Hi all, i start a new job on Monday doing between 20-30 drops a day, ive been told i have to plan my own route. Whats the best way to do this ? Do i just go by the postcodes and start furthest away and work my way back ? Also when will i have to plan the route ? Will it be in the morning before i leave the yard or do they give you the details the night before so i can route plan at home ? Thanks in advance
In my previous experience of this the goods are delivered and sorted overnight so the driver does not know what they got til morning
Depending on what time you leave the yard will depend what drop you decide to do first - no good going to the nearest if they are not going to be there !!
If I could I would go nearest to furthest so the weight gets reduced the further you go and it leaves that nice empty run back or makes you available for any collections
I used A to Z maps and books but I believe some modern sat navs allow many postcodes to be entered and then it sorts the route for you - no certain of that - perhaps it was on the bbc computer programme …
The company might have a programme on their pc but can’t remember what it’s called now that when you put all the postcodes in it spits them out in the best order and by that i mean the best routes so you are not doubling back and forth. Going nearest to furthest might not be the best idea as you might sometimes need to go round in a loop if you know what i mean.
a good a-z with postcoded areas helps. i would do furthest to nearest , that way your closer to home at the end of the day. depends on company some will give you route details night before if you ask , others will just throw whatever they can on wagon and expect you to work your route out in the morning, by doing ya distance first it will give you time to plan your other drops if you know what i mean .
If you do collections, I would start close and finish far, so you can collect on way back.
TBH my experience of multi drop isn’t so linear. I was based Swindon, and mostly did an Oxford run. I usually started at Banbury and worked down finishing at Didcot.
Thanks for your help fellas, i have to go in 2morra morning for a few hours training so i’ll clear a few things up with them before D-day on monday, im sure i’ll get the hang of it. 
If you knew where you were going the day before, you could use Autoroute…put in the postcodes & it puts them in order for you.
When I worked for City Link I found the best way was photocopying a map of the town I was covering and highlighting the roads I had a drop on.
A lot easier to work out a logical route when it’s all there on a page in front of you.
I really miss those happy days of doing 100 drops in an LDV Convoy 
Many of the drops may be in the same area, you may have 2 to 3 industrial estates close to each other with 10 to 20 drops on each one, some firms pay for each parcel delivered.
The ones i could not find on a map i would let the sat nav find it then mark on the atlas to create which way round to do the route.
I used to use itinerary on my tomtom, takes a bit of faffing about to sort them into the right order, but if your doing the same/similar run in future you can fine tweak it. I usually plan to be at the first drop for when it opens, usually the nearest to depot so I’m empty at the furthest point, good if your doing collects later and better for fuel consumption. If it’s a regular run you’ll find what works best as regards traffic, customer opening/break times, parking/loading restrictions etc, avoiding right turns etc, within a couple of weeks.
Multi-drop is a black art IMO, and spending 10 minutes in the yard planning will save time later on, ask other drivers and don’t ■■■■ off the loaders, they can make or break your day. 
Check your run sheet carefully, if you have timed deliveries chances are you’ll be at the wrong end of a city at 11:55 with a pre-12:00 drop, and you need a break.
Timed deliveries come first.
TBH, I think the op will have to ■■■■ it and see and probably be best off asking other drivers where he works how they do it, then work it out from there.
If you are loading yourself, make sure you have your first drops near the doors going back in order according to your route!! You don’t want to find that you’ve that one the wrong way round! !
Like has been suggested by the others, A to Z’s are useful, sat nav which has been updated information wise, a good truck map is top of my list to go anywhere (great when other items don’t have a signal), and check your dimensions weights etc. Where I was had computers in the rest room for route planning. New build’s don’t always show up on a satnav (unless recently updated), don’t forget to get to places that close at a set time , before they close!
Drops usually nearest first, though this can vary. Good luck with the new job
I only stumbled across this thread because I too was looking for an App that offered the same facility. And I found a corker.
It’s a relatively new app, so has minimal ratings at the moment. But at only £1.49 I was hardly breaking the bank in risking trying it, and I am glad I did.
The app is:
It will place your drops in order (100) offer you a turn by turn break down of your route. And a map with the drop points plotted should you need it.
I hope you find it as useful as me. If so, rate it, and pass on the info.
Many thanks.
I used to route all our trucks a load them in reverse order before the drivers arrived.
You have to consider timed deliveries, which customers have no lunch cover so are closed, where you’re likely to get collections and what time.
This is where having experience of doing the job first hand paid dividends.
As someone said, it’s a black art which can be satisfying when you get it right an leaving you feeling like crap when it all goes wrong. I used to love doing it, the only problem was the clown I worked for.
Plan your route so your doing more left turns than right.