It’s been said that for whatever situation you find yourself in you’ll find there’s an app to help get you out of it. With the rise of smartphones bringing the internet to your pocket, apps have begun to impact on our daily lives in ways that no one could have foreseen just a handful of years ago. And just because you’re out on the roads every day it doesn’t mean there isn’t and app or several to help make your day easier. With apps now readily available on both iPhone and Android, it no longer matters what type of phone you have, just how good your battery time is.
Top of our list is Road Trip – a handy app that will allow you to track your fuel economy, maintenance history and expenses. Even better, it actually recognises that people live outside the United States and allows international users to tailor the currency. With GPS, location awareness, tire log and the ability to import, export and backup all your data, this really is a great app for anyone out on the roads.
Cheap fuel is always going to be high on the wish list for those out driving every day. Use the free finder apps for supermarkets like Tesco and Asda to search for the nearest store with a petrol station to your location, you’ll be able to avoid paying motorway prices and pick up something yummy for lunch.
Need to know how far away a delivery is? There are a number of free or cheap MPG apps available for download that allow you to enter your start and finish points, giving you the distance. Great for tracking mileage, or for on the job quotes should they be needed.
While local radio is a great way to keep up to date with traffic news, if you’re out of the van or tuning in between reports it can sometimes be an hour before you get further updates. The Highways Agency, AA and RAC all have free apps that, between them, should cover the entire UK road network. Take a moment to check on the route before you set off, by linking the information with your sat nav you could save yourself from any traffic woes.
Speaking of sat nav, just use your phone! The RAC’s Traffic + app, a mere 69p from the app store, can provide you with a suitable route, traffic news and overlay the two so you can see what’s coming up ahead. Updated every five minutes, you’ll never be stuck in traffic again!
And finally, local weather can be vastly different just ten miles away from your current location. Know what you’re driving in to with a weather app. The Met Office has a free app available at the store, complete with five days forecasts for over 5,000 locations across the UK, so you should always know which days are going to be bright and breezy, and which are going to be heavy on the hot tea.