For a while, Google Maps has been highlighting "eco-friendly" routes. If you have a gas-powered car, the thinking is that the "smoothest" ride with the fewest stops and starts will be the most fuel efficient. But what if you don't own a gasoline-guzzling vehicle? The newest feature offered by Google Maps will allow you to choose the engine type of your car, with options including "Gas," "Diesel," "Electric," and "Hybrid" for the eco-route planning.
This problem is solved by the new car type selection feature. This will enable the car to "find the best route and most accurately estimate fuel or energy efficiency."
This technique was made possible by data from the European Environment Agency and insights from the US Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) combining with Google Maps driving trends in a given region.
Google announced that it will roll out a new feature to the US, Europe, and Canada in the next few weeks. In addition, starting today, European users will be able to experience Google Maps' eco-routing for the first time.
From the route preview screen, tap the top-right menu button and then choose "route options." An option for "engine type" will be displayed at the bottom of the screen, and you may also pick "prefer fuel-efficient routes" if you want the default to be the greenest path. The quickest route is still available from the route preview screen and is still the default selection.
Source: Google