Nebula evaluates every available driver in seconds and delivers a ranked, transparent recommendation, so dispatchers assign the right driver faster and with confidence.
How Nebula Suggests Drivers for Your Trips – Help Center
What Is Nebula?
Nebula is the driver suggestion engine built into your dispatch workflow. When a trip comes in, it looks at every available driver, checks whether they actually fit the job, and hands you a ranked list of who to send. It also tells you why anyone was left off the list, so you're never left guessing.
Think of it as a second set of eyes that never gets tired and checks every rule every time.
How Does Nebula Work?
When a trip needs a driver, here's what happens behind the scenes:
1
Pulls Together the Full Picture
Nebula gathers everything it needs: the trip details, pickup and drop-off locations, timing, vehicle requirements, passenger needs, and what every driver is already doing at that moment.
2
Checks Every Driver
It goes through each available driver one by one. Anyone who doesn't meet the requirements gets filtered out, and the reason is noted so you can see it later.
3
Figures Out Travel Times
For drivers still in the running, Nebula estimates how long it would take each of them to reach the pickup location. It pulls from cached routing data to keep things fast.
4
Ranks Who Fits Best
Drivers are sorted based on two things: how busy they already are and how close they are to the pickup. Less busy and closer to the pickup generally means a higher spot on the list.
5
Looks for Route Overlap
Nebula also checks whether a driver already on the road could take on this trip without disrupting anything. When that works out, it's flagged as a route insertion opportunity.
6
Hands You the Results
You get a ranked list of drivers who are good to go, plus a separate list of anyone who didn't make the cut and exactly why.
What Does Nebula Check?
There are six things Nebula looks at before putting a driver on the suggested list. A driver needs to clear all of them to show up as a recommendation.
Shift Timing
The driver needs to be on shift when the pickup happens. If their shift hasn't started yet or has already ended, they won't be suggested.
Vehicle and Seating
The vehicle has to match what the trip needs, whether that's a standard seat, a wheelchair setup, a stretcher, or anything else the passenger requires.
Exclusion Rules
If a passenger or account has a driver exclusion on file, that driver is automatically skipped. No manual checking needed.
Skills and Certifications
Some trips need drivers with specific training or certifications. Nebula checks for that before anyone makes the list.
Fleet and Service Area
Only drivers in the right fleet and service area are considered, so you're never looking at drivers who aren't actually available for that trip.
Availability and Proximity
Among drivers who pass everything else, the ones with lighter workloads and shorter distances to the pickup are ranked toward the top.
Route overlap: If a driver already on a route can take on the new trip without breaking any rules, Nebula will flag it. This is a great way to get more out of drivers who are already in the field.
Pickup Time vs. Drop-Off Time
How Nebula ranks drivers depends on whether the trip has a pickup time or a required drop-off time. Both work a little differently.
Pickup Time Given
The pickup time is the earliest the driver should arrive. Nebula ranks drivers who can get there sooner toward the top, since you want someone there right on time without a long wait.
Drop-Off Time Given
Nebula works backwards from the required drop-off time to figure out when the pickup needs to happen. Drivers who arrive closer to that window are ranked higher, since arriving too early just means unnecessary waiting.
Today's Trips vs. Future Trips
Nebula works the same way regardless of whether you're dispatching right now or planning ahead for tomorrow or next week.
Scenario
How Nebula Handles It
Same-Day
Nebula looks at what's happening right now: where drivers are, what they're assigned to, and who's actually free. The suggestions reflect the current situation on the ground.
Future Date
For trips in the future, Nebula looks at planned shift schedules and any assignments already on the books for that day. You get a reliable suggestion based on what's known ahead of time.
Coming soon: Support for suggesting drivers across multiple trips at once is in the works and will be available in a future release. For now, Nebula handles one trip at a time.
What You'll See as a Dispatcher
Once Nebula finishes evaluating a trip, you'll get two things side by side:
Suggested Drivers
Ranked from best fit to acceptable options
Estimated pickup and drop-off times for each driver
Expected distance and travel time for the trip
Flagged if the driver can be slotted into an existing route
Not Suggested
Every driver who didn't make the list
A plain-language reason for each one
Common reasons: shift not active, wrong vehicle type, exclusion on file
Useful if something changes and you need to revisit options
Common Questions
Can I pick a driver that Nebula didn't suggest?
Yes, absolutely. Nebula gives you a recommendation, but the final call is always yours. You can assign any driver you want, no matter where they show up on the list.
A driver I expected to see isn't showing up. Why?
Check the not suggested list. Nebula records the specific reason each driver was left out, whether it's a shift timing issue, a vehicle mismatch, or an active exclusion. That makes it easy to figure out what's going on.
Does Nebula factor in live traffic?
Nebula uses routing data for its travel time estimates, which is cached and refreshed as needed. It's not a live traffic feed, so for real-time road conditions you'd want to check live traffic and navigation tools.
What happens if no drivers are available?
You'll see an empty suggested list and a full not suggested list with a reason for every driver that was checked. It tells you exactly what's blocking each one, which makes it a lot easier to figure out your next move.
Can I use Nebula for trips that are days away?
Yes. Nebula works just as well for future trips. It uses the shift schedules and assignments already planned for that date to figure out who's available and give you a solid suggestion ahead of time.
