This empty miles reduction spreadsheet is a free Excel template for 2026 designed for manual trip and lane analysis. Fleet managers, dispatchers, small carriers, service fleets, delivery teams, and owner-operators can record loaded miles, empty miles, empty-mile reasons, and backhaul results for completed dispatch cycles.
The file calculates total miles, empty-mile percentages, estimated variable costs, target reducible miles, and estimated savings. Dashboard controls limit reporting to a selected date range, while Lane Analysis compares specified routes. These outputs are planning estimates based on the trip information and assumptions entered by the user. They do not confirm that return freight or another operational alternative is available.
In practice
What this workbook helps you do
- ✓Separates loaded, empty, and total miles for each recorded dispatch cycle.
- ✓Uses editable fuel, fuel-economy, non-fuel cost, reduction target, and threshold assumptions.
- ✓Summarizes empty-mile reasons and lane performance within a selected reporting period.
- ✓Flags duplicate IDs, missing required data, mileage issues, and high empty-mile percentages for review.
Instructions
How to use the file
Review the cost and reduction assumptions
Open Settings and review input cells B5:B9. These cells contain Fuel Price per Gallon, Average Fuel Economy, Non-Fuel Variable Cost per Mile, Target Empty-Mile Reduction, and High Empty-Mile Threshold. The supplied sample values are $3.65 per gallon, 7.2 miles per gallon, $0.34 per mile, 20%, and 25%.
Cell B10 is a calculated output. It divides fuel price by average fuel economy and adds non-fuel variable cost per mile. Trip Log formulas use this result to estimate empty-mile cost and savings. Validation permits $0 to $20 for fuel price, 1 to 15 miles per gallon for fuel economy, $0 to $5 for non-fuel variable cost, and 0% to 100% for both percentage assumptions.
Replace sample records and enter completed trips
Trip Log contains a table from row 6 through row 1005, providing 1,000 prepared rows. The file includes populated sample records, including the examples shown in rows 6 and 7. Replace or clear all populated samples before using the file for operating records. Blank operating rows already contain formulas in the calculated columns.
Enter one completed dispatch cycle per row. The manual entry fields are Trip ID, Trip Date, Vehicle ID, Driver, Origin City, Origin State, Destination City, Destination State, Loaded Miles, Empty Miles, Empty Reason, Backhaul Secured, and Notes. Trip dates accept dates from 2020 through 2035. Loaded and empty mileage entries accept values from 0 through 5,000. State, reason, and Yes or No fields use validated lists.
Leave the calculated output fields intact: Lane, Total Miles, Empty Mile %, Reduction Eligible, Estimated Empty Cost, Target Reducible Miles, Estimated Savings, and Review Flag. The Lane formula combines the origin and destination. Total Miles adds loaded and empty miles, while Empty Mile % divides empty miles by total miles.
Select the dashboard reporting dates
On Dashboard, enter the Reporting Start Date in B4 and Reporting End Date in E4. The supplied sample period is May 1 through June 30, 2026. The end date must be on or after the start date and cannot be later than December 31, 2035.
Dashboard calculations then summarize matching trips, total miles, empty miles, loaded miles, empty-mile percentage, average empty miles per trip, estimated empty cost, reduction-eligible miles, target reducible miles, estimated savings, backhaul secured rate, and trips with a high empty-mile percentage.
Maintain the routes listed for lane analysis
Lane Analysis uses the Dashboard date range. Enter or retain route names in Lane column A using the same text format calculated in Trip Log, such as Dallas, TX to Houston, TX. The first five listed positions contain sample lanes. Replace them when different routes need analysis, and add a lane name to an available prepared row when another route must be reviewed.
The remaining columns calculate Trip Count, Loaded Miles, Empty Miles, Total Miles, Empty Mile %, Reduction-Eligible Empty Miles, Target Reducible Miles, Estimated Savings, Backhaul Secured Rate, and Priority. These are formula outputs rather than manual trip-entry cells.
Inside the file
Included features
Calculate Empty Mileage and Estimated Variable Cost
For each completed cycle, Trip Log adds Loaded Miles and Empty Miles to produce Total Miles. Empty Mile % is calculated by dividing empty miles by total miles. If the row does not contain a Trip ID, calculated fields remain blank.
Estimated Empty Cost multiplies Empty Miles by the calculated variable cost per mile from Settings B10. That rate includes the fuel-cost estimate per mile plus the entered non-fuel variable cost. It does not include fixed costs or changes in revenue.
Classify Why Empty Miles Occurred
The Empty Reason list contains No Backhaul, Dispatch Planning, Repositioning, Seasonal Imbalance, Customer Requirement, Maintenance / Shop, Driver Home Time, No Empty Miles, and Other. Settings maps each reason to a Reduction Eligible decision and a recommended action.
For eligible reasons, Target Reducible Miles equals Empty Miles multiplied by the target reduction percentage. Estimated Savings multiplies those target miles by the variable cost per mile. Dashboard groups results by reason and reports trip count, empty miles, share of empty miles, and estimated savings.
Compare Backhaul and Lane Results
Backhaul Secured is entered as Yes or No for every completed trip. Dashboard calculates the secured rate by dividing trips marked Yes by total trips in the selected period. Lane Analysis calculates the same type of rate for each listed route.
Lane priority is No Data when no matching trips fall within the date range. It is High when the lane’s empty-mile percentage meets or exceeds the threshold in Settings, Watch when reduction-eligible empty miles are present, and Normal otherwise. The Lane Analysis chart compares Empty Miles for the first five listed lane positions, A5:A9.
Check Trip Data Before Interpreting Results
The Review Flag checks conditions that include duplicate Trip IDs, missing required data, mileage problems, inconsistency between Empty Miles and Empty Reason, and high empty-mile percentages. Dashboard provides Date Range Check and Trip Rows Needing Review outputs.
Validation reduces some entry errors but does not verify dispatch records against another system. Results depend on the accuracy and completeness of the manual entries. This workbook does not replace accounting, legal, tax, DOT/FMCSA, safety, or compliance advice.
Common questions
About this workbook
Trip Log runs from row 6 through row 1005, for 1,000 prepared trip rows. Formulas are present in the calculated columns across those rows. The workbook includes populated samples, while the other operating rows have blank input fields. Clear or replace every sample record before relying on the summaries.
Settings B10 divides Fuel Price per Gallon by Average Fuel Economy and adds Non-Fuel Variable Cost per Mile. Trip Log then multiplies Empty Miles by that result. With the supplied assumptions, the calculated variable cost is approximately $0.8469 per mile. Applying that rate to the sample entry with 68 empty miles produces an estimated cost of approximately $57.59.
No. There is no trip-level field for actual gallons. Fuel cost is estimated from the entered fuel price and average fuel economy. The calculation does not use fuel receipts or actual gallons purchased for a specific trip.
No Data means the route has no matching Trip Log records within the Dashboard reporting period. Confirm that the lane text matches the calculated origin-to-destination format and that the trip dates fall between the selected start and end dates. A route in the opposite direction is treated as different lane text.
Estimated Savings is the target reducible mileage multiplied by the variable cost per mile. Target reducible mileage is calculated only for reasons mapped as eligible and is based on the percentage entered in Settings B8. The figure excludes fixed costs, revenue changes, and any guarantee of backhaul availability.
Do not overwrite formula columns I, L, M, O, Q, R, S, or T. These calculate Lane, Total Miles, Empty Mile %, Reduction Eligible, Estimated Empty Cost, Target Reducible Miles, Estimated Savings, and Review Flag. Manual trip information belongs in the remaining identified input columns.
Editorial team
Prepared and checked with care
Casey Morgan
Fleet operations editorCasey turns dispatch, driver, vehicle, and delivery workflows into clear workbook guides.
About the editorial identities
Jordan Lee
Workbook quality editorJordan documents the automated formula, recalculation, download, and usability checks applied before publication.
About the editorial identities