Why UPS trucks (almost) never turn left
By Jacopo Prisco, CNN

Updated 1134 GMT (1934 HKT) February 19, 2017

By avoiding left-hand turns, among other route optimizations, UPS says it saves 10 million gallons of fuel a year.
(CNN)UPS trucks almost never take left-hand turns.

By favoring right-hand turns at all times -- unless a left is unavoidable -- the carrier saves millions of gallons of fuel each year, and avoids emissions equivalent to over 20,000 passenger cars.
The practice started decades ago, before computers and GPS, and is now managed by a software that conjures the most efficient route for each truck.

What's wrong with turning left?
Left-hand turns are generally considered unsafe and wasteful on right-hand driving roads, such as those in the US.
"Left-turning traffic typically has to turn against a flow of oncoming vehicles," explains Tom Vanderbilt, author of the book "Traffic: Why we drive the way we do."
"This can not only be dangerous, but makes traffic build up, unless you install a dedicated left-turn 'phase,' which is fine but basically adds 30 or 45 seconds to everyone else's single time," he said.
A study on crash factors in intersection-related accidents from the US National Highway Traffic Safety Association shows that turning left is one of the leading "critical pre-crash events" (an event that made a collision inevitable), occurring in 22.2 percent of crashes, as opposed to 1.2 percent for right turns. About 61 percent of crashes that occur while turning or crossing an intersection involve left turns, as opposed to just 3.1 percent involving right turns.
Left turns are also three times more likely to kill pedestrians than right ones, according to data collected by New York City's transportation planners.
The right way to save fuel
"A left-hand turn is also less fuel efficient," said Jack Levis, UPS Senior Director of Process Management, "because your car's idling longer, which is also not good for your vehicle."
UPS does not ban left turns outright, says Levis: "We will make left hand turns, but not ones that are unnecessary. We don't need to go in circles all day long by making only right hand turns. We have tools analyze the number of left hand turns for each route, and we can work out which ones are avoidable."
The procedure is now incorporated in most countries around the world.
To this end, the carrier created its own maps, which it says are more accurate that commercially available ones: "We can differentiate more important left-hand turns from unimportant ones. Google Maps has no concept of not making a left-hand turn, it just shows the most direct way to reach your destination. We have the ability to penalize some of those," Levis told CNN.
The system knows about parking lots, private driveways, variable speed limits and roads that are inaccessible for a truck.
The software can give an undesirable left turn a penalty that adds 20 seconds to the estimated route time. In that case, going around the block and turning always right might offset that 20-second penalty: "We were able to turn off left hand turns," said Levis.
Taking a longer route while still saving time and fuel might sound confusing, even to UPS drivers, according to Vanderbilt: "I've actually been to UPS's logistics center and discussed this with their lead engineers," he said.
"A lot of individual drivers felt the new routing software was making their trips longer, but they were later proven wrong. This is the thing about traffic, it's such a complex system that often the individual cannot get a sense of the overall efficiency of the system, and optimize accordingly. It's also one of the counterintuitive, 'slower-is-faster' effects you often see in traffic."
The rule, says Levis, can also be applied to left-hand driving countries, such as Australia and the UK, where it discourages right-hand turns.
Loop dispatch
UPS started avoiding left turns in the 1970s, when it came up with a method called "loop dispatch," plottin


http://edition.cnn.com/2017/02/16/world/ups-trucks-no-left-turns/

This people are bunch of clowns that studies every thng

Redoil:
This people are bunch of clowns that studies every thng

Studying for the right reasons is good brother

I have no idea what they are talking about

Redoil:
This people are bunch of clowns that studies every thng

That's how they make improvements ....in this case... to reduce fuel bill and avoid accidents.... while we who don't study anything continue to do things the same way we did since 1901.

lightblazingnow:





Studying for the right reasons is good brother

Which is why their economy moves forward brother.
Imagine telling LASTMA or Roadsafety to study traffic grid or form algorithms for softwares that would provide alternative routse for road users!
I bend if dem try am fr naija...hw much u dy pay d traffic officer first??..hehehehe

What I suspect maybe the reason for the statistic (High accident rate for left hand turn than right hand turn) is due to the fact that in right hand drive countries like NIGERIA and US, one rule that seems to be constantly ignored or over looked is this:

GIVE WAY TO TRAFFIC ON THE LEFT.

Ignorance of this rule can account major cause of road mishaps.

For instance when negotiating a right hand turn to join a major freeway, you need to cross in front of oncoming traffic and join the flow of vehicles moving right, but what happens is that when your about joining the main traffic, the coming cars are supposed to "give way" to allow you enter and join the flow. Remember that in right hand drives you sit on the left as such your right rear view is limited and if your not careful enough you'll end up getting side swiped by an impatient and ignorant driver.

Unlike the right hand turn where you can easily judge the speed and closeness of incoming traffic on your left and you are seated on the left side of the car.

[quote author=MightyThor post=53888999]What I suspect maybe the reason for the statistic (High accident rate for left hand turn than right hand turn) is due to the fact that in right hand drive countries like NIGERIA and US, one rule that seems to be constantly ignored or over looked is this:

GIVE WAY TO TRAFFIC ON THE LEFT.

Ignorance of this rule can account major cause of road mishaps.


For instance when negotiating a right hand turn to join a major freeway, you need to cross in front of oncoming traffic and join the flow of vehicles moving right, but what happens is that when your about joining the main traffic, the coming cars are supposed to "give way" to allow you enter and join the flow. Remember that in right hand drives you sit on the left as such your right rear view is limited and if your not careful enough you'll end up getting side swiped by an impatient and ignorant driver.

Unlike the right hand turn where you can easily judge the speed and closeness of incoming traffic on your left and you are seated on the left side of the car.










Read more again and stop assuming.the reasons are obvious in the piece

Myth Busters did an episode on this and the myth was proven as "Confirmed".

Redoil:
This people are bunch of clowns that studies every thng

This is the scariest post I've read in a while. I hope you were just kidding.

number 1 of business:
don not take anything for granted. Optimize everything optimizable.

Good lord. The white man is light years ahead of the black man.

Today is my birthday

hmm . research

Redoil:
This people are bunch of clowns that studies every thng

cause we studied nothing from the past is why we have the past still ruling us

Am more concerned about my UPS not lasting as usual whenever light is out

In your case man, you should avoid right turns and only make left turns! Nigeria drives on the left, so having to make right turns, increases the idling time...well clumsy if you think of it, just driving straight on Rumuola road sef kills fuel...Mad holdup.

GAZZUZZ:
I have been trying to count how many left turns I have to make (unavoidable) to get to work

tolulinks:
I have no idea what they are talking about

me too, I am not understanding

Avoiding left turns in Nigeria especially Lagos will definitely make your journey longer and by implication more fuel will be consumed.



Meanwhile, check my signature.

Fascinating

Brilliant Piece Of Research Work.

Left Turns Ultimately Interupt Traffic Flow On Both Lanes While Also Taking Much Longer To Move From Your Right Lane Through The Left And Unto The Adjoining Street Or Road.

ElSherriff:
In your case man, you should avoid right turns and only make left turns! Nigeria drives on the left, so having to make right turns, increases the idling time...well clumsy if you think of it, just driving straight on Rumuola road sef kills fuel...Mad holdup.

You are wrong. Nigerian roads are right-hand driving, same as the US! Do not confuse this with left-hand driving cars.

These people can research wella!

ElSherriff:
In your case man, you should avoid right turns and only make left turns! Nigeria drives on the left, so having to make right turns, increases the idling time...well clumsy if you think of it, just driving straight on Rumuola road sef kills fuel...Mad holdup.

Lol! Dude, did you just say that Nigeria drives on the left? It's either you have not rode a bicycle or you must be one of those hit and run murderers prowling Nigerian roads.

These oyinbos are bastards dem done use our destiny do juju

Beke wu agbara

icon8:


You are wrong. Nigerian roads are right-hand driving, same as the US! Do not confuse this with left-hand driving cars.

Don't mind him. It's obvious he's never taken a driving lesson, even an informal one. It's basic driving knowledge. No wonder we have accidents all the time.

Nigerians dont understand that simple things such as this can make a whole lot of difference. no wonder we r so wasteful even with all d resources in our possession.

ElSherriff:
In your case man, you should avoid right turns and only make left turns! Nigeria drives on the left, so having to make right turns, increases the idling time...well clumsy if you think of it, just driving straight on Rumuola road sef kills fuel...Mad holdup.

do you understand d piece at all ?
No he should avoid left turns cause he faces oncoming traffic while at that.

Juju

Only those who drive or have driven in a first world country ll understand what this research or article is all about.. Turning left is a time waster

Very interesting piece, just started imagining it and found out these guys at UPS are just good. But residential areas one can do left turns and be forgiven quickly.