Google will soon use its popular Maps app to redirect drivers along greener routes to reduce the carbon footprint of car journeys. The Alphabet Inc-owned tech giant announced this week that it would implement AI-powered enhancements to Google Maps to help combat climate change.
Transportation accounts for around a fifth of global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions worldwide, and road travel accounts for three-quarters of this number. Improvements include constantly updated air quality information for drivers , as well as greener traffic-based routes. The new model is designed to optimize lower fuel consumption, using information from the different institutions in the countries where the tool will be available.
Lots of useful data and information in real time
With a new weather forecast feature, you’ll be able to see real-time temperature and weather conditions, as well as those expected in your area, and an air quality banner will show you how healthy (or unhealthy) the air you are breathing is. a specific place. This information would be especially useful if you were in an area prone to fires or with high levels of pollution , for example. The weather forecast will be available globally, and the air quality banner will launch first in Australia, India and the United States, although Google has already ensured that it will include many more countries in the very near future.
Users of the Maps application will also be able to compare between car, bicycle, public transport and other transport options in one place without having to toggle between tabs. It’s all part of Google’s September 2020 commitment to helping one billion of its users take action to reduce their environmental footprint and mitigate their carbon footprint.
Will the ecological routes also be the fastest?
With speed top priority for most Maps users, Google has stated that new eco-routes will only be used by default when the distance is roughly the same as faster routes. Users can choose to disable the eco-friendly feature, but Google plans to match the most eco-friendly routes to the ones that require the least amount of time, to encourage us to stick with the eco-option enabled.
Avoid pollution
Another feature built by Google aims to help drivers better cope with the pollution levels around them. Alerts will be sent out when they are in low-emission zones, which exist in cities around the world, from Amsterdam to Jakarta. Thus, drivers will be able to see if they are allowed to circulate with their vehicle in a certain area and, if not, choose an alternative mode of transport or take another route. The alerts will be launched next June in Germany, the Netherlands, France, Spain and the United Kingdom.
