Eco-friendly routing is coming to Google Maps, allowing motorists to prioritise fuel-efficient routes over the most direct or fastest ones.
The eco-friendly route option will automatically be displayed as an alternative to the fastest one, if the default route isn’t also the greenest.
Both fuel savings and the difference in estimated time of arrival (ETA) will be shown, so motorists can make a decision which route to use.
Google’s new fuel-saving mapping tech has been developed using AI and insights from the US Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).
Jeff Gonder from the centre for integrated mobility sciences at NREL, said: “Not only does Google Maps’ eco-friendly routing bring NREL’s fuel-efficient technology from the lab to the road, but it has huge potential to significantly lower emissions and save drivers money on gas — something that’s good for both people and the planet.”
The company has calculated it has the potential to cut CO2 emissions by more than one million tonnes per year – the equivalent of taking 200,000 cars off the road.
It is launching now in the US on Android and iOS. Europe and the UK will follow in 2022.
And for those who want to ignore the new eco-friendly routing and always see the fastest route, Google will include an override in the map’s settings.
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