Google Maps preparing to add more energy-efficient routes for electric vehicles

One of the features of navigation apps such as Google Maps is that usually they offer the fastest route to your destination, but sometimes faster doesn’t always mean energy efficient. For example, the shortest distance to your destination might be jammed, and so Google Maps might offer a route that might be longer in terms of distance, but could also be potentially faster because there are fewer cars.

Now according to a report from 9to5Google, it seems that in an APK teardown of the Google Maps app, they have discovered that Google is working to introduce a new feature to Maps in the form of energy-efficient routes designed specifically for electric vehicles and hybrids.

This seems to be an expansion of a previously-introduced Google Maps feature that offered fuel-efficient routes, but since electric cars and hybrids are becoming more common, and also since fuel and electric cars are different, a fuel-efficient route for a gas-powered car is different from that of an electric-powered one.

In the upcoming update, users will be able to select their engine type and Google Maps will then be able to find a route that is the most energy or fuel-efficient. The new feature isn’t live yet but since it was in the latest APK for Google Maps, we imagine that its launch shouldn’t be too far off.

Source: 9to5Google