# EVTripping vs ABetterRoutePlanner



## BoredomKils

After getting my Model 3 LR, I intend on taking regular trips to see my girlfriend in vegas. I've explored a few different trip planners, and seem to have narrowed it down to two good ones, EVTripping and ABetterRoutePlanner. Problem is they give me vastly different routes, with EVTripping being the fastest one in the end.


















Is either one known to be more reliable than the other? I have the better trip planner energy usage set to 237wh/mile.

Edit: EVTripping not EVTripPlanner, whoops!


----------



## MelindaV

try EVtripping as a comparison, it's by our member @teslaliving

the couple sample trips I've mapped out came out ridiculously off using AbetterRoutePlanner (ironically).
Like the one I routed from Portland, OR to Bend, OR to The Dalles, OR and back to Portland OR. Figured that would be good to test it out because there is a Supercharger in both Bend and The Dalles. But to get from Bend to The Dalles (a 2ish hour drive) it went East of St Louis, MO! After that I tried another somewhat local trip and it had something else just as crazy but in a different way. after that I lost all faith in their ability to be logical.


----------



## BoredomKils

I'm terribly sorry, that's the name of the one other than abetterrouteplanner, I was mistaken there. That's really good news though! Could shave a few hours off my drive each way!

Thanks for letting me know!


----------



## SoFlaModel3

Are these planners intended to capture fastest route or more scenic route or potentially a mix of both?


----------



## BoredomKils

The fastest route, I believe. You have to have an account for EVTripping and configure your account settings for the car, but it _does _seem like the more advanced of the two. https://evtripping.com/route/

ABetterRoutePlanner was the original one I found, and does not require an account. https://abetterrouteplanner.com/


----------



## danzgator

I use EVTripplanner for planning purposes ahead of time, but just use the Tesla nav when in the car. It knows your actual state is charge and how long you need to charge, where and for how long to actually make it, instead of just using hypotheticals.


----------



## JWardell

When is someone going to make a route planner that finds the funnest route by automatically finding the most curves to your destination?


----------



## Brett

JWardell said:


> When is someone going to make a route planner that finds the funnest route by automatically finding the most curves to your destination?


Honestly though, here in CA "funnest" would just mean "least likely to be stuck in stop-and-go traffic". Curves would, unfortunately, be relegated to a 2nd order concern.


----------



## mntlvr23

I have been playing around a lot with evtripplanner.com and while all of the paths seemed very reasonable - when I try to go from Seattle to Dallas, it always takes me a roundabout way through Aberdeen, MD for a 4,400 miles - lol
Anyone else want to try that out?


----------



## MelindaV

mntlvr23 said:


> I have been playing around a lot with evtripplanner.com and while all of the paths seemed very reasonable - when I try to go from Seattle to Dallas, it always takes me a roundabout way through Aberdeen, MD for a 4,400 miles - lol
> Anyone else want to try that out?


when I put SEA to DAL in it goes as far as Aberdeen, MD before turning toward TX. Wonder if it intended to hit Aberdeen, WA (which still would not be logical, but more so than Maryland maybe).... (incidentally, it also does not suggest any charging between Centralia, wa and Aberdeen, md.....)


----------



## Impatient

MelindaV said:


> when I put SEA to DAL in it goes as far as Aberdeen, MD before turning toward TX. Wonder if it intended to hit Aberdeen, WA (which still would not be logical, but more so than Maryland maybe).... (incidentally, it also does not suggest any charging between Centralia, wa and Aberdeen, md.....)


I think EVTripPlanner is working perfectly here. It's just that the app knows how much we love to drive our EVs!


----------



## teslaliving

Hi folks, I wrote EVTripping.com. I can answer a few questions here:

1) EVTripPlanner was the original trip planner created quite a while ago. They have some of their story on their site. It was/is an impressive piece of work and does a great job with a lot of trip planning.

2) I created EVTripping.com because the above didn't do all the things I wanted it to do (more in that on my FAQ over on EVTripping) and I wanted to play with various technologies during some down time.

3) There are several other ones that have come along more recently like ABetterRoutePlanner.

I think they're all free at this point and each has their pros and cons and caters to different needs. There are a number of things that need to be factored in including weather and traffic etc. As far as I know, only EVTripping uses live (or future/historical as the need fits) weather. Weather can affect your range by up to 40%.

I'm always looking for and fixing issues with routing. There's a long list of feature requests that I need to get to when I have more down time between other projects.

EVTripping picks the tip that yields the shortest time from point A to point B (with any waypoints/charging along the way). You can do layovers, and non-fast charger stops, but the main goal is for you to plan on how to get to your destination and how long it will all take.

As a side benefit, you can connect your car to EVTripping.com and get some things like plug in reminders, service reminders and other things (not required for routing).

Happy to discuss functionality and features here.


----------



## Mike

teslaliving said:


> Hi folks, I wrote EVTripping.com. I can answer a few questions here:
> 
> 1) EVTripPlanner was the original trip planner created quite a while ago. They have some of their story on their site. It was/is an impressive piece of work and does a great job with a lot of trip planning.
> 
> 2) I created EVTripping.com because the above didn't do all the things I wanted it to do (more in that on my FAQ over on EVTripping) and I wanted to play with various technologies during some down time.
> 
> 3) There are several other ones that have come along more recently like ABetterRoutePlanner.
> 
> I think they're all free at this point and each has their pros and cons and caters to different needs. There are a number of things that need to be factored in including weather and traffic etc. As far as I know, only EVTripping uses live (or future/historical as the need fits) weather. Weather can affect your range by up to 40%.
> 
> I'm always looking for and fixing issues with routing. There's a long list of feature requests that I need to get to when I have more down time between other projects.
> 
> EVTripping picks the tip that yields the shortest time from point A to point B (with any waypoints/charging along the way). You can do layovers, and non-fast charger stops, but the main goal is for you to plan on how to get to your destination and how long it will all take.
> 
> As a side benefit, you can connect your car to EVTripping.com and get some things like plug in reminders, service reminders and other things (not required for routing).
> 
> Happy to discuss functionality and features here.
> View attachment 3587


Sidebar: I tried to create/open a (new) account with your planner. I never got the confirmation email (yes, I have checked my junk email several times). I also sent an email to your team via the "contact us" method explaining the situation and have had no reply.


----------



## teslaliving

Mike said:


> Sidebar: I tried to create/open a (new) account with your planner. I never got the confirmation email (yes, I have checked my junk email several times). I also sent an email to your team via the "contact us" method explaining the situation and have had no reply.


I sent you a DM on here so we can sort it out. With 8,000 registered users the email system generally works. Spam filters can be a real pain and can happen at multiple levels. The people with the most trouble are those with AOL accounts.


----------



## randw

1st, Thx for making EVTripping.com!

I've been trying to calculate a very common CA trip
from Laurel Cyn in LA to SF with a TM3 standard.

EVTripping.com suggests 2 stops for 29 mins total charge time.
Is this accurate?!! If so YIPPY!!!
(But somehow this seems to good to be true.)

For comparrison abetterrouteplanner.com suggests
the same 3 stops but for 1 hr. total charge time.

Which one is correct?
THX!!

(image 1 & 2 from EVTripping, image 3 from abetterrouteplanner.)


----------



## teslaliving

Thanks! 

We've had a lot of feedback from owners on the accuracy of our routing. Keep in mind the safety margin makes a big difference, make sure that's set to your comfort level. For reference, Tesla generally runs about a 12-15% safety margin. As you get more comfortable with the car you tend to cut things tighter. In the summer I'll run with margins <10%. At about 6% Tesla whines a lot so about 8% is my minimum. Winter brings more risk with weather so I run a higher margin.

EVTripplanner is also very accurate for a 3rd reference point.

Note that all the Model 3 routing models everyone has for now is conjecture with no real-world feedback. They're based on the models for the S and X with adjustments for the 3's better efficiency, weight etc. As we get real world feedback from Model 3 owners (and our own someday!) we'll be fine tuning the algorithms. I'd guess they're pretty close already though.


----------



## randw

THX! - 
I sure wish some current TM3 extended range users would give feedback on this very common CA trip.


----------



## MelindaV

teslaliving said:


> Thanks!
> 
> We've had a lot of feedback from owners on the accuracy of our routing. Keep in mind the safety margin makes a big difference, make sure that's set to your comfort level. For reference, Tesla generally runs about a 12-15% safety margin. As you get more comfortable with the car you tend to cut things tighter. In the summer I'll run with margins <10%. At about 6% Tesla whines a lot so about 8% is my minimum. Winter brings more risk with weather so I run a higher margin.
> 
> EVTripplanner is also very accurate for a 3rd reference point.
> 
> Note that all the Model 3 routing models everyone has for now is conjecture with no real-world feedback. They're based on the models for the S and X with adjustments for the 3's better efficiency, weight etc. As we get real world feedback from Model 3 owners (and our own someday!) we'll be fine tuning the algorithms. I'd guess they're pretty close already though.


in trying @mntlvr23's seattle to dallas route on your site, I'm also getting routing all the way to the east coast. so out of curiosity started with cities further south from seattle and it would route up to seattle then head east. I got as far as Shasta, CA with it still doing that. Next place to the south (Redding, CA) routed correctly going down thru california and then east, but anything Shasta or north would not start out going south. 
I don't have any restrictions on toll roads, the SW state  or anything else that should be forcing it to do 2x as long of a drive as required, but I've tried a dozen different city combinations and they all do something similar.


----------



## teslaliving

MelindaV said:


> in trying @mntlvr23's seattle to dallas route on your site, I'm also getting routing all the way to the east coast. so out of curiosity started with cities further south from seattle and it would route up to seattle then head east. I got as far as Shasta, CA with it still doing that. Next place to the south (Redding, CA) routed correctly going down thru california and then east, but anything Shasta or north would not start out going south.
> I don't have any restrictions on toll roads, the SW state  or anything else that should be forcing it to do 2x as long of a drive as required, but I've tried a dozen different city combinations and they all do something similar.
> View attachment 3633


That is definitely odd. I'll look into it.


----------



## teslaliving

MelindaV said:


> in trying @mntlvr23's seattle to dallas route on your site, I'm also getting routing all the way to the east coast. so out of curiosity started with cities further south from seattle and it would route up to seattle then head east. I got as far as Shasta, CA with it still doing that. Next place to the south (Redding, CA) routed correctly going down thru california and then east, but anything Shasta or north would not start out going south.
> I don't have any restrictions on toll roads, the SW state  or anything else that should be forcing it to do 2x as long of a drive as required, but I've tried a dozen different city combinations and they all do something similar.
> View attachment 3633


This is fixed now.

Fun fact, there's an Aberdeen Supercharger in Washington and one in Maryland. Tesla saw fit to rename things somewhere along the way which caused some confusion for the quick routing algorithms.


----------



## MelindaV

I saw the Aberdeen thing and first thought that could be part of the issue, but leaving Seattle for Dallas you would never go thru Aberdeen, WA. it's on the peninsula and way out of the way.


----------



## Mike

I'm learning how to use EVTripping and have some questions (that I will post here in an effort to have other folks learn from them):

My example trip: From home (Batawa ON) to the "Lake Express" ferry dock in Muskegon MI (1918 Lakeshore Drive Muskegon, MI 49441).

I wish to use the "Blue Water Ferry" (from 3490 King St, Sombra, ON N0P 2H0 to 451 South Water Street Marine City, MI 48039) as my crossing point into the USA. How can this be done without having to manually insert both addresses as desired way-points?

I wish to have the software ignore the supercharger in Port Huron, MI. (left click on any supercharger and an option to "Avoid charger" presents itself).

I wish to leave home at 100% charge (selected under Route Options>>Route preferences).

I wish to arrive at my destination way-point (the ferry dock in this example) with a minimum amount of charge that is different than the 10% minimum state of charge I have selected under Preferences>>Car Preferences to arrive at all superchargers. I wish to arrive with 50% remaining, but only for this single way-point at the end of this example trip. How can this be done?

I wish to use a mix of limited access freeways and then some secondary highways, notably once I am in Michigan, I wish to be able to "grab" the computer generated proposed route and drag it along secondary highways. How can this be done?

Many thanks in advance. Cheers.


----------



## Akilae

@teslaliving 
I have to say, I really like your routeplanner. What I have encountered is that I wasn't able to find all currently active superchargers on it. Is this known to you? We have one in Vienna which doesn't show up.


----------



## teslaliving

Akilae said:


> @teslaliving
> I have to say, I really like your routeplanner. What I have encountered is that I wasn't able to find all currently active superchargers on it. Is this known to you? We have one in Vienna which doesn't show up.


It should pick up chargers every 24 hours, but that one seems to be missing. I'll look into it.


----------



## teslaliving

Mike said:


> I'm learning how to use EVTripping and have some questions (that I will post here in an effort to have other folks learn from them):
> 
> My example trip: From home (Batawa ON) to the "Lake Express" ferry dock in Muskegon MI (1918 Lakeshore Drive Muskegon, MI 49441).
> 
> I wish to use the "Blue Water Ferry" (from 3490 King St, Sombra, ON N0P 2H0 to 451 South Water Street Marine City, MI 48039) as my crossing point into the USA. How can this be done without having to manually insert both addresses as desired way-points?
> 
> I wish to have the software ignore the supercharger in Port Huron, MI. (left click on any supercharger and an option to "Avoid charger" presents itself).
> 
> I wish to leave home at 100% charge (selected under Route Options>>Route preferences).
> 
> I wish to arrive at my destination way-point (the ferry dock in this example) with a minimum amount of charge that is different than the 10% minimum state of charge I have selected under Preferences>>Car Preferences to arrive at all superchargers. I wish to arrive with 50% remaining, but only for this single way-point at the end of this example trip. How can this be done?
> 
> I wish to use a mix of limited access freeways and then some secondary highways, notably once I am in Michigan, I wish to be able to "grab" the computer generated proposed route and drag it along secondary highways. How can this be done?
> 
> Many thanks in advance. Cheers.


It should use ferries if you have them enabled and the route is faster than other options. If it's not faster and you want to go that way then you need to force it that way as you mentioned.

You can't currently set waypoint-specific target charge levels. That's on the list to add at some point. BTW 10% is probably too small a standard to set. Tesla is usually 12-15% in their own Nav.

EVTripping uses the fastest path from point A to point B (accounting for traffic, weather etc). If you want to take more scenic routes you need to set waypoints that will take you through those areas. Drag-and-drop to change the path of routing is our #1 requested feature to add so that will happen sooner rather than later.


----------



## Mike

teslaliving said:


> It should use ferries if you have them enabled and the route is faster than other options. If it's not faster and you want to go that way then you need to force it that way as you mentioned.
> 
> You can't currently set waypoint-specific target charge levels. That's on the list to add at some point. BTW 10% is probably too small a standard to set. Tesla is usually 12-15% in their own Nav.
> 
> EVTripping uses the fastest path from point A to point B (accounting for traffic, weather etc). If you want to take more scenic routes you need to set waypoints that will take you through those areas. Drag-and-drop to change the path of routing is our #1 requested feature to add so that will happen sooner rather than later.


All good stuff, thanks


----------

