Google Maps Removes In-Traffic Travel Estimates

Barry discovered that Google had dropped its in-traffic travel estimates from Google Maps on the PC. This is apparently due to some inaccuracy or dissatisfaction with the methodology Google was using to determine travel time.

“We have decided that our information systems behind this feature were not as good as they could be. Therefore, we have taken this offline and are currently working to come up with a better, more accurate solution,” said a Google employee in the Google Maps forum about the change.

Here’s a screen capture of the way it looked:

As Google says in the quote above, something will likely replace it at some point. In the meantime, you’ll still get a static route-based travel time estimate:

The dynamic travel-time prediction feature still exists on the iPhone and on Android handsets. For example, Google Navigation for Android will dynamically estimate how far you are from your intended destination. However that system uses GPS to determine distance and travel time.

In this mobile context traffic-related travel estimates are more significant than on the PC, where a standard travel time calculation will suffice.