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Mileage Calculation System
Mileage Calculation System

How to calculate mileage and perform reimbursements

Updated over a week ago

The Mileage Calculation System in our software enables officiating organizations to automatically calculate the time and distance from an official's home address to all game locations within the officiating organization. This guide will provide detailed insights into how this feature works, the mapping providers utilized, geocoding process, mileage tables & rules, recalculating mileage, troubleshooting, and more.

Enabling the Mileage Calculation System

To activate the Mileage Calculation System, officiating organization administrators should turn on Feature #47 located on the Features & Settings tab of the System Settings page of the software. Once enabled, the system will begin the mileage calculation process, which may take up to 72 hours to complete, depending on the organization's size and location data.

Mileage Tables & Rules

Mileage rules are optional. If no mileage rules are specified, the system will assume no reimbursement will be paid, but the system will still provide time and distance information for reference during the scheduling and assigning process. To provide a reimbursement amount, officiating organization administrators can complete the Mileage Table, specifying when officials might qualify for mileage. This can be done by navigating to the Administrative Forms page and then choosing the Mileage Tables & Rules option located under the Management Forms heading of this page. The Mileage Tables & Rules page provides the following options when creating or editing a mileage rule:

  • Lower Limit (miles/km)
    To be eligible for this reimbursement amount, an official must be at least this far (one-way) from the game location. This value is required. If you want everyone to be eligible, you can specify a value of 0.

  • Upper Limit (miles/km)
    To be eligible for this reimbursement amount, an official must be no more than this far (one-way) from the game location. This value is required. If you want everyone to be eligible, you can set this to a very high value, like 999.

  • Amount Reimbursed
    ​
    This is the amount of reimbursement you will provide

  • Reimbursement Type
    This determines whether the reimbursement dollar amount you specified is a single Flat Fee or if the amount is Per Mile (or per kilometer) traveled. A Per Mile (or per kilometer) reimbursement is calculated as a two-way reimbursement.

  • Restrictions
    This section allows you to limit the mileage rule only to certain Leagues or Game Codes if desired.

Recalculating Mileage on Existing Assignments

If you wish to recalculate mileage on existing assignments, you can either manually edit your game fees or you can perform a mileage recalculation from the Game Details page.

  • Manually Edit Game Fees: To manually edit game fees, a scheduler can navigate to the Master Game Schedule page and choose the $ symbol next to an official's name shown on this page. Alternatively, from the Master Game Schedule page, a scheduler can navigate to the Game Details page for a particular game and choose the "manually adjust" option next to the official's fees.

  • Perform a Mileage Recalculation: If mileage values have changed or you want to add/remove reimbursements, schedulers can navigate to the Master Game Schedule page and choose the Game Details option for a particular game. Next to each official's game fees is a mileage reimbursement drop-down menu and a Recalculate button that can add, edit, or recalculate mileage values for that official on the particular game selected.

Understanding Geocoding and its Limitations

Geocoding is the process of translating textual address information into spatial coordinates (latitude and longitude) on a map. The Horizon software uses GPS coordinates when calculating time and distance. These GPS coordinates are based on geocoding performed by third-party mapping providers. Geocoding providers, such as Here, Google Maps, OpenStreetMaps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, United States Postal Service, and Canada Post, maintain extensive databases linking addresses to corresponding GPS coordinates.

However, geocoding is not infallible and can sometimes result in address mismatches or inaccuracies. This can occur due to various reasons:

  • Data Discrepancies: Geocoding providers rely on vast address databases, but discrepancies or inconsistencies within these databases can cause incorrect matches or interpretations. Some roads or towns may have multiple names or notations, which can lead to inconsistencies in mapping databases.

  • Format Variations: Geocoding systems interpret address formats differently. Minor variations, such as abbreviations or punctuation differences, can result in a mismatch between the provided address and the one stored in the database.

  • Database Updates: Geocoding providers regularly update their databases to reflect changes in addresses or to improve accuracy. However, updates may not always capture recent changes, leading to discrepancies in the displayed address.

  • Location Specificities: Certain locations, such as remote or newly developed areas, may not have comprehensive address coverage in geocoding databases. This can result in limited or inaccurate mapping information for such locations.

Troubleshooting Geocoding and Mileage Calculation

While our geocoding system is generally accurate, there are instances where issues may arise:

  • Incorrect or Unavailable Geocoding: An official's address may be geocoded incorrectly or could not be geocoded. In such cases, officials should edit their personal profile and submit a different address to obtain accurate map locations. For better results, they can use a nearby recognizable address, prominent landmarks, street numbers, and postal codes.

  • Incorrect Game Location Geocoding: Game locations' addresses may be geocoded incorrectly or could not be geocoded. Officiating organization administrators should edit the game location's address for a better geocoding match. Administrators can also use the drag & drop feature to specify the exact coordinates of a game location by navigating to Administrative Forms, then choosing Add/Edit/Remove Locations. You can select the edit option from this page for the location you want to edit, then drag & drop the map pin to the desired location. Changes are saved immediately when your drag & drop operation is finished.

  • Get Mileage Setting: The "Get Mileage" value is set to NO for a game location. Each game location has a "Get Mileage" setting. The system will not perform time and distance calculations for this game location if this option is set to NO. Administrators can edit this by navigating to Administrative Forms, then choosing Add/Edit/Remove Locations. Select the edit option from this page for the location you wish to edit. Set the Get Mileage setting as desired and save.

  • Mileage Calculation Delays: Mileage calculations occur on a first-come-first-served basis. Since our software performs millions of calculations every month, it can take up to 72 hours for new distances and calculations to appear.

  • Unsuccessful Mileage Calculation: If mileage cannot be calculated for any reason and the mileage system is enabled, the system will prompt the official to submit mileage for the uncalculated locations manually. This will appear as a reminder on the Members Home page until the official has successfully submitted a mileage value for all locations manually or automatically by the system.

  • Overriding Manual Entries: If an official submits a mileage value manually, but the system later calculates the value automatically, the automatic value will override and replace any manually entered values.

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