How Next Mile can increase prediction accuracy for fleet management companies

On-demand delivery has become the new normal across the globe as foot traffic becomes web traffic. Australians use online delivery now more than ever. Currently, more than five million households shop online each month and incredibly, food deliveries from online purchases are expected to reach $192.16 billion by 2025. 

Accommodating these numbers requires expert planning and execution. The ability to provide accurate estimated time of arrivals (ETAs) is a crucial part of this process. 

Have a reliable and accurate tracking system 

Customers want to know when they can expect their delivery to arrive, particularly if it contains fresh food, manufacturing materials or medical supplies. Parcel tracking gives purchasers transparency and autonomy to track the progress of their deliveries online, at their convenience, as often as they would like.  

It is imperative that the tracking system is accurate and reliable. Accessing driver location information is straightforward, as a fixed device can be attached to the vehicle or a mobile tracking device carried by the courier. These devices provide coordinates that are translated to points on a map using a reverse geocoding service and then published on an app or on the web for the customer to view. 

However, simply knowing the location of the driver is not enough to calculate accurate delivery time estimates, traffic and road conditions need to be taken into account as well. Unpredictable traffic congestion, road closures and detours can all influence arrival times. For on-demand services, accurate ETAs to meet customer commitments while simultaneously improving productivity and minimising costs, is key. 

Next Mile and partners HERE Technology have developed the latest mapping technology with access to real-time, predictive and historical traffic data, thus providing the most accurate ETAs for their customers. 

Increase deliveries with precise delivery times

With accurate ETAs, fleet operators are able to maximise the number of deliveries each day by using waypoints sequencing based on both real-time and predicted traffic conditions. 

The most reliable ETAs are generated from accurate traffic and traffic-enabled routing. For short trips or those that start immediately, real-time traffic conditions are the most significant factor to consider. While planning longer or future trips, however, historical traffic patterns are most useful when calculating accurate ETAs. These patterns follow multi-year averages of traffic speeds and congestion at every time of the week. 

For even more accuracy, a system can be used to include additional data such as the average time it takes for traffic incidents to clear. Access to this data can be applied to traffic-enabled routing algorithms for vehicles and trucks. 

Want to know more? 

Next Mile is a distributor of HERE Technologies in Australia and New Zealand

Want to learn more about how geographic information system (GIS) maps can help your fleet management company? 

Contact us today!