Announced at a London ceremony attended by the transport minister Norman Baker, winners included HMRC, which took the best large public sector fleet for the second year running, while West Oxfordshire District Council took the award for smaller fleets in the same category.

The judges selected Addison Lee and Qdell & LHR Express Cars as the best private sector fleets (large and small fleet sections respectively).

Transport minister Norman Baker MP said: ‘If the Government is to meet its carbon reduction targets we must decarbonise road transport and making fleet operations greener is a major part of that. 

‘So I am delighted to see such excellent progress in this area – big companies from both the private and public sectors have made huge strides in tackling this issue, using a range of measures such as reducing mileage, encouraging fuel-efficient driving and using ultra low-carbon vehicles.  Not only is all this good for the environment – it makes economic sense too.’

Nigel Underdown, the EST’s head of transport, said: ‘About half of all new vehicles purchased in the UK are used in fleet operations, so the sector plays a vital part in determining the environmental performance of road transport overall.

‘We were encouraged by both the quality and number of entries (which exceeded previous years). There are clearly a large number of fleet operators working on a wide variety of fronts to minimise the environmental impact of their operations.’

2011 Winner and Runner-up List as follows:

Best Public Sector Fleet (Large)

Winners: HMRC

Runners-up: Northamptonshire Police

Best Public Sector Fleet (Small)

Winners: West Oxfordshire District Council

Runners-up: Hyndburn Borough Council

Best Private Sector Fleet (Large) 

Winners: Addison Lee

Runners-up: West One Cars

Best Private Sector Fleet (Small)

Winners: Qdell & LHR Express Cars Limited

Runners-up: Hannaford

Grey Fleet Management

Winners: Lake District National Park Authority

Runners-up: Derbyshire Community Health Services NHS Trust

Industry Supplier Award

Winners: Green Motion

Runners-up: Lex Autolease

Business Mileage Management

Winners: Lake District National Park Authority

Runners-up: Hyndburn Borough Council

Smarter Driving Award

Winners: Qdell & LHR Express Cars

Runners-up: GE Capital

Innovation in Van and Car Manufacture

Winners: Ford Motor Company Limited

Runners-up: BMW

Innovation in Fleet Services and Systems

Winners: Civica UK Ltd

Runners-up: Arval

Innovation in Fleet Management 

Winners: Addison Lee

Runners-up: Office Depot

Leadership Award

Winners: Yorkshire Ambulance Service

Runners-up: Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service

Van Fleet Management

Winners: Commercial Group

Runners-up: None

Motorvate Award

Winners: Northern Lincolnshire and Goole Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Runners-up: Hyndburn Borough Council