I understand mapping the shortest routes, tollways vs non tollways, ect but how is programming like google maps able to determine the amount of time your commute will take due to traffic patterns and congestion?
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Think about this for a second: say you want to go to the local shops, how would **you** calculate travel time?
“I went to the shops yesterday and it took 15 minutes.”
“But it’s 5pm and I know there’s going to be rush hour traffic, last time that happened was three weeks agon and it took me 25 minutes.”
“Oh but X highway is closed due to works, I have to take slower backstreets that will add another 10 minutes because the speed limit on those roads is slower.”
That’s fundamentally how mapping services like Google Maps do it. A combination of historic data, historic data for specific time periods (which automatically accounts for peak times, public holidays, etc), known road works, posted speed limits, average time spent at intersections etc. Combine that with the fact millions of drivers are carrying GPS tracking devices around that can report real-time traffic data back to Google for more accurate predictions, depending on what function you’re using (eg. setting a future departure or arrival time).
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