also report double-digit decreases in labor and insurance premium costs. Download the full 2026 Fleet Technology Trends Report to see how much they saved.

Goal #2: Continually promote safety

The goal: Operate a safe fleet that protects drivers and the public, while also reducing costs related to collisions.

The trend: Current fleet safety management systems trends show a major shift toward proactive prevention. Fleet professionals are increasingly adopting advanced fleet safety technology, specifically AI video telematics platforms, to deliver fact-based driver coaching programs. These systems help drivers identify risks in real-time, helping them operate their vehicles more safely and prevent crashes before they occur.

Fleet safety technology helps managers provide more effective guidance while tracking safety improvements over time. The latest advancements in AI video telematics help fleet professionals:

• See the most important coaching moments quickly and easily
• Provide individualized guidance to drivers
• Track coaching sessions and performance over time.

An AI-supported coaching program gives coaches a better opportunity to develop a more collaborative relationship with their drivers and reward those who show continuous improvement.

Outside of providing insights for post-trip coaching sessions, AI can also detect unsafe driving behavior as it happens and issue in-cab alerts for real-time coaching.

The outcomes: Integrating these fleet safety management systems trends gives professionals the tools to:

• Develop individualized safety plans
• Provide collaborative, data-driven driver coaching
• Encourage safe driving behaviors
• Gain driver buy-in
• Provide progress awards for continuous improvement

The impact: Users of AI video telematics report significant improvements in both driver behavior and the quality of their safety programs:

• 74% said video telematics helped them improve driver safety
• 41% said video telematics is extremely or very beneficial for improving driver coaching sessions

Video telematics can also help reduce costs. See how quickly users saw a return on their investment.

Goal #3: Improve operational efficiency and reduce costs

The goal: Operate healthy vehicles that are safer, more fuel-efficient and require fewer repairs. Focusing on vehicle health helps prevent vehicle failures that can cause crashes, reduce fuel and repair costs and improve uptime.

The trend: The latest technology can help fleet managers gain more insight into the needs and patterns of each vehicle. In 2026, the shift toward high-level fleet analytics allows managers to develop data-informed maintenance programs that stay ahead of vehicle health issues before they lead to breakdowns.

Modern fleet management software incorporates powerful fleet management analytics and real-time monitoring to identify patterns that can lead to future maintenance needs, breakdowns, high operating costs and safety failures. This provides fleet managers with operational insights they need to be proactive about vehicle health and respond quickly to potential problems.

The outcomes: Leveraging operational insights and advanced analytics helps fleets achieve:

• Decreased downtime
• Cost savings related to fuel, crashes, labor, maintenance, insurance and more
• Finely tuned, high-functioning fleet operations

The impact: Users of GPS fleet tracking and asset tracking report that the technology helps them operate more efficiently and reduce costs.

• 31% of GPS fleet tracking users said the technology is extremely or very beneficial for increased efficiency in managing daily operations.
• 21% of asset tracking users said the technology is extremely or very beneficial for reducing costs related to downtime/replacement.

Find out how quickly fleet management software and asset tracking pay for themselves.

Achieving fleet goals with Operational Insights

Verizon Connect fleet management software not only provides you with GPS fleet tracking, asset tracking and AI video telematics data, but also offers Operational Insights, a complementary feature of the platform, which uses Generative AI to proactively deliver clear, actionable insights. Rather than using time and resources to interpret large amounts of data received daily, Operational Insights offers fleet managers data-driven suggestions for how to improve their fleet instantaneously. 

Our auto-generated, intuitive insights don't require users to manually prompt AI assistants with their data. We come to you delivering the answers first. The true power of this tool lies in its ability to connect data trends and anomalies directly to real-world business outcomes, supporting decisions that lead to cost reductions, increased revenue and improved safety.

This helps:

• Drive productivity: Gain fleet management analytics summaries that highlight key performance trends and behaviors, enabling decision makers to optimize fleet utilization.
• Enhance operational efficiency: Facilitate the timely detection of anomalies, allowing users to quickly determine and address issues related to efficiency and potential cost savings.
• Improve decision visibility: Easily share data-driven insights with stakeholders, foster clearer communication and support better-informed business decisions.

What goals do you want to achieve for your fleet? Whether you are looking for the latest technology trends in commercial navigation for US trucking fleets or robust fleet safety technology, Verizon Connect can help you move the needle - Request a demo today!

To learn more about the latest trends in fleet management and how professionals are using technology to achieve their goals, download the 2026 Fleet Technology Trends Report.