How to create routes in ArcGIS | TravelTime Knowledge Base

The Routes tool finds the fastest route between every departure and arrival location, with turn-by-turn directions. It works with all 13 transport modes, including public transport.

In this example, we route from 20 locations across central London to a London office by public transport, then show the same routes in two output styles.

1. Set up the routes

Open Routes from the Other toolset of the TravelTime toolbox.

Departure Locations: the 20 locations, with an ID field.
Arrival Locations: the office, with an ID field.
Travel Mode: public_transport.
Departing / Arriving: arrival, at 9:30 in the morning (UTC, which is London time in winter), on a date within 2 weeks either side of today.
Output Style: By travel time for the first run, By transport type for the second.

The Routes dialog: 20 Locations to the London Office by public transport, arriving at 9:30, with travel_time and distance selected under Properties

2. Choose an output style

Output style	What you get
By journey (default)	One line per route, each in its own colour
By travel time	One line per route, coloured by bands of journey time
By transport type	One line per leg of each route, coloured by mode, with turn-by-turn `directions` in the attribute table

Every route has its travel_time in seconds and distance in metres. Add fares under Properties for UK public transport.

3. Compare the results

Public transport routes from 20 central London locations to the office, coloured by travel time band

Routes with the By travel time output style

The same routes by transport type: each leg coloured by mode, such as bus, walk, Underground and train

The same routes with the By transport type output style

By travel time shows at a glance which locations have the longest journeys. By transport type shows how each journey is made, and its attribute table has the turn-by-turn directions. If some locations can’t be reached by public transport with your settings, try a longer Walking Time or a Search Range Width. See How to use the common parameters in ArcGIS.

Routes or Travel Time Matrix?

Use Routes when you want to see the route on the map or need directions. If you only need journey times between many places, the Travel Time Matrix tools are much faster. See How to create a Travel Time Matrix in ArcGIS.

For a single route, Quick Route in the TravelTime tab is quicker. See How to use the quick tools in ArcGIS.

Full parameter details are in the Routes docs.