La gestión de rutas de transporte es un proceso clave en la logística moderna, especialmente en la última milla, donde cada minuto cuenta para satisfacer las expectativas del cliente. Desde el picking hasta la entrega final, cada paso en la cadena puede presentar desafíos que impacten la eficiencia. En este artículo, analizaremos cada etapa del proceso, los retos asociados y cómo herramientas como Routal pueden transformar la gestión de rutas de transporte en una operación ágil y efectiva.

1. Picking y preparación del pedido

El picking es el primer paso en la gestión de una ruta de transporte. Implica la selección de los productos correctos en el almacén para cumplir con un pedido específico. Una preparación eficiente asegura que los productos estén listos para su envío en el menor tiempo posible.

Retos comunes:

• Errores en la selección de productos.

• Falta de sincronización entre el almacén y el transporte.

• Tiempos muertos en la preparación del pedido.

Solución con tecnología:

Con una herramienta como Routal, puedes integrar los sistemas de gestión de inventarios para sincronizar la preparación del pedido con la planificación de rutas. Además, se pueden optimizar las asignaciones para garantizar que los pedidos estén listos justo a tiempo para el transporte.

2. Planificación de rutas

El diseño de rutas óptimas es el corazón de la gestión del transporte. Implica organizar los destinos en un orden que minimice los tiempos de viaje y reduzca costos.

Retos comunes:

• Tráfico imprevisto o condiciones climáticas adversas.

• Cambios de última hora en pedidos o direcciones.

• Falta de visibilidad sobre el estado de los vehículos y conductores.

Solución con tecnología:

Routal utiliza algoritmos avanzados de optimización que consideran factores como el tráfico en tiempo real, restricciones de entrega y la capacidad de los vehículos. Esto no solo reduce los kilómetros recorridos, sino que también mejora la puntualidad en las entregas.

3. Transporte y entrega final

Una vez en ruta, la entrega final representa el contacto directo con el cliente y, a menudo, es el momento más crítico.

Retos comunes:

• Localización difícil de los destinos.

• Frustración del cliente por retrasos o falta de comunicación.

• Problemas de accesibilidad en ciertas áreas.

Solución con tecnología:

Con Routal, los conductores pueden acceder a mapas detallados y actualizados, recibir notificaciones de cambios en tiempo real y comunicarse con los clientes directamente a través de la plataforma. Además, los clientes pueden rastrear su pedido y recibir alertas sobre la hora estimada de llegada (ETA).

4. Monitorización en tiempo real

La capacidad de supervisar las rutas en tiempo real es clave para identificar problemas y solucionarlos antes de que afecten la experiencia del cliente.

Retos comunes:

• Falta de visibilidad sobre el estado de la entrega.

• Respuesta lenta ante incidencias como retrasos o averías.

Solución con tecnología:

Routal ofrece una plataforma centralizada donde los gestores pueden monitorear el progreso de cada entrega en tiempo real. Con esta información, es posible redirigir rutas, reasignar pedidos o informar proactivamente al cliente en caso de retrasos.

5. Comunicación con el destinatario

Una comunicación clara y oportuna es fundamental para garantizar una experiencia satisfactoria para el cliente.

Retos comunes:

• Falta de actualizaciones sobre el estado del pedido.

• Dificultad para coordinar entregas en horarios específicos.

Solución con tecnología:

Routal permite automatizar mensajes para mantener a los clientes informados en cada etapa del proceso. Desde el momento en que el pedido se recoge hasta que se entrega, los clientes pueden recibir notificaciones personalizadas que los mantienen al tanto.

Retos generales en la gestión de rutas de transporte

• Costos operativos elevados debido a rutas ineficientes o tiempos muertos.

• Expectativas crecientes de los clientes, especialmente en entregas rápidas y rastreables.

• Impacto ambiental, con un aumento de la presión para reducir la huella de carbono en el transporte.

Cómo Routal transforma la gestión de rutas

Con Routal, cada etapa del proceso está diseñada para funcionar en sincronía. Desde la optimización de rutas hasta la comunicación con los clientes, Routal ofrece soluciones integrales que mejoran la eficiencia operativa y aumentan la satisfacción del cliente.

• Reducción de costos: Rutas más cortas y entregas más rápidas.

• Visibilidad total: Datos en tiempo real para tomar decisiones informadas.

• Automatización de tareas: Menos carga administrativa y más tiempo para enfocarse en lo estratégico.

Optimizar la gestión de rutas de transporte no es solo una ventaja competitiva, es una necesidad en un mercado en constante evolución. ¿Estás listo para llevar tu logística al siguiente nivel?

‍Descubre cómo Routal puede ser tu aliado perfecto. 🚀

‍

Last-mile logistics is a business of cents and seconds, every cent counts, every second matters. Making your deliveryman's life more agile, simple and efficient will have a bigger impact than you may be aware of.

Surely you are looking for an app, and just thinking that you will have to explain to all the delivery people how to install it, if it will work on their phones, especially that of external distributors that change every day, among many other problems... you will think that paper is not such a bad solution.

Perhaps there are alternatives other than an app that requires installation, which will be even faster and more convenient than handing over a paper. We are going to see the big differences between a native app, a webapp and finally paper.

In any change, it is important to identify the main aspects that will mark the success of the change. When adopting a digital solution for delivery people, it is important to reflect on 3 aspects:

• Installing the tool
• The training of the tool
• The adoption of the tool.

Installing the tool

Before deciding on a tool, it is important to thoroughly study the installation process of the chosen tool. A native app will require knowledge on the part of the user when installing apps. Browse the different app stores, until you find the right one. Finally, share with the user their credentials (username and password) in order to access their account. This process must be repeated with all the delivery people, and you will probably have a high turnover, so it will be a process that must be done on a regular basis.

The Routal webapp allows you to speed up this entire process with simple access to a link sent by email, WhatsApp or any other means. It is a very simple and convenient system, especially in companies that work with outsourced services for their operations and these can change daily.

In addition, one of the risks of native apps is support for different models. There are more than 24,000 different models on the market and it's virtually impossible to support all of them. On the contrary, a webapp like Routal's is based on standard HTML code supported by all devices in their native browser. There's nothing worse than hearing a delivery guy say, it doesn't work on my cell phone.

Formation

Training is a key step in using any tool. In general, all mobility tools are usually easy to use by field workers, delivery people, or any employee.

In this video you can see how simple the Routal application is. It doesn't take our customers more than 3 minutes to teach their delivery people how it works.

Adoption

Adopting tools is the most difficult task in any company. Changing the status quo (the company's usual way of working) can be a big challenge. To be successful in this type of project, there is a secret: Generate more convenience to users with the new process.

The application must save time, be simpler than the current solution and, above all, it must make life easier for the worker.

For example, in the Routal webapp, you have a button for direct access to Google Maps or Waze that will fill in the address and guide the delivery person to the delivery point in a single click. Saving a few seconds of copying the address, with the possible errors you may make.

One of the tasks that delivery people do the most is answering the phone. Making calls to customers, receiving calls from their manager to know the status of deliveries, and a long time. Saving 30 seconds by copying a customer's phone number may seem insignificant, but if that task is repeated dozens of times throughout the day, we may be talking about savings of more than 20-30 minutes. Time that can be spent making more deliveries, or avoiding an accident.

Another advantage of digitalization is the ability to share information in real time asynchronously. For example, the status of the deliveries, or the photographs themselves, allow customers and managers to be aware of the status of their delivery and everything that happened at the time they need it. Without bothering, or having to wait. Real-time information, better decisions and more convenient service.

In conclusion, a simple tool that improves the performance of delivery people and is more convenient than the current solution are the keys to achieving the success of a delivery monitoring project.

I encourage you to try our solution Routal Planner route optimization, delivery monitoring through a webapp and real-time communication with your customer.

La expectation of a customer versus a service is based on their previous experience and the promise they made to them at the time of purchase. Managing that previous (not necessarily good) experience with the promise of service will mark the success of the service.

Trust is based on complying with the agreement we make with our client. For example, Koiki and its sustainable commitment. Building a trusted service can take years of hard work. Losing that trust, on the other hand, can only mean a bad response from one of our collaborators.

In the world of last mile deliveries, customer expectations are based primarily on these 4 points:

1. Delivery time: Customers usually expect their order to be delivered within the agreed time frame. If the order is not delivered in the expected time, the customer may be frustrated.
2. Product status: Customers expect the product to be in good condition upon delivery. If the product is damaged or in poor condition, the customer may feel dissatisfied.
3. Deliveryman's treatment: Customers expect friendly and professional treatment from the delivery person. If the delivery person is rude or unfriendly, the customer may feel upset.
4. Ease of tracking: Customers often expect to be able to track the progress of their order and know their location at all times. If there isn't an easy way to do this, the customer may feel worried or uncomfortable.

Expectation: “Delivery in a timely manner”

For every logistician, that's the goal. Deliver at the agreed time (not earlier and certainly not later) and in the right way. The forms, in many cases, are almost more important. They mean the image of the brand, the relationship with the customer, the condition of the product that you have taken care of throughout the trip. Details, which may seem insignificant, although in many cases they make a difference, and on many occasions the customer is willing to pay for it.

The problem is when the expectation is not met, it can generate frustration in the individual. Frustration is a negative emotion that occurs when a goal is not achieved or when obstacles are found to achieve it. Putting ourselves in the shoes of our customer can help us identify areas for improvement in our service.

Some potential causes of customer frustration include:

1. Lack of control: When someone has no control over the outcome of a situation, they may feel frustrated. For example, if a customer expects their order to be delivered within a certain time frame and it doesn't arrive on time, they may be frustrated that they don't have control over the delivery process.
2. Lack of information: A lack of information or clarity in instructions can lead to frustration. For example, if a customer doesn't know when their order will arrive or how to track the progress of their delivery, they may be frustrated.
3. Lack of support: When someone doesn't receive the necessary support to achieve a goal, they may feel frustrated. For example, if a customer expects to receive care and help from the delivery person and doesn't receive it, they may be frustrated.

For this reason, it is essential to have tools that allow us to properly manage customer expectations. Having control over operations at all times allows us to know if service commitments with the customer are being met. Sharing this information with the customer allows the customer to adapt to a problem. There's no worse feeling than waiting for someone without knowing when they'll arrive. It can be 5 minutes, or 5 hours. This ignorance generates anxiety and in a hyperconnected society it generates a poor customer experience.

If you feel that your operations can improve and that your customers often have the perception that the service they receive is not very good, and you are willing to lead the change in your organization, we recommend that you try Routal Planner. This tool helps companies like yours to offer a more convenient service, save time and logistics costs while empowering customers with information. ¡Take a look here and see for yourself!

The logistics industry is constantly changing, both in processes and in the way of proceeding. These changes are due, to a large extent, to technological advances in the sector, which evoke different modalities in logistics processes, such as reverse logistics.

What is Reverse Logistics?

Reverse logistics is the set of practices and processes responsible for managing the returns and returns of those products purchased by users.

These returns or returns are managed from the points of sale of the products to the manufacturer itself (to carry out the repair, recycling or disposal of the product at the lowest possible cost).

In addition, reverse logistics is already another process and of vital importance when planning the supply chain for the satisfaction of the end customer.

Reverse logistics is one of the main challenges faced by the industry and the main objective is to avoid high costs and manage returns in the shortest possible time.

8 tips to improve your reverse logistics

Customer Centric: It responds to the customer-oriented strategy through which an organization places the customer at the center of the company with the objective of focusing all processes and operations on users.

The implementation of the Customer Centric strategy increases the satisfaction of our users, since we focus all our efforts on knowing their needs and concerns regarding our activity. Knowing the desired delivery and return times or a maximum price per service will help increase your satisfaction and, therefore, carry out a satisfactory reverse logistics process.

Strategic Planning: Perform measured and analytical planning to ensure the correct management of operations taking into account parameters such as mileage or travel time. With the right software, this will be an autonomous task, in which a large amount of time is not required and with an optimal result, since it will always offer the most efficient route.

Optimization of resources: The optimization of resources when it comes to transportation is essential for the success of your company's reverse logistics process; it will help control the traceability, trajectory and tracking of shipments. In addition, planning delivery routes efficiently and optimally will result in significant economic and time savings. Therefore, the use of specialized software for route planning will be a key element in increasing the efficiency of your company's reverse logistics process.

Use of metrics and KPIs: To evaluate the productivity and performance of the reverse logistics process, the use of KPIs is essential (Key Performance Indicator). These indicators will help measure and quantify your company's performance and compliance with established objectives. It is recommended that when defining the logistics KPIs, they are developed based on the S.M.A.R.T. (Smart, Mmeasurable, Achivable, Realistic and Time-Bound) model.

Shorter return times: As mentioned before in relation to the Customer Centric strategy, it is essential to know not only the limits of our company in terms of acceptable delivery or return times, but also the “deadlines” or desired deadlines of our customers. For this reason, and in general terms, it should be prioritized that collection and return times are as short as possible and without the need to increase the amount of resources associated with reverse logistics. Thus, specific efforts should be made to improve this particular process.

Proactive monitoring: Proactive monitoring is the live monitoring of the daily planning of services and deliveries that warns of possible failures and errors while allowing us to react and adapt operations in a satisfactory manner.

Good proactive monitoring must have the possibility of monitoring the operation in real time and thus be able to view the progress of the operation live at all times. In addition, and in relation to the real-time monitoring of operations, it is essential that it incorporates sufficient functions that allow a timely reaction to possible failures or errors.

Smart Warehouses or Smart Storage: Smart warehouses are specialized logistics centers that make use of technology to increase efficiency in all their processes, such as the reception, preparation or storage of goods.

An example of the use and benefit of implementing intelligent warehouses in the reverse logistics process is the case of Amazon, a company that has included artificial intelligence in its warehouses in order to quickly determine, based on the costs of each product and its associated return costs, if it accepts to pick up the product in question by activating the reverse logistics process or, on the contrary, makes the refund without the collection of said merchandise.

Logistic software: Investing in technology and digitalization can help you improve your reverse logistics efficiently. Choose specific software that includes route optimization, real-time operational monitoring and analysis of important metrics for your continuous improvement.

If you want to guarantee the success of your company's reverse logistics process, you can do so now with specialized software. Routal Planner. Try it now for free by 10 days.

One of the main fears and brakes faced by SMEs in the face of digitalization is Integrate technology. The dichotomy between choosing an all-encompassing solution, or specific solutions for each problem. The benefit of the first option is that you're dealing with a provider, everything is talked about, and you shouldn't have too many problems. The problem is that it probably doesn't solve your processes in the best way and you have to make a lot of effort to adapt your business to the solution. The other option, small experts, usually provide a better solution for each process, but there is a difficulty in getting applications to talk to each other. This means that two companies collaborate, integrate and that can be a challenge.

More complex systems and technological solutions are increasingly required to optimize operations. The trend of one-fits-all (one solution for everything) is increasingly difficult to find and as companies grow they require more specific solutions, so integration projects are becoming more common, but above all, more necessary.

To give great examples, one of Inditex's great successes has been to have a single centralized stock between warehouses and stores, which allows us to have the status of each of the pieces of clothing in real time and achieve greater success in an omnichannel environment where the customer purchases online, is sent from several centers to be consolidated in the store and for the customer to pick up at the store buying an accessory that he found by chance. But something like that is not only available to large companies, SMEs also have a lot to say, and their scale makes them projects much easier, faster and cheaper to implement.

The benefits of integrating systems are direct improvements in productivity and in the quality of the service they provide, standardized and optimized operating processes, ease in internal processes, reduction of errors and also homogenization of data.

Why is it presented as a brake or challenge, or Why does it bring so many headaches for companies? Mainly because many companies do not have the experience, the resources to develop these projects internally or personnel with the knowledge to lead a project of this type. The solution, outsourcing these projects, and without good advice the project can be a big headache. For this reason, looking for a supplier who knows the business, the tools to be integrated and who has experience in similar projects are the key to success for an integration project to be successful, to develop quickly and on budget.

Unfortunately, sometimes digitalization brings high costs that companies don't want to face because of the doubt if there will really be a return on that investment. Digitalization with common sense, improving and streamlining processes undoubtedly generates great investment returns. For this reason, it is essential that companies have an orchestrator that understands the need of the business, the company's processes and those points that hold back the organization in order to optimize them through digitalization. The partner will actually implement that improvement, but it requires high-level coordination that will be the key to success.

Strategy, knowledge and execution.

Nowadays, execution is the easiest part of all. There are different types of integrations depending on the available systems and the objective. The most used are those of APIS (Application Programming Interface) where data is transmitted from one side to the other quickly and securely. It is the most used since it is simpler to perform and offers great performance. These are used to enter information to our platform. On the other hand, the most used to extract information is integration by Webhooks, in which the external system receives data when there is an event on the platform.

At Routal, we are constantly working to make integrations an opportunity to further streamline company processes, digitize and automate tasks that don't add value, and concentrate the work of employees on those points where a person actually provides the most value.

Quaker State Success Story: Integrating SAP

Quaker State is a leading company in the distribution of oils and lubricants for vehicles in Mexico. In 2020, they needed to standardize their merchandise delivery procedure and homogenize their operations so as not to rely on one or more people for the replacement of personnel. Faced with this situation, they implemented the Routal solution.

Thanks to the Planner intelligent route planner, they were able to unify processes into one, in addition to generating a single procedure that would be available to any worker regardless of their level of training.

Prior to the integration, the delivery routes were carried out manually, they spent hours daily in the planning process, there was little monitoring of the operation, and obtaining any report on performance metrics was an investment of tens of hours, which greatly limited the ability to make improvement decisions.

Once the integration of their SAP system with Routal was implemented, route planning began to be carried out in an automated manner and in minutes. The risk on the figure of the route planner and the dependence on that person was completely reduced. The creation of metric reports was also automated to improve the control and monitoring of their distribution processes, and most importantly: the data were reconciled and validated. Thus, the entire process was standardized and optimized.

”Routal Planner is essential to us. It saves us planning time and makes us more competitive against our competitors” Your Manager has your opinion.

Lácteas del Jarama Success Story: Integrating AS 400

Lácteas del Jarama It is one of the most important dairy companies in Spain, it was the first company to introduce mozzarella in our country and its history supports it as one of the main dairy companies in the food service sector.

The successful implementation of Routal was due to the successful integration of its ERP system, an IBM AS400, an extremely robust but difficult to integrate system. To be able to count on a partner like Nakima helped to be able to carry out the integration in just 3 weeks of work and thus reduce the start-up time to just over a month.

The internal leadership clearly identified the need to eliminate steps in the process that would focus logistics personnel on what really provides value: “Deliver quickly, with the lowest cost and offering the best possible service”.

The experience of working with professionals who are experts in this type of project means that companies can think further and want to improve other processes that seemed impossible to improve.

At Routal, we work to streamline integration processes through partners with a lot of experience in all types of technologies and businesses, achieving success so that projects are successful.

Try Routal for free for 10 days click here.

October begins and BlackFriday is getting closer and closer, it's time to get ready and be ready for its arrival. In this article we want to discuss the challenges faced by e-commerce and the last mile today.

Cumulative sales between BlackFriday and Christmas account for 30% of annual turnover for some e-commerce sectors. That is why it is very important for the sector to be able to know what challenges it will have to face this year.

In recent years, e-commerce has grown steadily, especially with the momentum it gained in 2020 as a result of the covid19 pandemic. Now in 2022 and with another economic context, it seems that this growth is slowing down and is almost stagnant. Specialists anticipate that this year there will be fewer offers, due to the economic context, lack of stock and reduced production.

In this context, new challenges are presented for e-commerce. First, end customers continue to push for speed, flexibility, and convenience. Get everything delivered to your doorstep. However, on the other hand, they also prioritize companies that are more sustainable and reduce their emissions. In any case, many forget about this aspect and the perception of the negative impact on sustainability is reduced compared to the convenience of receiving their order at the time they want. Then there is a dichotomy for logistics companies: to be faster or to be more sustainable. Perhaps the answer is neither of these two options but rather the convenience in delivery.

Second, there is an accessibility problem. In recent years, the Internet has allowed access to e-commerce everywhere, even the most remote, and this pushes distribution to go further and further. But in terms of logistics and especially infrastructure, not so much progress has been made, which is why it is costly and even difficult to reach remote towns and areas, especially in less developed countries.

Thirdly, the post-pandemic era, the modality of free returns for online purchases has become widespread, which presents a Great reverse logistics challenge. Offering free returns also poses a duality since it is not sustainable for packages to travel long distances and then return, wasting fuel and generating costs and emissions. In the future, it should be reviewed if it is convenient to provide a free returns service, if it is necessary to charge it or encourage the customer to approach a physical store to add this reverse logistics, minimizing trips.

Finally, another challenge is to improve the user experience: essential in this era when people place a lot of weight on the opinions of other customers, in addition to their own, and decide to repeat their purchases where they have received the best service. To improve reliability, there are tools such as order tracking, proof of delivery, direct communication with the customer, satisfaction or opinion surveys, among others. Taking care of and improving the user experience throughout the year is possible when you use a logistics service that has these tools, allowing more reliability and transparency for the end customer. The quality of the service is what sets you apart from the competition.

Our main recommendation for this BlackFriday is to anticipate. There is still time left, specific strategies can be planned for this date, not only for marketing and advertising, but also for logistics, to be prepared for increases in demand. In addition, we believe that technology is the main solution to many of the challenges posed in last-mile distribution.

That's why we encourage you to try Routal, a digitalization tool where you can optimize your delivery routes, use the restrictions your operations need, control routes in real time, send direct communications to the customer to keep them informed and reduce failed deliveries, collect proof of delivery, send customer and driver satisfaction surveys, as well as reduce costs and time in your operations. Test Routal free for 10 days by clicking hither.

This year the European Mobility Week is celebrated from September 16 to 22 with the motto “Combine and move!” to place the emphasis on intermodality. The celebration will begin on Friday, September 16 with Park (ing) Day and will end on September 22, World Car Free Day.

The objective of the European Mobility Week is to raise awareness of the need to reduce the use of private motorized vehicles, in order to achieve a less polluted city and also reduce the space usually occupied by these vehicles. As well as promoting more sustainable travel such as public transport, cycling or walking.

As part of this event since Routal we want to tell you how we apply our contribution to the sustainability of the city and how we reduce CO2 emissions when it comes to moving to the office.

Since 2020, Routal has left the employee free choice to work from home or go to the office. Routal currently employs 10 people. The offices in Barcelona are located in the center of the city and are easily accessible by public transport. However, working from home is everyone's favorite option. When we decided to meet at the office, we traveled by bike, scooter, on foot or by subway.

Avoiding the use of private motorized vehicles and working from home has meant savings in emissions of 6,733 kg of CO2 per year (6.7 tons) for Routal.

You can encourage your employees to work from home to avoid large CO2 emissions every year as well as improve work-life balance. Our own CEO (who has just become a father for the second time) is grateful to be able to take his daughter to school every day 😄 and not miss a school party. It's a matter of organization and flexibility, he says.

However, if working from home isn't possible at your company because the type of work doesn't allow it, you can help your employees reduce their emissions. A practical way is to share a vehicle between several. For this purpose you can use Routal to see how your employees could easily and quickly carpool. You just have to enter the addresses of all your employees, adjust the number of vehicles that may be needed, and we take care of planning the most efficient routes for them to share their vehicles. Watch the video:

Try it yourself!

As a company, we are aware of the need to improve the world of our children and that is why we work not only to offer a better service but also to help our customers with their environmental objectives, reducing emissions, improving the quality of their deliveryers' work and offering a more convenient service to their customers.

If you're wondering how we do it, I encourage you to look This other video and you'll see how we can save you hundreds of liters of fuel every month and thousands of hours behind the wheel every year.

You can do your route by trying Routal free for 10 days by clicking here.

Gas, gasoline, gasoline, fuel, there are hundreds of ways to call it depending on where you are. However, the increases in their costs are being reflected around the world. That's why in this article we'll give you tips to save fuel and thus reduce not only costs, but also CO2 emissions from your logistics operations.

Efficient routes 🛣️

If there is something essential for saving gas, it is choosing the most optimal route, traveling as few kilometers as possible through the right area and taking into account variables that may arise, such as road conditions and maximum speed.

Our main advice is to use a route optimization tool (such as Routal 😉) that provides you with the most efficient routes adapted to your operation. The optimizer uses artificial intelligence to define among infinite variables which is the most effective route to complete the route you need in a few minutes, saving you a lot of time compared to doing it manually. You can set restrictions, time windows, weight and volume limitations, and more. This way you will get the most suitable routes and in this way you will increase your productivity and you will save not only fuel, but also costs.

Maintenance 🛠️

Secondly, it is essential to save fuel that the vehicle to be used works properly, so we recommend regular maintenance of your fleet. This includes doing regulatory checks, checking oil and lubricants, and also checking tire pressure whenever possible. These revisions prevent further inconveniences in the future and save money in the event of breakdowns. Vehicle manufacturers establish the recommended period for each revision depending on the model and age of the vehicle, and some are mandatory to maintain the current warranty. We recommend that maintenance be carried out by specialists or trained personnel.

Driving 🚙

Another way to make fuel consumption efficient is the way you drive. Avoiding aggressive driving, trying to maintain a constant speed and respecting speed limits reduce fuel consumption. Safe driving courses are available to improve drivers' way of driving and to keep up to date.

You should also turn off the engine when you are standing still for a long time and try to keep the air conditioner above 21 degrees and below 24 to avoid overspending.

Hybrid or electric vehicle 🔌

Another option to save fuel permanently is to switch to a hybrid (or fully electric) vehicle to reduce emissions and improve efficiency. A hybrid vehicle can save us a lot of fuel, especially if it is used in the city for short routes. In addition, the maintenance of these cars is cheaper. Another benefit is that, due to their rating, they have no traffic restrictions in cities with low emission areas, they have discounts on tolls and also reduced taxes.

The Routal route optimizer includes a limiting kilometer restriction so that when planning your routes you can take into account the range of your electric vehicle.

Despite the increase in the price of fuel, there are different ways to save it, put them to the test and reduce your expenses too. Follow all these tips and also use a route optimizer to improve your operational efficiency and productivity, saving costs and fuel. Try Routal free for 10 days hither.

Do you have other tips for saving fuel? Leave us your comment.

Many educational entities choose to provide a school shuttle service for their students. This service can be performed by themselves or outsourced to personnel transport companies. If you are the logistics manager of a student transport company, you will know that in Spain the Real Decree 443/2001 of April 27 points out that the maximum length of travel by school transport cannot exceed one hour, so it is essential that students spend as little time as possible on transport, and that routes are efficient in terms of costs, time and distance.

They have recently been Published studies which correlate long trips to get to school with worse academic performance. Mainly because of reduced hours of sleep and less exercise to get to school. Sometimes the distance from children's homes to school makes it impossible to walk or ride a bicycle, so reducing travel times as much as possible is a priority.

The best way to plan transportation stops and minimize travel times is to use a route optimizer. An optimizer allows you to plan your routes in minutes, and thus achieve a significant reduction in travel times and even reduce the number of vehicles to be used.

It is also essential to have visibility of your operations, to be able to see in real time where the vehicles are located and obtain reports of the number of canceled stops, with their reasons, number of kilometers traveled, duration, etc.

Although school routes tend to be recurring, day by day there are changes in the number of students who demand the service, either due to a change in extracurricular activities or due to absenteeism. The number or size of vehicles to be used for the route may also vary. That is why it is necessary to suppleness and a platform that is plain easy to use and easy to implement.

3 ways to make school transport management more efficient:

• Optimize routes
• Get real-time information about the operation
• Reduced costs, time and distance

In SmartMonkey we help public transport companies with a quick and practical solution in planning student transport routes. In minutes you will have the route optimized, you will be able to view the operation in real time, inform families continuously, obtain reports on important metrics for your operation.

Its implementation is very fast, you only need the data of your vehicles and the directions of the stops, and the optimizer will suggest the most effective routes for you in just a few minutes.

Let yourself be helped and try Routal free for 10 days at routal.com