Google announces via its own blog that Google Maps in Europe will soon start offering eco-friendly routes. This will allow car owners to probably save a little more on the cost of gasoline and other energy sources. Almost forty countries in Europe can expect the update.
When the update arrives, car owners will be able to specify what type of car they have within the Google Maps app. You can choose from different types: cars that run on gasoline, diesel or electricity. And of course you can also select hybrid. Then the app can help you based on that information.
Eco-friendly route in Google Maps
For each route, Google Maps can show how much energy or gasoline you consume. If the most eco-friendly route is not the fastest option, you can still select it. What is also good to know: this functionality is only available for mobile devices and not (yet) on the web.
This is how you can save some money (Image: Google)
Google already rolled out this feature in the United States last year. But now it’s the turn of France, Ireland, Poland, Spain and Britain – and yes, the Netherlands and Belgium. It’s a great option for when you have some spare time and don’t mind taking a different route. Being able to save money – especially on gas – is always welcome.
How do you modify the route?
If you have installed the update for Google Maps, you can adjust your route information in the following way.
Open the app and enter your destination, as you always do.
Now press the three dots on the right side of the screen, for menu options.
Now tap on route options.
On this page you will see a heading with which you can indicate that you would like to use routes that are energy efficient.
Also tap the heading that allows you to select your engine type.
Choose here the type of vehicle you have.
And that’s it, basically. In this article there is also a gif on which you can see the steps. That gif, from Google, is in English; in the Dutch version of the app, of course, the wording is different.
