Optimize Routes

Route optimization automatically arranges jobs and destinations into the most efficient order for a technician’s day.

ServiceCore evaluates factors like travel time, service duration, time windows, and route start and end locations to determine the best route.

Before You Start

Here are a few things to know before you continue:

• You will need to make sure that your technician has been added as a user.
• You will need to have jobs assigned to your technician.
• You must have at least one destination in your account to use as a start and end location.
• Use Day view on the Schedule for an easier view of schedules for optimization so that you can see every job for the day and make manual adjustments as needed.
• Each job site and destination must have valid longitude and latitude coordinates.
• If you want to see total route time on the schedule, please review our article on adding durations.
• To see if you have user permissions to optimize routes, please review this article.

Route Optimization Overview

Route optimization uses advanced algorithms to determine the most efficient order for completing stops.

It considers:

• Departure Time
• Departure Location
• Travel time between each stop
• Service duration of each job and destination
• Time windows (access hours) of each job
• Start location
• End location
• Traffic (based on the average traffic for that day and area for the past two years)

When optimizing a route, you will select a Route Option:

• Fastest Route: Minimizes total drive time (Default)
• Shortest Route: Minimizes total miles

Please Note: Accurate departure times help order stops correctly and improve efficiency by factoring in traffic patterns and service durations.

How Distance is Calculated 

Total miles are the sum of all distances between points on the map (e.g., A > B > C). Distances are based on mapped roads suitable for cars, light trucks, vans, and other non-commercial vehicles.

Not Included:

• Road closures that alter paths
• Bridge or overpass weight limits
• Height-restricted routes
• Routes restricted for hazardous materials or other commercial constraints

Best Practices

• Enter an accurate departure time so stops are ordered correctly based on time windows and service durations.
• Accurate departure times also improve routing by factoring in real-time and historical traffic patterns.
• Add service durations to jobs for more precise scheduling.
• Route optimization provides an efficient starting point, but you can adjust the route manually by dragging and dropping stops.

Optimize a Route on the Schedule

Optimize a Route Using a Technician’s Actions Menu

You can optimize a route from Day, Week, or List view using the technician’s actions menu (three dots).

Using Day view as an example, follow these steps to optimize a route:

1. Open the Day view of the Schedule.
2. Hover over the ellipsis icon (three dots) next to the technician’s name.

3. Select “Optimize Day” in the drop-down menu.

   
   
    

4. Enter the technician’s Departure Time.
5. Select a Destination to Start Route At.
6. Select a Destination to End Route At.
7. Select a Route Option.

8. Click “Confirm.”

   
   

TIP: Route optimization provides an efficient starting point, but you can adjust the route manually by dragging and dropping stops.
 

A notification will appear in the bottom-left corner indicating that optimization is in progress.
 

After completion, click "Refresh Schedule" to update the route.
 

Optimize a Route in Map View

Map view optimization works slightly differently, without using the technician’s actions menu.

To optimize a route in Map view:

1. Open the Map view of the Schedule.

2. Click the technician’s name in the left menu.

   
   
    

3. Click the “Optimize” button.

   
   
    

4. Enter the technician’s Departure Time.
5. Select a Destination to Start Route At.
6. Select a Destination to End Route At.
7. Select a Route Option.

8. Click “Confirm.”

   
   
    

A notification will appear in the bottom-left corner letting you know that the route optimization is working and the Schedule will refresh automatically to display the optimized route once completed.
 

Optimize a Saved Route

Saved routes can be optimized to appear in the same order each week. If jobs are added, removed, or rescheduled, re-optimize the route.

To optimize a saved route:

1. Access Routes in your Schedule settings.

2. Click “Edit Route” in line with the route.

   
   
    

3. Scroll down and click  “Optimize Route.”

   
   
    

4. A notification confirming that the route has been optimized will appear.

   
   
    

5. Click “Save.”

   
   

Troubleshoot Route Optimization Errors

If route optimization fails or results seem incorrect, it may be due to missing or conflicting information.

Common issues include:

• Missing or invalid coordinates for jobs or destinations
• No valid start or end location selected
• Time windows that conflict with the route
• Missing service durations

For a complete list of errors and resolutions, see Glossary or Route Optimization Errors.

 

If you have any questions, please reach out to our Support team through the chat widget on the bottom of this page or by sending an email to support@servicecore.com!