UPS всегда едет направо

Интересная заметка про то, что грузовики службы доставки UPS всегда ездят так, чтобы делать только правые повороты.

When better tracking systems emerged in 2001, the package delivery service took a closer look at how trucks performed when delivering packages. As a logistics company with some 96,000 trucks and several hundred aircraft, much of UPS’s business can be distilled to a series of optimization problems around reducing the amount of fuel used, saving time, and using space more efficiently. (Trucks in UPS facilities park just a few inches apart with theirside mirrors overlapping to save space.)

UPS engineers found that left-hand turns were a major drag on efficiency. Turning against traffic resulted in long waits in left-hand turn lanes that wasted time and fuel, and it also led to a disproportionate number of accidents. By mapping out routes that involved «a series of right-hand loops,» UPS improved profits and safety while touting their catchy, environmentally friendly policy. As of 2012, the right turn rule combined with other improvements — for the wow factor, UPS doesn’t separate them out — saved around 10 million gallons of gas and reduced emissions by the equivalent of taking 5,300 cars of the road for a year.

Describing the policy in a speech, the CEO of UPS told his audience, «I can see a few of you smiling out there, and I know what you may be thinking. But it really works.»

Получается, что популярный подход женщины-новичка за рулем — спланировать маршрут так, чтобы никогда не поворачивать налево на нерегулируемом перекрестке, — не такой уж и глупый.