What is the routing problem (VRP)
The Vehicle Routing Problem (VRP) assigns orders to vehicles and finds the best stop sequence while minimizing distance, time or cost — respecting capacity, time windows and driver hours.
With 15 stops and 3 vehicles there are millions of combinations. Planning "by eye" or with Google Maps one route at a time leaves km and hours on the table.
Methods: manual, heuristics and mathematical optimization
Three main approaches in real operations:
- Manual (Excel + Maps): viable up to ~10 stops/day. Does not scale.
- Simple heuristics (nearest neighbour): fast but far from optimal.
- VRP solvers (OR-Tools, etc.): near-optimal solutions in seconds with real constraints.
When you need routing software
Clear signals: 20+ daily stops, 3+ vehicles, strict time windows, frequent last-minute changes, or a dispatcher spending 1+ hour every morning.
LogIA solves CVRPTW with OSRM for road travel times. Try a demo with your real data.
Want to see how this applies to your operation?