- Planning takes longer each week
- One late order forces a full restart
- Drivers change the stop order during the shift
- Route quality depends on who planned the day
There is no universal stop limit
A dispatcher may handle a familiar area and a stable list with little effort. The same number of stops becomes harder when addresses are new, several couriers share the work, priorities change, or traffic affects the schedule.
The warning sign is the planning process itself. If the team spends more time rebuilding routes, checking the same addresses and explaining changes to drivers, the current method has reached its practical limit.
The number of choices rises quickly
Ten distinct stops have 3,628,800 possible orders in the simplest sequencing model. Twenty-five stops have about 15.5 septillion. Road rules and fixed start or end points remove many options. Time windows, several couriers, traffic and late orders create extra decisions.
A dispatcher uses experience to narrow the list. Software can compare many more sequences in the time available. The dispatcher then reviews the suggestion with local knowledge.
What is changing in route planning in 2026
The OECD describes AI-assisted routing as one of the more mature uses of AI in mobility. Newer systems can adjust routes and schedules using congestion and other live conditions. The same OECD review names fragmented data and weak interoperability as continuing barriers.
Google Maps Platform now documents route optimisation around travel time, cost, vehicle capacity, work hours and traffic. The European Union is also moving freight information toward structured electronic data through the eFTI framework. These developments point in the same direction. Clean, reusable data and fast review now matter more in daily planning.
A simple planning workflow
- Clean the address list and remove duplicates.
- Add the information that changes the plan, such as courier count, priority and departure time.
- Create a proposed route and review the stop order.
- Apply local knowledge, customer instructions and vehicle limits.
- Share the final routes and record actual distance, duration and failed stops.
- Review the results each week and correct repeated address problems.
Where MileCut fits today
MileCut imports delivery stops and prepares editable routes. Solo plans for one courier. Team and Control divide one list among up to five couriers and allow the owner to review, move and reorder stops before creating the routes.
Control adds a point-in-time traffic check for the selected departure time. It updates the planned ETA, distance and courier recommendation. Each courier receives a Google Maps route for navigation. Continuous vehicle tracking and automatic re-planning during the shift remain outside the current product.
Before trying a different planning process, see how to upload Excel or CSV, review the stops and send Google Maps links.
Measure the change with your own routes
Run the new process for several comparable days. Track planning time, kilometres per completed stop, route duration and failed deliveries. Keep the number of orders and couriers beside the result. This gives the team a useful baseline without relying on a generic savings percentage.
- OECD, AI in mobility, 2026
- Google Maps Platform, Route Optimization API overview
- European Commission, electronic freight transport information
The mathematics above describes a basic sequencing model. Real route planning also includes road access, working hours, vehicle limits and customer requirements.
Plan the next delivery list with a clear process
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