Europeans can now optimise their fuel consumption and save money with the eco-friendly routing feature on Google Maps

You can now travel on eco-friendly routes in Europe with Google Maps. Source: pexels.com

Google announced it is expanding the eco-friendly routing feature on Google Maps to 40 more countries across Europe. The option introduced in the US a year ago allows travellers to choose more fuel-efficient routes over the fastest ones.?

The leaf sign on the map will signify that going down that road will save the user money on fuel and reduce carbon emissions. With a few taps, you can see approximate fuel savings and the time difference between the two routes and choose the one that works best for you. The company claims that after introducing eco-friendly routes in the U.S and Canada, drivers have been able to save carbon emissions equivalent to 100,000 cars taken off the roads.?

The technology is enabled by insights from the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and data from the European Environment Agency. Combining this information with Google Maps driving trends, the tech giant may develop advanced machine learning models trained on the most popular engine types in a given region.

Furthermore, soon car owners will choose their vehicle’s engine type to get personalized suggestions for fuel-efficient routes best suited for their specific engine. Selecting the engine type — petrol or gas, diesel, hybrid or electric vehicle (EV) — will give the most accurate fuel or energy efficiency estimates.

As soon as the feature becomes available in your country, you can adjust your route preferences in Settings.

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