Water Delivery Route Planning — How to Do It Right

Route planning is one of the most overlooked parts of running a 20L water jar business. Most suppliers just "go" — same random order every day, backtracking across areas, waiting at locked buildings. A little planning can save 1–2 hours per day and ₹500–1,500/month in fuel.

Step 1: Zone Your Customer List

First, group customers by geographical area. In a city like Surat or Delhi, this might mean:

• Zone A: Societies and apartments near your depot/home
• Zone B: Individual houses 2–3 km away
• Zone C: Offices and shops on the main road
• Zone D: Far-end customers (deliver last)

Rule of thumb: customers within 500m of each other belong in the same zone. Avoid mixing customers from opposite sides of the city in the same morning run.

Step 2: Assign Time Slots

Different customer types need different timings:

Step 3: The Circular Route Principle

Within each zone, follow a circular/loop pattern — never backtrack. Start at one end, work your way through, and return to the depot from the opposite side.

Step 4: Record Deliveries in Real Time

This is where most suppliers lose efficiency — they deliver all morning and then try to remember who got what. By then, details are hazy.

Use a delivery app like PaniHisab to log each delivery as it happens — tap customer name, enter quantity, done in 3 seconds. At month-end, billing is automatic. No memory required.

Step 5: Handle Exceptions

• Customer not home: Leave the jar with the guard, note it in app. Bill normally.
• Customer paused delivery: Mark as "pause" in app for that day — they won't be billed.
• New customer on route: Add to app, insert into the nearest zone.
• Empty jar return: Note returned jars per customer immediately — don't rely on memory.

How Many Customers Per Delivery Person?

FAQ