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This field specifies one of the following assumptions to use when calculating travel time in traffic conditions, shown in the enums below. Depending on the enum chosen, the duration field of the TrafficModel response will vary. The value contains the predicted time to destination in traffic, based on historical averages. TrafficModel is only available for requests that have set RoutingPreference to TRAFFIC_AWARE_OPTIMAL and RouteTravelMode to DRIVE.
Enums
TRAFFIC_MODEL_UNSPECIFIED
Unused. If specified, will default to BEST_GUESS.
BEST_GUESS
Indicates that the returned duration should be the best estimate of travel time given what is known about both historical traffic conditions and live traffic. Live traffic becomes more important the closer the departureTime is to now.
PESSIMISTIC
Indicates that the returned duration should be longer than the actual travel time on most days, though occasional days with particularly bad traffic conditions may exceed this value.
OPTIMISTIC
Indicates that the returned duration should be shorter than the actual travel time on most days, though occasional days with particularly good traffic conditions may be faster than this value.
[[["Easy to understand","easyToUnderstand","thumb-up"],["Solved my problem","solvedMyProblem","thumb-up"],["Other","otherUp","thumb-up"]],[["Missing the information I need","missingTheInformationINeed","thumb-down"],["Too complicated / too many steps","tooComplicatedTooManySteps","thumb-down"],["Out of date","outOfDate","thumb-down"],["Samples / code issue","samplesCodeIssue","thumb-down"],["Other","otherDown","thumb-down"]],["Last updated 2025-08-27 UTC."],[[["\u003cp\u003eThe \u003ccode\u003eduration\u003c/code\u003e field provides estimated travel time influenced by the \u003ccode\u003etraffic_model\u003c/code\u003e setting.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003e\u003ccode\u003etraffic_model\u003c/code\u003e options include \u003ccode\u003eBEST_GUESS\u003c/code\u003e (default), \u003ccode\u003ePESSIMISTIC\u003c/code\u003e, and \u003ccode\u003eOPTIMISTIC\u003c/code\u003e, impacting travel time predictions.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003e\u003ccode\u003eBEST_GUESS\u003c/code\u003e considers historical and live traffic data for travel time estimation, with live traffic having more impact closer to departure.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003e\u003ccode\u003ePESSIMISTIC\u003c/code\u003e and \u003ccode\u003eOPTIMISTIC\u003c/code\u003e offer durations longer and shorter than actual travel times on most days, respectively, accounting for traffic variations.\u003c/p\u003e\n"]]],["The core content outlines how to specify traffic-based time calculations, impacting the `duration` field. The `TRAFFIC_MODEL_UNSPECIFIED` defaults to `BEST_GUESS`, which uses historical and live data to estimate travel time. `PESSIMISTIC` calculates a longer travel time, likely exceeded only in severe conditions. Conversely, `OPTIMISTIC` calculates a shorter time, potentially beaten during favorable conditions. These options modify the estimated duration by factoring in historical traffic data and real-time conditions.\n"],null,["# TrafficModel\n\nSpecifies the assumptions to use when calculating time in traffic. This setting affects the value returned in the `duration` field in the response, which contains the predicted time in traffic based on historical averages.\n\n| Enums ||\n|-----------------------------|------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|\n| `TRAFFIC_MODEL_UNSPECIFIED` | Unused. If specified, will default to `BEST_GUESS`. |\n| `BEST_GUESS` | Indicates that the returned `duration` should be the best estimate of travel time given what is known about both historical traffic conditions and live traffic. Live traffic becomes more important the closer the `departureTime` is to now. |\n| `PESSIMISTIC` | Indicates that the returned duration should be longer than the actual travel time on most days, though occasional days with particularly bad traffic conditions may exceed this value. |\n| `OPTIMISTIC` | Indicates that the returned duration should be shorter than the actual travel time on most days, though occasional days with particularly good traffic conditions may be faster than this value. |"]]
