Hazardous material routing
Upper has no dedicated HAZMAT routing mode. Use restricted service areas, stop notes, and manual review to keep drivers compliant when hauling dangerous goods.
Upper Route Planner does not currently have a dedicated hazardous materials (HAZMAT) routing mode. If your drivers transport dangerous goods, this page explains what the platform does today and the workarounds teams use to stay compliant.
Your workspace may label drivers as "Technicians" and deliveries as "Service." The steps below are the same either way — just match the wording you see in your account.
Why this matters
HAZMAT regulations restrict which roads, tunnels, and bridges a placarded load can use. Like most route planners, Upper builds routes from standard road data and does not apply placard rules automatically. To keep drivers off prohibited roads, you combine restricted service areas, stop-level notes, and a manual review pass before you dispatch.
If automatic HAZMAT routing is a hard requirement for your operation, contact Upper to discuss your use case before you commit.
What Upper supports today
- No automatic HAZMAT route restrictions.
- No special routing logic for dangerous goods.
- The per-driver vehicle settings do not include a HAZMAT classification.
The per-driver Avoid setting offers Highways, None, or Highways and Tolls — it has no HAZMAT-specific option.
Workarounds teams use
| Option | How it works |
|---|---|
| Restricted service areas | Define no-go zones around HAZMAT-prohibited roads, tunnels, and bridges. Stops inside a restricted zone are flagged for review. |
| Stop notes | Add HAZMAT handling instructions or alternate-route guidance to a stop so the assigned driver sees it. |
| Manual assignment | Hand-pick which driver gets the placarded stops during route planning. |
| Manual review before dispatch | Open the route and adjust the sequence or path before sharing it to the driver. |
A restricted service area keeps drivers out of a zone you draw — it does not know which materials trigger which restrictions, and restricted-zone stops are flagged rather than excluded. You remain responsible for mapping the regulations to the zones and for reviewing each flagged stop before dispatch.
Set up a restricted zone
Define restricted areas once, then reuse them across your routes.
Open service areas
Go to Settings → Coverage → Service Area.
Add a restricted area
Create a new area and set its Area Type to Restricted. Outline the prohibited roads, tunnels, or bridges in your service zone, and make sure the area's status is Active.
Review flagged stops before dispatch
When you build a route, stops that fall inside a restricted zone are flagged. Open each flagged stop, confirm the routing, and adjust before you share the route.
Assign placarded loads to the right driver
Upper does not auto-match drivers to jobs based on certifications, so HAZMAT-certified work has to be assigned by hand.
- In the route builder, use Assign Drivers ("Assign Technicians" in some workspaces) to put the placarded stops with your certified driver.
- To lock a stop to a specific driver before routing, set the Pre Assigned Drivers field on that stop.
If you only have a single driver on a route, you can use Quick Share to send it. For routes with more than one driver, optimize the route first, then use Share to Drivers.
Keep a compliance record
For delivery proof, use Upper's Proof of Delivery and the Tasks → Completed view, which records timestamps, notes, and any captured photos or signatures. Keep your own regulatory documentation alongside it — Upper does not generate HAZMAT-specific compliance paperwork.
Troubleshooting
If HAZMAT routing is critical to your business
Reach out so the team can understand the requirement:
- In-app chat: Click the chat icon in your dashboard.
- Email: support@upperinc.com
Related
Handle driver password resets
Reset a driver's password from Upper's Manage → Users list. Set a new password from the row action menu, then share the credentials so the driver can log back in.
Hide the end location from drivers
Control whether drivers see their route's end location in the Upper mobile app using Driver App Config, while keeping the end address in route optimization.