Google is expanding Maps' eco-friendly route planning, rolling out the feature in dozens of European countries, and making it even better with the option to choose the type of fuel that powers your car.
The feature, initially introduced in the US and Canada, will highlight and suggest routes that use less energy if they have a similar estimated time of arrival to the primary routes. Google says the feature is available to users in "nearly 40" European countries starting today, including France, Ireland, Poland, Spain and the United Kingdom.
Google is also adding the ability to tell Maps whether your car has a diesel, gas, hybrid or electric powertrain, so it can find the most efficient route for your type of vehicle and provide more accurate estimates of how much more efficient an eco-friendly route is. The system relies on information obtained from the US Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and the European Environment Agency, combined with Google Maps routing trends to train machine learning models.
To use the example from Google's blog post, this could mean that people with diesel-powered vehicles will be directed to the highway where their engines will be most efficient, while someone with a hybrid or electric vehicle might get suggestions for driving on classic regional roads, where with recuperation such a car can generate additional energy and speeds generally do not exceed 100 km/h, which affects efficiency.
