Delivery service UPS has revolutionised the way that they deliver packages by instructing their American drivers to never take a left turn. But why?
Basically, they say that on average only 10% of the turns they take are left turns (in countries with right-hand traffic). For those of us who drive on the left, this could be applicable for right turns.
They claim that by avoiding left turns, they use 10m gallons less fuel, emits 20,000 tonnes less carbon dioxide and delivers 350,000 more packages every year, reports the Independent.
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Therefore their vehicle routing software avoids every left turn (unless absolutely necessary). This particular method has resulted in them being able to cut down the amount of vans by 1,100 which has led to reducing the amount of miles they travel by 28.5 million.
That's pretty impressive considering they're not using the quickest routes.
Apparently, UPS has completely ditched the whole 'go for the shortest route' idea and implemented a few different tricks to try and save money and carbon dioxide emissions. To be fair, when you're responsible for the delivery of millions of packages every year, you probably would try and save a few quid.
One of their tricks is to avoid turning through oncoming traffic at a junction. Despite the fact that this could mean going in the opposite direction of where your final destination is, it cuts down the chances of their drivers getting in an accident and cuts delays because you're not waiting for a gap in traffic. Genius.
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Fair play, they're clever.
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