Terms of Use

The short version

The Fuel Estimator is a free estimation tool. We calculate it as honestly as we can from public data sources, but the number you see is an estimate — not a guarantee, not a budget, not financial advice. Decisions you make based on these numbers are yours.

None of this is meant to be heavy-handed — it’s a free tool I built to help tour managers, trucking ops, and crew budget smarter. But because it’s completely free and provided exactly as-is, it comes with no guarantees and, to the fullest extent the law allows, no liability. Use it as a helpful reference and own the decisions you make with it. The details are below.

What this tool does

The Fuel Estimator combines three public data inputs — U.S. Energy Information Administration fuel prices (weekly), Open-Meteo elevation data, and Mapbox routing — into a per-route fuel cost estimate. We model vehicle fuel economy with a grade-adjusted MPG calculation per vehicle weight class.

The grade-adjusted MPG model — how we penalize uphill fuel burn and handle downhill recovery per vehicle weight class — is calibrated against peer-reviewed real-world drive-cycle studies from U.S. national research laboratories, built on hundreds of thousands of miles of commercial heavy-vehicle telemetry. The specific coefficients and tuning are proprietary to our engine; the methodology behind them is grounded in published research, not intuition.

The estimate has not been formally calibrated against fleet data. Actual variance depends on station-level price differences within a state (often $0.20–$0.40 per gallon of spread between stations in the same state), driving style, vehicle condition, load weight, weather, and factors we don’t model. Treat the output as a useful reference, not as a committed number.

What this tool is NOT

• Not a budget. Our estimate should inform your budget, not replace it. Real tours have contingency and human judgment that a formula can’t capture.
• Not a guarantee. We do not promise our numbers will match your receipts.
• Not financial, legal, or business advice. Decisions you make based on this tool — booking a tour, accepting a freight job, committing to a route, quoting a client — are yours.
• Not real-time. EIA fuel prices are weekly averages; elevation and state data are snapshots.

No warranty, no liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law:

1. The Fuel Estimator is provided as-is, without warranty of any kind — express or implied — including warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, accuracy, reliability, or non-infringement.
2. We do not warrant that the estimates produced by this tool are accurate, complete, or suitable for any particular use. Data from third-party sources (EIA, Mapbox, Open-Meteo) may be unavailable, delayed, or incorrect; we pass it through and model it in good faith but cannot guarantee it.
3. The author (Chris Lee Bergstrom) and any parties involved in building or testing this tool will not be liable to you or any third party for any loss, damage, or missed revenue arising from use of this tool, including but not limited to: over- or under-budgeting fuel for a tour, trucking run, or personal trip; any business or financial decision based on displayed numbers; any downtime or unavailability of the tool; or any indirect, incidental, consequential, special, or punitive damages — even if we have been advised of the possibility of such damages.
4. You use this tool at your own risk, with the understanding that it is a helpful reference, not a source of financial truth. If a fuel estimate materially impacts a business decision, you are responsible for validating it against your own methods.
5. Where applicable law limits the exclusions in clauses (1)–(4), our total aggregate liability to you for any claim arising out of or related to this tool is limited to one U.S. dollar ($1). We intend this strict cap because the Fuel Estimator is provided free of charge and any cost beyond that would make the tool impossible to offer publicly.

Acceptable use

Use the Fuel Estimator for personal, professional, or commercial route-planning purposes. Don’t attempt to bypass our rate limits, scrape our data for redistribution, or attack the infrastructure. If you want bulk access or an API tier, reach out and we’ll talk.

Changes to the tool

We may change, suspend, or discontinue any aspect of the Fuel Estimator at any time — add or remove features, change our data sources, modify these terms, or retire the tool entirely. We’ll note material changes at the top of this page. Continued use after changes means you accept the updated terms.

Governing law

These terms are governed by the laws of the State of Oregon, USA, without regard to conflict-of-law principles. Any dispute arising from these terms or from use of the Fuel Estimator will be resolved in the state or federal courts located in Oregon, and you consent to personal jurisdiction there.

Third-party data

The Fuel Estimator depends on publicly available and licensed data sources:

• U.S. Energy Information Administration — fuel prices (eia.gov)
• Open-Meteo — elevation data (open-meteo.com)
• Mapbox — routing, geocoding, maps, and fallback elevation (mapbox.com)

Accuracy of the Fuel Estimator’s output is ultimately bounded by the accuracy and availability of these third-party sources. We do not control their data.

Who we are

The Fuel Estimator is a personal project built and maintained by Chris Lee Bergstrom, a tour manager of 20+ years, as a free give-back to the touring community. It is currently being tested on behalf of Master Tour.

Contact

Questions about these terms, the tool, data sources, or bug reports — use the in-app Feedback button, or email chrisleebergstrom@gmail.com.