# Introduction to Routes > Find where each route action lives, from building a day's routes to dispatching them and working the stops. Source: https://jobwisepro.com/help/routes/introduction-to-routes Category: Routes Updated: 2026-10-22 [**Routes**](/go/routes) turns each day's [scheduled jobs](/help/schedule/introduction-to-the-schedule) into one route per crew, then carries every route from dispatch to its last stop. ## Read a day's routes The board opens on today. Change the date to see another day. 1. Open **Routes** from the dashboard navigation. 2. Select the left or right arrow beside the date, or enter a date in **Route date**. 3. Select **Today** to return to today. Each card shows the crew, status, planned start, stop count, distance, driving time, and on-site time. Past days can be viewed, but **Build routes**, **Even out workload**, and **Add emergency job** are disabled. ## Build a day's routes **Build routes** creates each crew's route for the selected date from the jobs assigned to that crew. The build skips a crew on time off, on a company holiday, or marked not routable. The full steps are in [Build and optimize routes](/help/routes/build-and-optimize-routes). 1. Select the date on the board. 2. Choose a **Goal**: **Balanced**, **Fastest**, **Least driving**, or **Revenue first**. 3. Select **Build routes**. **Even out workload** uses the same **Goal**. It spreads the day's jobs across crews that can take work, skips crews on time off or a company holiday, then builds their routes. Users with edit access see how many addresses need review and how many scheduled jobs have no crew. Fix addresses in [Fix addresses](/help/routes/fix-addresses). Assign crews to unassigned jobs in [**Jobs**](/go/jobs). > **Note:** Build routes skips a crew whose route is not in planning, so a dispatched route keeps > its stops. Undispatch the route to return it to planning. ## Add an emergency job Use **Add emergency job** for a scheduled job that no route holds yet. It ranks the crews that can take the job by the time it adds. 1. Select **Add emergency job**. 2. Select the job to fit into the day. 3. Select **Add** beside a crew. A crew marked as missing skills or equipment has its **Add** button turned off. The job appears as a stop on that crew's route. If no crew can take it, build the day's routes first. ## Adjust and dispatch a route Open a route from its card on the board. Stop order and pins change only while the route is **Draft** or **Optimized**. ### Order the stops 1. Select **Optimize** to reorder stops to cut drive time. Pinned stops keep their place. 2. Select the up or down chevron on a stop to move it one place earlier or later. 3. Open **More stop options** and select **Pin stop in place** to hold a stop where it is. A pinned stop shows the **Pinned** badge. ### Dispatch the route Dispatching sends the route to the crew. The full steps are in [Dispatch a route](/help/routes/dispatch-a-route). 1. Select **Dispatch** on the route page. 2. Select **Dispatch route** in the confirmation. The route badge reads **Dispatched**. To pull a route back to planning, open the **More route actions** menu and select **Undispatch route**. The option appears only while every stop is **Not started**. ## Run the route during the day Crews advance each stop from the route page. [**Operations**](/go/routes/operations) shows each dispatched route filling in. [Run the day from operations](/help/routes/run-the-day-from-operations) covers that page. ### Advance a stop 1. Select **On my way** on the **Up next** stop. 2. Select **Arrived** when the crew reaches the address. 3. Select **Mark done** when the work is finished. The stop badge changes to **On the way**, then **Arrived**, then **Done**. **On my way** also sends that customer an on-the-way alert, unless the customer's preferences stop it. ### Alert customers 1. Check **Override quiet hours** only when the alerts must go out during quiet hours. 2. Select **Notify customers**. Each stop whose customer was notified shows a bell icon. **Suppress all alerts** under **More route actions** turns off alerts that have not gone out, and those stops show **Alerts off**. ### Report a breakdown 1. Open the **More route actions** menu and select **Report breakdown**. 2. Select **Report breakdown** in the confirmation. > **Warning:** Confirming reassigns the remaining stops to other crews. ## Route statuses The board and the route page use different words for some statuses. - **Draft**: the route is in planning. Both screens use this word. - **Planned** on the board, **Optimized** on the route page: in planning, with stop controls on. - **Sent** on the board, **Dispatched** on the route page: the crew has the route. - **Working** on the board, **In progress** on the route page: the route is under way. - **Done** on the board, **Completed** on the route page: the route is finished. - **Canceled**: the route is canceled. Stop statuses appear once a route is dispatched: **Not started**, **On the way**, **Arrived**, **Done**, **Failed**, and **Skipped**. The route page has no control that sets **Failed** or **Skipped**. ## Access and crew settings **Routes** appears in the dashboard navigation only when the feature is turned on and your role can see routes. See [Roles and permissions](/help/team/roles-and-permissions). - Users with edit access to routes see the planning, dispatch, and alert controls, and the address notices. They also see **Address review** under **Routes**. - Users with view access to routes see **Operations** and [**Reports**](/go/routes/reports) under **Routes**. [View route reports](/help/routes/view-route-reports) covers the Reports page. - Field crews see only their own route on the board and the route page, with the stop buttons. **Share my location** appears on their own dispatched route, and location is shared only while it is checked. Build routes reads each crew member's skills, equipment, daily stop limit, start point, and whether the crew is routable. Emergency jobs and fleet balancing check skills and equipment.