How to split a list of stops into routes for several drivers
Thirty orders and two drivers. Here's how to divide them so neither driver crosses the other's path and both finish at about the same time.
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The short answer
Updated
To split stops into routes, divide them by area first, one area per driver, then optimize each route on its own and compare the totals. Lite Route Planner doesn't split stops automatically: you lasso each area on the map into a route, press Optimize, and move stops at the border until the drive times are close. Business includes unlimited drivers, so a third route costs nothing extra.
Split stops between drivers, step by step
- 1
Get every stop on the map
Import the day's list. With all the pins in view, the natural dividing lines (a river, a highway, a town out on its own) usually stand out.
- 2
Lasso the first area
Make a route and draw a loop around one area. Every stop inside joins the route. Click a pin to add one more, or hold Alt (Option on a Mac) while you drag to take stops off.
- 3
Hide what's taken
Save the route, then filter the map to stops that are Not on a route. Only what's left stays on the map, so the next loop can't grab a stop twice.
- 4
Lasso the rest
Make a second route for the next area, and so on, until nothing is left unrouted.
- 5
Optimize each route
Set each route's start (the shop, or the driver's home saved as a base) and press Optimize. Save to get the drive time for every leg.
- 6
Balance, then assign
Compare the totals. Move a few border stops from the long route to the short one, optimize both again, then assign each route to its driver.
Example: 30 local deliveries, two drivers
A bakery has 30 orders on a Friday: 18 east of the highway and 12 west, with the shop on the west side. Splitting by count, 15 and 15, would send both drivers back and forth across the highway. Split by area instead: 18 east, 12 west.
Say the east route comes out at 3 hours 50 minutes after optimizing, with more stops and the drive across and back, and the west route at 2 hours 30. Moving the three east-side stops nearest the highway onto the west route brings both close to 3 hours 10, and the only overlap is a few stops along the border.
Set a time at each stop first, say 5 minutes a drop, and the totals include it. Then balancing on the total accounts for both driving and stopping, which is what decides when a driver gets back.
How to balance routes
Stop count is the easy measure. The day's total is the honest one.
Area first, count second
Areas keep drivers out of each other's way. Even out the numbers only after the areas are set.
Balance on the total
A 12-stop rural route can take longer than a 20-stop downtown one. Each saved route in Lite shows its total: drive time plus time at stops.
Give the far cluster to the lighter route
A group of stops out of town costs one long drive there and back. Pair it with the route that has fewer stops close in.
Check for overlap by color
Color the map by route. If two colors are mixed together, move stops until each route is one patch of color.
Start each route where its driver starts
Save the shop or each driver's home as a base (Business has up to 100) and set it as the start, so the first drive is counted.
Optimize again after every move
Moving stops changes the best order for both routes. Press Optimize on each, and undo is one click if you don't like the result.
The driver app
Each driver gets their own route
Assign a route and it's on that driver's phone, in order, with the drive time between stops. They tap to navigate in Google Maps, Apple Maps or Waze and mark each stop Visited or Attempted. Color your map by driver to see who's covering what. Business includes unlimited drivers, with no per-driver fees.
When to let software do the split
Choose Lite if
- You have a handful of drivers and the split by area is plain on a map
- Your stops repeat and each driver knows their side of town
- You'd rather see and adjust the split yourself
- You want unlimited drivers without per-driver fees
Choose a dispatch tool if
- You divide hundreds of orders a day across many vehicles
- Orders have delivery time windows or vehicles have capacity limits
- You need driver shifts and breaks planned for you
- Routific, OptimoRoute and Routing24 handle some or all of these (checked October 2026)