The Dispatch board

Dispatch (sidebar → Operations → Dispatch) is where you run the day: every driver's run in one view, an Unassigned pool, and drag-and-drop assignment. Broker and private-pay trips appear side by side.

Layout

• Week strip — pick the day; each day shows its trip count.
• Search and Filters — search by member, driver, trip #, broker trip ID or address; filter by Status, Driver (including Unassigned), Vehicle, Facility, and Payer. Typing a driver's name also narrows the driver list to that driver — even one with no trips yet — so you can find them quickly when assigning. The same search works on the Run board.
• View toggle — List board (the default, described here) or Run board, an alternative run-centric timeline.
• Export — download the day's trips as an Excel file.

List board views

Above the rows, View switches how the List board is organized:

• By stop — each driver's lane with their stops in run order (described below). Tick Group legs to gather each trip's stops together under a leg header.
• By trip — one row per trip (not per stop), laid out as described in Reading a row: who's riding and who's driving, the pickup over the drop-off, both phone numbers, times and status. The row's buttons act on the trip's next stop — the pickup until it's done, then the drop-off. With All drivers selected, trips are listed soonest first; finished and cancelled trips drop to the bottom.
  • Select one driver to see their run in order (numbered 1, 2, 3). Use ↑ ↓ on a row to move the whole trip — pickup and drop-off together — earlier or later in the run. Shared rides and trips that already started can't be moved here; use By stop → Edit order for those.
  • Tick Group by status to sort every trip into sections, in this order: Due within the hour, En route (drivers who've arrived listed first), On board, Unassigned, Will call, Upcoming, Completed, and Cancelled / No-show. Due within the hour, Unassigned and Will call always list the whole day, whichever driver is selected. Click a section header to collapse or expand it.
  • Due within the hour is shown in red, on today's board only, and only when something is due. It holds the unassigned trips (not will-calls) that are due in the next 60 minutes or are already past due, most overdue first. A trip's due time is its estimated pickup time, or the booked pickup time if there's no estimate yet, or the appointment time if neither is set. Times follow your company's time zone, and trips move into the section on their own as the clock runs. The rest of the unassigned trips stay under Unassigned.

In By stop, today's board shows the same red Due within the hour block above the Unassigned block, with the same trips and count.

Click the ☆ next to the views to make the current one your default.

Reading a row

In both By stop and By trip, every row is built from the same side-by-side blocks, each two lines tall, so rows stay compact and nothing gets cut off. The column labels above the rows name each block.

• Who
  • By trip — the member's name with the trip number and leg on the first line; the driver, their vehicle number and the trip's distance (for example "9.9 mi") on the second. Hover the vehicle number to see the full vehicle.
  • By stop — whether the stop is a pickup or drop-off and the member's name on the first line; the distance, trip number and badges on the second.
• Addresses — the pickup on top, the drop-off below. In By stop, the address of the stop you're looking at is in bold and the trip's other end is in gray, so a pickup row also shows where the rider is going and a drop-off row shows where they came from.
• Phones — 📞 the driver's phone on top, 👤 the member's phone below, both as full numbers. Click either one to call from your phone or softphone. Hover a number to see whose it is ("Call driver …" or "Call rider …"), so the two never get mixed up.

Rows in the Unassigned and Will call lists use the same blocks. Where the driver would be, they show No driver yet (or Held by {driver} on a will-call a driver already holds) next to the trip's distance (for example "9.9 mi"), and the member's phone sits in the phone block — handy when you need to confirm a pickup before you dispatch it.

Trip notes. When a trip has notes, a notes chip sits on the row's second line in By trip and By stop, on drop-off rows as well as pickups. It always shows, however many badges the row has. Click it to read the full note; office-only notes are marked as such.

Late estimates. When a driver's run can't reach a stop on time (a pickup by its booked time, a drop-off by the appointment), the stop's estimated time turns red with how late it will be, for example 7:54 +24m. Hover it to see "Can't make it — est. 24m late". It's the same warning, with the same minutes, that the Run board shows. Stops that are done, cancelled or no-show don't show it.

The Drivers rail

The left rail lists All drivers, each scheduled driver, and Unassigned at the bottom. Each driver row shows the driver's phone number under their name, their vehicle and seat usage (for example "Van 3 · 2/6 seats"), shift hours, a completion progress bar, and trip/stop counts. Click a row to focus that lane; the Unassigned row shows how many trips still need a driver. On today's board, drivers who are free right now show an Idle since line, and the Idle now chip under the DRIVERS header narrows the list to them — see Idle drivers on the board.

How trips are counted. Every total on the board — the date strip, All drivers, each driver's count and the Unassigned section — uses the same rule: active trips are counted (no-shows included); cancelled trips and trips your broker cancelled are not. All drivers splits its total into assigned · unassigned · will call, the same numbers as the sections below. A cancelled trip a driver already worked stays visible in their lane but isn't counted.

Driver lanes

Each driver's lane lists their stops in run order with columns #, Stop, Member, the pickup and drop-off with both phone numbers (see Reading a row), Scheduled, Actual (a live ETA until the stop is done, then the actual time), On board, and Status. The lane header shows the driver's phone number, member count, pickups/dropoffs, the run's time window, a capacity pill (peak riders vs. vehicle capacity), and a late count.

Note: Watch the capacity pill and the per-stop warning icon — they turn red when the vehicle would be over capacity at a stop.

Assigning trips

Three ways to get a trip onto a driver:

1. Drag — drag any trip card onto a driver in the left rail ("Drop on a driver to assign").
2. Stop actions menu — open the stop's ⋮ menu and pick a driver under Move to driver (or Unassign).
3. Batch assign from the Unassigned pool — click the Unassigned rail row, tick the trips you want (clusters that share a facility or address can be assigned together with Assign all), then use the Assign button and pick a driver. The menu also offers Assign temporarily… for date-range moves that auto-revert (see Temporary schedule changes).

Next pickup after a drop-off

After you assign a trip, the Trip assigned message has a Next pickup button. In By stop you can also open it from an assigned drop-off's ⋯ menu (Next pickup ideas).

It lists up to three unassigned pickups that driver could take next, nearest to where they drop this rider off — for example "6 min from the drop-off · waits 12 min". Only pickups between that drop-off and the driver's next stop are shown, and only ones that fit the driver's shift, break, vehicle and timing. Click Assign to {driver} to assign one; the usual checks and questions still apply.

If nothing is listed, the driver's next stop is too soon or no unassigned pickup fits in that gap.

Wheelchair trips and vehicle type

When you pick a driver, the driver picker shows each driver's vehicle type: WAV (wheelchair accessible) or Amb only. For a wheelchair trip, Amb only is shown in red so you can pick a wheelchair-accessible van first.

If your company requires wheelchair trips to go on wheelchair-accessible vehicles and you assign one to a van that isn't marked accessible, ZeitRide asks first: the message names the rider and the vehicle. Choose Assign anyway if it's an approved exception (for example, a rider who can transfer into the seat and fold their wheelchair), or cancel and pick another driver. Moving a driver's whole day asks the same way (Move anyway).

If a driver's vehicle changes later — a vehicle swap, the driver switching vans in the app, or a vehicle record being edited — and that leaves a wheelchair trip on a non-accessible van, the board shows a warning so you can move the trip.

The vehicle type comes from Vehicles → Manage → (vehicle) → Wheelchair accessible. Keep that box accurate — it drives these checks and automatic scheduling.

Keeping wheelchair vans free for wheelchair riders

When your company has Enforce mobility matching turned on (see Company settings tour), auto-assign gives an ambulatory rider a non-accessible vehicle when a wheelchair trip in the same batch still needs a wheelchair-accessible van (WAV) at an overlapping time. A WAV is still used for an ambulatory rider when:

• the WAV already carries a wheelchair rider at that time, so the ambulatory rider simply rides along, or
• no other driver can make the trip — the trip goes on the WAV rather than being left unassigned.

With no wheelchair trip waiting at that time, auto-assign still prefers other vehicles over a WAV for ambulatory riders, as before.

Assigning by hand is never blocked by this. The driver suggestions follow the same ranking, using the day's unassigned wheelchair trips, and say why a WAV ranks where it does: WAV needed for a wheelchair trip then or WAV · rides with a wheelchair rider.

When a driver is off but still has trips

If a driver is marked off for the day and still has trips, their lane shows Scheduled off and a Move N trips button. You can make the same choice when you mark a driver off on the schedule calendar or in the driver's schedule.

• Unassign all sends every trip that hasn't started back to the Unassigned list, so you can assign them by hand or with Auto-Assign. Trips already under way stay with the driver.
• To move the trips to someone else, the driver list shows only drivers who can take some or all of them, best first. Each one says how many and why not the rest, for example "7 of 12 · 3 overlap their rides · 2 need a wheelchair van · 3 today". ZeitRide checks that driver's schedule and vehicle for that day, their shift, the rides already on their run, wheelchair-accessible vehicles and any driver–member restrictions. Click Show all drivers to pick someone else anyway.

Trips during a driver's break

A break on a driver's schedule no longer stops you from assigning a trip. If the trip falls inside the break, ZeitRide asks Assign during a break?. Choose Assign anyway to keep the trip with that driver. The break stays on the schedule, so if it was added by mistake, remove it from the driver's lane or schedule. Closed days, business hours, days off and times outside the driver's shift still can't be assigned.

The same question appears when you create or edit a trip with a driver whose break covers the pickup time, and when you move a driver's whole day to someone who has a break during those trips (Move during a break? → Move anyway).

Breaks that repeat every week show a repeat icon and read, for example, Lunch · every Wed. When you add a break and choose Every Wednesday, the editor reminds you it repeats every week until it is removed. Choose Only that date for a one-time break.

Driver status

On today's board, each driver shows a status:

• On trip — clocked in with a stop under way.
• On duty — clocked in, nothing under way right now.
• On break — the driver started a break in the app.
• Break still open — the driver started a break but never ended it, and they are now driving. Use End Break beside their name to close it for them; the driver's clock-out is not touched.
• Off duty — not clocked in.

A scheduled break the driver is driving through reads Break (working). Hover any status to see its details.

Starting or ending a driver's shift or break from the board

On today's board, two small icons sit beside each driver's name — on the Drivers rail, in the lane header, and on the Run board column. They use the same words the driver sees in the app:

• Clock icon — Start Shift when the driver is off duty, End Shift when they are on shift.
• Coffee-cup icon — Start Break while the driver is on shift, End Break while they are on break.

Use them when a driver can't manage their own status: someone forgot to end their shift, the app refused to end a shift that has run far too long, or a driver on break needs to be put back to work. Each action asks you to confirm, then records the punch exactly as if the driver had tapped it, and the status pill updates right away. Ending a shift closes any open break with it.

If the driver still has pending trips, you are asked a second time — End shift anyway — and the shift is recorded as ended with pending trips, the same way the driver's own override is. Reassign the trips first if someone else can take them.

Every office punch shows in Settings → Activity log under your name ("Ended Mac's shift", "Started a break"), so payroll can always see who recorded what. These controls need the Dispatch or Assignments permission.

Idle drivers on the board

On today's board you can see at a glance which drivers are free to take a trip right now — the same drivers the Dashboard's Idle drivers card lists (see Navigating the portal). A driver is idle when they are clocked in, not on break, have no rider on board and no stop in progress. Idle since is the later of their clock-in and their last completed drop-off.

• By stop — in the driver list, each clocked-in driver with nothing in motion shows a green line such as Idle since 10:42 AM · 23 min, or an amber On break since 12:00 PM · 15 min while they are on break. The same line appears in the driver's lane header. Click the Idle now (N) chip under the DRIVERS header to narrow the list to idle drivers only; the chip clears itself when nobody is idle.
• Run board — each column header shows Idle 23 min or On break 15 min under the driver's status pill, and the toolbar has the same Idle now (N) chip to narrow the lanes.

The line only appears for today — past and future days don't show it.

Round trips and recurring trips

• If the trip has a linked return leg, ZeitRide asks "Assign Leg B too?" so both legs land with the same driver in one step.
• If the trip is recurring, you choose the scope: Just this day, Every occurrence of that weekday, or Every day (whole series) — then Confirm.

Create a route from selected trips

When several riders in the Unassigned pool head to the same place (or leave from it), you can turn them into a route without leaving the board. Tick the trips, then choose Create route in the pool header. The route editor opens already filled in: direction and hub from the shared address, hub time from the riders' appointment or pickup, riders in pickup order, and Monday to Friday as the service days. Check the name, driver, days and order, then Create route.

The riders move onto the new route and their old trips are retired, so nobody is booked twice. The route then generates a trip for each rider on every service day, thirty days ahead, refreshed nightly. Trips that cannot join a route are left out and listed with the reason: broker bookings stay with the broker, trips already on a route, will-call trips, and a second trip for the same rider.

Add to route… next to it moves the selected riders onto one of your existing routes instead.

Solo rides (Avoid multiloading)

A member with Avoid multiloading on their profile rides alone: no other member is in the vehicle while they are on board. The board enforces this on every assignment path — drag, the stop menu, batch assign, driver self-claims, and auto-assign.

By default the rule is about time, not the whole day. A solo rider only blocks another member whose ride (pickup to drop-off) overlaps theirs on the same driver, so one driver can carry several solo riders one after another. If you drop a trip and see "…would be on board at the same time as another member on this run", pick a driver who is free during that ride or adjust the times.

Companies whose payers require it can switch to the stricter rule — a solo rider takes the driver's entire day — under Settings → Scheduling → Dispatch preferences → Solo rides (avoid multiloading).

Avoid multi-loading for the whole company

If your company carries one rider at a time, turn on Avoid multi-loading (company-wide) under Settings → Scheduling → Dispatch preferences. It's off by default, because most companies multi-load.

With it on:

• A driver can't have riders from two different trips on board at the same time. A trip that would overlap is refused with the reason — there's no "Assign anyway". A rider's own legs and companions on the same trip don't count.
• Auto-assign never puts two riders together, and a will-call is checked when you dispatch it.
• Each assigned trip is kept as one pickup → drop-off block in the driver's run, and the run order can't split a trip around another rider.
• Routes can carry only one rider.
• The Avoid multiloading box on trips and members shows Always — company setting, and the multi-load limits card is hidden.
• Setup health lists any upcoming runs that already have overlapping riders (for example, built before you turned it on), with a link to each day.

Runs already built aren't changed when you turn it on.

Auto-assign on the Run board

Companies that turn on auto-scheduling (Settings → Scheduling Settings) see a Preview Auto-Assign button above the Run board. It suggests a driver for unassigned trips using your scheduling rules. Nothing is assigned until you accept.

1. To auto-assign only some trips, tick them in the Unassigned tray (or Select all to auto-assign) — the bar shows N selected and Auto-assign N. With nothing ticked, the preview covers every unassigned trip. Then click Preview Auto-Assign (or Auto-assign N).
2. Choose the Date, then either The whole day or Only pickups in a time window (for example 7:00 AM to 12:00 PM). The window shows how many trips have a pickup in it. Trips outside it stay in the Unassigned list for on-demand dispatch, and will-call trips are never included.
3. Click Preview. The proposed placements appear on the board, with the window you chose shown above it.
4. Review them, then click Accept to assign or Discard to cancel. Any trip that couldn't be placed is listed with the reason.

Your last time window is remembered on that computer, so the next preview opens with the same hours.

Will call section

Trips waiting on a member call appear in the Will call section, right under Unassigned, in both By stop and By trip. Set the pickup time, then use Dispatch ▾ — suggested drivers for that time are listed first. If your company allows will-calls without a driver, To Unassigned sends it to the Unassigned list without a driver yet. The member's phone number is in each row's phone block, so you can call to confirm before you dispatch. See Will-call trips.

Route groups

When a driver's run comes from a transport route, the board groups those stops into a collapsible section under the route's name with its rider count. Broker-connected routes also show a confirmation count (for example "7 riders · 7/7 broker-confirmed") that fills in as your broker transmits each day's trips. Stops that don't belong to a route appear under Other trips.

In the run's edit mode you can reorder stops inside a route section or move a whole route's block up or down in the driver's day. On save, choose This day only or Save as standing order — the standing choice writes the new pickup order back to the route's roster, so future days generate that way. Everything else — stop actions, statuses — works exactly the same for route stops.

Driver lane extras

• The lane header shows the driver's full phone number in every layout — including the narrower one you get with Live Tracking docked — so it's never hidden. Click it to call without leaving the board.
• Once a stop is fully finished, it collapses into a "Completed" block at the bottom of the lane, keeping the live work on top. Expand the block any time to review times.
• A driver holding a pending will-call return shows a gray "Waiting on return · dropped X ago" badge in their lane header, so you don't double-book someone who's waiting on a member's callback.
• Van double-booked: when two drivers are on the same vehicle at overlapping times, both lanes show a red "Van also with …" chip under the vehicle (on the Drivers rail, the lane header, and the Run board column). Hover it to see each driver's times. Drivers sharing a van on split shifts — one in the morning, one in the afternoon — never trigger it. If an assignment you just made creates an overlap, a warning pops up right away; move one of the runs to another vehicle. Managers also get a daily notification naming the van, drivers and times, with a link to that day's board.

When a driver reports "Member not seen"

When a driver confirms Member not seen in the driver app, the trip shows as No show on the board as before — and everyone who dispatches (company admins and roles with the Dispatch or Assignments permission) gets a bell notification titled Member not seen with the member, the driver and the pickup time. Open it to jump to that day's Dispatch board with the trip highlighted, so you can call the member or rebook right away.

When a driver can't end their shift

Two situations raise a bell notification for everyone who dispatches, so the office hears about it instead of the driver:

• Driver needs the office to end their shift — your company's clock-out policy is set to Require the office to end the shift (see Company settings tour) and the driver tried to end a shift with pending trips. Reassign the trips, or use End Shift beside their name.
• Driver can't end a shift that has run too long — a shift has been open longer than 16 hours (usually an accidental early-morning clock-in), so the app won't close it. Use End Shift beside their name to close it.

Each alert is sent once per driver and day and links to that day's board.

When a rider texts back

If a rider replies to an automatic trip text (see Rider trip messages), the same people get a bell notification titled Text from <Rider> with the message and a link to the board — so "running late" or "cancel today" lands with dispatch instead of disappearing into a phone line.

What the driver sees

As soon as a trip is assigned, it appears on that driver's Trips screen in the driver app for the day. Status changes the driver makes (picked up, dropped off) flow back to the board live — the Actual column and status badges update without a refresh.

Next: Managing stops for per-stop actions, and Run order and editing for reordering a run.

Related: NEMT dispatch software