Paste a list of addresses

The Import from address list widget on the Orders page converts a plain list of addresses, one address per line, into orders. It geocodes every line, lists the lines it cannot locate and the addresses located far from the rest, and creates one order per line. On a plan without a depot or vehicles, it also asks where the routes start and end and sets up the vehicles. The widget is intended for input that consists of addresses only. Loads and time windows are imported from a spreadsheet, which preserves them.

Open the widget

On the Orders page, press Import, the button next to Add order above the list of orders. The widget opens above the list. On the Home page, Paste address list starts a new plan and opens the same widget on its Orders page.

Orders imported from the widget are appended to the existing list of orders in the opened plan. A line for which the plan already has an order or a depot at that address creates no order.

Step 1: Paste the addresses

Paste the addresses into the widget, one address per line. A .txt, .csv, or .xlsx file can also be dropped onto the widget or selected with Choose file, the button left of Continue. A .txt or .csv file is read line by line. A workbook in the Routing24 format opens the usual import review dialog, and any other spreadsheet is passed to the assistant, which imports it.

Geocoding accuracy depends on how each line is written:

• One address per line, nothing else on the line.
• Add the city or area name.
• Leave out names and apartment numbers.

Press Continue. Routing24 geocodes every line.

Step 2: Lines that could not be located

When every line is located, the widget skips this step. Otherwise it shows the Some addresses were not found step, which lists the failed lines only, with a count such as "1 of 8 addresses could not be located". Two actions are available:

• Edit the lines in place and press Try again. A line can be retried any number of times.
• Continue imports the lines as orders without a map position. Their rows show the red Ungeocoded address label on the Orders page. See Fix unrecognized or mislocated addresses.

Step 3: Addresses far from the others

When a located address lies far from the rest of the list, the widget shows the Some addresses are far from the others step before anything is imported. Each listed address is shown with its distance from the rest. An address that the geocoder placed in the wrong city is listed here as well.

• Untick an address to exclude it from the import.
• Try to fix repeats the search for the ticked addresses in the area of the other addresses and reports the number of addresses it relocated. When none of them could be relocated, the line reads None could be relocated. with a red cross.
• Continue imports the list with the ticked addresses at their current locations. On a plan without a depot, the home address step comes first.

Step 4: Choose the home address

When the plan has no depot, the widget shows the Choose home address step. Starting (home) location: lists the located lines. The first line is preselected. Pick the line where the routes start, or clear the field to import every line as an order. Return home at the end is ticked by default: the routes end where they started. Untick it to show Ending location:. Pick a line there when the routes end at another address, for example at a second warehouse. Leave it empty when the vehicles end their routes at their last order.

Press Continue. The starting line becomes the depot "Depot 1". A different ending line becomes "Depot 2". Every other line becomes an order. A plan that already has a depot skips this step.

Step 5: Your vehicles and drivers

When the plan has no vehicles, the widget continues with the Your vehicles and drivers step:

• Number of vehicles/drivers: The number of identical vehicles. The widget creates one vehicle row with that Available count.
• Start time: and End time: The earliest start, and the latest time at which a vehicle must be back. They become the vehicle's Shift hours. An end time before the start time, such as 22:00 to 04:00, ends on the next day.
• Service time per stop (minutes): The time spent at each stop. It becomes the Service duration of every imported order.

With more than one vehicle, the Work distribution step follows:

• Limits stops per vehicle: every vehicle receives the same number of stops. Each order gets a Delivery of 1, and the vehicle's Capacity is set to the orders' share: 20 orders on 4 vehicles give a capacity of 5.
• Only limit working hours: only the shift hours limit a vehicle. The optimizer may give one vehicle most of the stops.

Create vehicles creates the vehicles. They start at the starting location of step 4 and end at the ending location, or at their last order when none was set. Add vehicles and depots describes the same questions on the Fleet page.

Back

Every step after the first has a Back button. It returns to the latest earlier step that still has something to show: the far-away list, the failed lines, or the pasted text. On the first vehicle question, Back removes the orders and the depots that step 4 created and returns to step 4.

Step 6: The result

The Orders imported step lists what the widget created, one line each:

• Orders whose address was located exactly.
• Orders whose address was placed on a street or an area rather than on the building.
• Orders without a location.
• Lines skipped because the plan already had an order or a depot at that address. When every line is skipped, the step reads Nothing to import.
• Vehicles, Depot, Working hours, Service time, and, for more than one vehicle, Work distribution: the answers of steps 4 and 5. The Depot line reads Round trip from: with the address, or Start: and End: when they differ, or No depot when step 4 was left empty.

Optimize routes opens the Optimize page and starts the optimization. Close closes the widget and stays on the Orders page. When the widget created no order, the button names the next stage instead: Go to Depots, Go to Fleet, or Optimize.

Each line is now an order in the list, with the address and the service time from step 5 as its only properties. Time windows and loads are set on the orders afterwards or imported from a spreadsheet. Time windows, service time, priority, and load covers the per-order details.

After the import

When step 4 was left empty, the card above the list reads Add more orders or go to Depots. Press Go to Depots. The Depots page opens with the Add a depot card. Add depot above the list of depots opens the depot editor. Add vehicles and depots describes the depot editor and the vehicle setup.

Next step

Plan your first route in 5 minutes describes the whole flow with a ready-made example plan.

FAQ

Where do I paste a list of addresses?

On the Orders page, press the Import button next to Add order. The Import from address list widget opens above the list of orders. Paste the addresses, one per line, and press Continue. Paste address list on the Home page opens it in a new plan. A file can also be dropped onto the widget or selected with Choose file.

What happens to addresses that cannot be located?

The widget shows the Some addresses were not found step, which lists the failed lines only, with a count such as 1 of 8. A line can be edited in place and retried with Try again. Continue imports the remaining lines as orders with the Ungeocoded address label, to be fixed later on the Orders page.

Does the import create a depot and vehicles?

Yes, when the plan has none. After the located lines are checked, the Choose home address step offers them as the starting location, the first one preselected, with an optional ending location. Clear the field to import orders only. A plan without vehicles then answers the Your vehicles and drivers questions. A plan with a depot and vehicles skips both.

What do the lines on the Orders imported step mean?

The step lists disjoint counts of orders. Orders imported successfully were located exactly. Not an exact address match were placed on a street or an area. Not geolocated were kept without a location. Already in the plan, skipped are lines with an existing order or depot. Vehicles, Depot, Working hours, and Service time repeat the setup answers.