Street Service – Improvements to Roundabouts

At times, when sequencing routes, the optimal path with the least time is not the one that is preferred operationally. Routes should make sense to the drivers.

At times, when sequencing routes, the optimal path with the least time is not the one that is preferred operationally. Routes should make sense to the drivers. Roundabouts can present this type of problem. It may be best to break up a roundabout into two or more pieces, but a driver would prefer to service the entire area at one time. For example, plowing half the roundabout now and completing it later would not make much sense operationally.

Prior to the improvements, the RouteSmart solvers would leave the roundabout before completing service. 

Attempting to complete the roundabout would require manual setup with zone priorities or sectors. This was time consuming and confusing for users, so an enhancement was made. By default, RouteSmart will now service segments of the roundabout together, overriding any settings like zone priorities, time windows, and others.

As is often the case, this enhancement to street service routing solvers was requested by a client who reported an issue. RouteSmart consulted with the client to help improve the results and make the final results better for all clients in the industry.

About the Author

Roy Dahl

Vice President, Research and Development

Roy holds more than 30 years’ experience in designing, coding and implementing innovative routing solutions for a wide range of industries. He finds robust, appropriate and effective algorithmic solutions for complex routing challenges. Through forward-thinking creativity, Roy and his team develop innovative routing solutions to achieve the best outcomes for our clients.