Cheaper driving – If you don’t use it, it’s your own fault: Show fuel-saving routes in Google Maps

Which route would you like? A route that takes nine minutes longer but saves almost 30 percent of your expected fuel consumption? Or the route to reach the appointment on time? Google Maps now gives you the choice.

Fuel-efficient routes for Google Maps are now available in almost 40 countries across Europe, after the feature could have been used in the US and Canada for some time. In addition to the fastest route, the popular navigation app now shows the fuel-efficient route on both an Android cell phone and an iPhone, if this is not already the fastest.

At a glance, you can see the relative fuel savings and difference in estimated time of arrival between routes and choose the most appropriate route. As Google reports, in addition to the route length, the function also includes other factors such as road gradient and traffic jams in the calculation, thus helping to optimize potential fuel consumption.

Function only available after update

By default, those who have received the Google Maps update will be shown the most fuel-efficient route when the arrival time is similar. Alternatively, it can be specified in the settings that the fastest route is always preselected.

There you can also store the vehicle with which you are traveling. Because fuel consumption varies depending on the vehicle type, you have the choice between petrol, diesel, hybrid or electric drive. Google promises to continue to improve fuel-efficient routing in the future, as the percentage savings and recommended route vary by vehicle engine.