FLEETS are to play a major role in shaping the future of a new lobbying body set up to become the 'voice of the motorist'.

The Road Users' Alliance was launched in London last week and currently has the backing of the RAC Foundation and Refined Bitumen Association but it is actively sourcing new members from a wide variety of areas connected to road use.

Company car fleets are a prime target, RAC Foundation chairman Sir Christopher Foster said at the RUA's launch. He said: 'Company car fleets will be very important to this alliance. Part of our role will be to encourage car manufacturers to make greener models so they are available more cheaply. As massive buyers of cars, fleets could help us with that and it would also enable fleets to share best practice and other ideas.'

RUA director Tim Green said the role of the alliance was to 'work for an integrated transport policy to get the country moving'.

'Few issues evoke such unanimous dissatisfaction and frustration, as the difficulties we face in moving our goods and services across the country, getting our families where they need to go and simply getting ourselves to work on time,' he said.

'RUA wants a quality road system but also adequate alternatives to the car and excellent facilities to switch between modes.'

Part of the RUA's role will be to act as an information point for specific transport issues and to produce data on road and transport usage.

On the subject of congestion charging, the RUA said it was 'an inevitable and acceptable method of managing demand' but only if the revenue generated is used to 'improve the overall capacity and quality of the road service and its alternatives'.