HERE Technologies recently announced new premium capabilities for its HERE Tour Planning tool on Feb. 9. The features address mixed-fleet operational challenges as commercial EV adoption continues to accelerate.
The announcement comes as fleet operators who manage mixed fleets of trucks and vans now face a planning challenge far more complex than traditional routing ever required.
Electric vehicles introduce variables that internal combustion engine (ICE) fleets never dealt with: battery range that fluctuates with temperature and payload, charging dwell times that disrupt delivery schedules, and infrastructure gaps that can strand drivers mid-route.
“Traditional routing is no longer a one-size-fits-all exercise,” said Ronak Amin, product marketing manager at HERE Technologies in an email to FreightWaves. “Fleets are also having a difficult time integrating EVs into their fleets because they’re worried about the routing differences compared to their ICE vehicles.”
Amin explained that fleets now customize route logic around several key factors: dynamic routing events such as unpredictable traffic congestion and road closures; vehicle dimensions and restrictions including height, weight, axle load and cargo type.
Propulsion type where range, temperature, payload and charging location availability become essential inputs for EVs; energy consumption modeling. These time-based operational constraints also affect light commercial vehicles differently than long-haul trucks.
The new EV Planning capability can deliver up to 20% better planning and routing, according to HERE testing. The system learns each vehicle’s unique operating profile and creates delivery tour plans with up to 15% better ETA accuracy. It uses a physical consumption model rather than broad assumptions.
Agentic AI is quickly becoming what Amin called “a force multiplier in logistics.” These AI agents can evaluate thousands of constraints — such as delivery windows, driver shifts, vehicle restrictions and asset load management — then generate optimized routing strategies in seconds.
The technology enables fleets to explore “what-if” scenarios like freight network simulations or EV fleet expansion before they make real-world decisions.
Amin pointed to common pitfalls that limit AI effectiveness. “AI is only as good as the map data, traffic, telematics and operational data it’s trained on,” he said. “The system must understand real-world rules, such as low bridges, seasonal zones and charging downtime.”
Treating AI as plug-and-play without clear business objectives reduces its value. “In short, AI combined with location intelligence is what makes automation operational in the real world,” Amin said.
The announcement comes as global EV adoption rates remain uneven. Europe and China lead in commercial EV deployment and charging infrastructure scale. The U.S. landscape remains more fragmented, with some fleets pausing because of policy changes while states like California continue pushing strong electrification mandates.
“Fleets now focus on practical EV performance questions such as range, payload, terrain and mixed-fleet planning, rather than just whether to adopt EVs,” Amin said. “Fleets increasingly choose EVs for their mission fit.”
The upgraded capabilities are now available to select customers, with further enhancements planned throughout 2026.
