Waypoints in Directions

AI-generated Key Takeaways

• This example showcases the functionality of the DirectionsService object in the Google Maps JavaScript API to calculate and display routes with waypoints.

• Users can select a starting point, an ending point, and multiple waypoints from dropdown menus to define their desired route.

• The optimizeWaypoints option is used to find the most efficient order for visiting the selected waypoints.

• The calculated route, including the total distance and directions for each segment, is displayed on a map and in a separate panel.

• The example code is provided in both JavaScript and TypeScript for developers to understand and implement the functionality in their applications.

This example demonstrates the use of the DirectionsService object to fetch directions for a route including waypoints.

Read the documentation.

TypeScript

function initMap(): void {
  const directionsService = new google.maps.DirectionsService();
  const directionsRenderer = new google.maps.DirectionsRenderer();
  const map = new google.maps.Map(
    document.getElementById("map") as HTMLElement,
    {
      zoom: 6,
      center: { lat: 41.85, lng: -87.65 },
    }
  );

  directionsRenderer.setMap(map);

  (document.getElementById("submit") as HTMLElement).addEventListener(
    "click",
    () => {
      calculateAndDisplayRoute(directionsService, directionsRenderer);
    }
  );
}

function calculateAndDisplayRoute(
  directionsService: google.maps.DirectionsService,
  directionsRenderer: google.maps.DirectionsRenderer
) {
  const waypts: google.maps.DirectionsWaypoint[] = [];
  const checkboxArray = document.getElementById(
    "waypoints"
  ) as HTMLSelectElement;

  for (let i = 0; i < checkboxArray.length; i++) {
    if (checkboxArray.options[i].selected) {
      waypts.push({
        location: (checkboxArray[i] as HTMLOptionElement).value,
        stopover: true,
      });
    }
  }

  directionsService
    .route({
      origin: (document.getElementById("start") as HTMLInputElement).value,
      destination: (document.getElementById("end") as HTMLInputElement).value,
      waypoints: waypts,
      optimizeWaypoints: true,
      travelMode: google.maps.TravelMode.DRIVING,
    })
    .then((response) => {
      directionsRenderer.setDirections(response);

      const route = response.routes[0];
      const summaryPanel = document.getElementById(
        "directions-panel"
      ) as HTMLElement;

      summaryPanel.innerHTML = "";

      // For each route, display summary information.
      for (let i = 0; i < route.legs.length; i++) {
        const routeSegment = i + 1;

        summaryPanel.innerHTML +=
          "<b>Route Segment: " + routeSegment + "</b><br>";
        summaryPanel.innerHTML += route.legs[i].start_address + " to ";
        summaryPanel.innerHTML += route.legs[i].end_address + "<br>";
        summaryPanel.innerHTML += route.legs[i].distance!.text + "<br><br>";
      }
    })
    .catch((e) => window.alert("Directions request failed due to " + status));
}

declare global {
  interface Window {
    initMap: () => void;
  }
}
window.initMap = initMap;
index.ts

Note: Read the guide on using TypeScript and Google Maps.

JavaScript

function initMap() {
  const directionsService = new google.maps.DirectionsService();
  const directionsRenderer = new google.maps.DirectionsRenderer();
  const map = new google.maps.Map(document.getElementById("map"), {
    zoom: 6,
    center: { lat: 41.85, lng: -87.65 },
  });

  directionsRenderer.setMap(map);
  document.getElementById("submit").addEventListener("click", () => {
    calculateAndDisplayRoute(directionsService, directionsRenderer);
  });
}

function calculateAndDisplayRoute(directionsService, directionsRenderer) {
  const waypts = [];
  const checkboxArray = document.getElementById("waypoints");

  for (let i = 0; i < checkboxArray.length; i++) {
    if (checkboxArray.options[i].selected) {
      waypts.push({
        location: checkboxArray[i].value,
        stopover: true,
      });
    }
  }

  directionsService
    .route({
      origin: document.getElementById("start").value,
      destination: document.getElementById("end").value,
      waypoints: waypts,
      optimizeWaypoints: true,
      travelMode: google.maps.TravelMode.DRIVING,
    })
    .then((response) => {
      directionsRenderer.setDirections(response);

      const route = response.routes[0];
      const summaryPanel = document.getElementById("directions-panel");

      summaryPanel.innerHTML = "";

      // For each route, display summary information.
      for (let i = 0; i < route.legs.length; i++) {
        const routeSegment = i + 1;

        summaryPanel.innerHTML +=
          "<b>Route Segment: " + routeSegment + "</b><br>";
        summaryPanel.innerHTML += route.legs[i].start_address + " to ";
        summaryPanel.innerHTML += route.legs[i].end_address + "<br>";
        summaryPanel.innerHTML += route.legs[i].distance.text + "<br><br>";
      }
    })
    .catch((e) => window.alert("Directions request failed due to " + status));
}

window.initMap = initMap;
index.js

Note: The JavaScript is compiled from the TypeScript snippet.

CSS

/* Optional: Makes the sample page fill the window. */
html,
body {
  height: 100%;
  margin: 0;
  padding: 0;
}

#container {
  height: 100%;
  display: flex;
}

#sidebar {
  flex-basis: 15rem;
  flex-grow: 1;
  padding: 1rem;
  max-width: 30rem;
  height: 100%;
  box-sizing: border-box;
  overflow: auto;
}

#map {
  flex-basis: 0;
  flex-grow: 4;
  height: 100%;
}

#directions-panel {
  margin-top: 10px;
}
style.css

HTML

<html>
  <head>
    <title>Waypoints in Directions</title>

    <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="./style.css" />
    <script type="module" src="./index.js"></script>
  </head>
  <body>
    <div id="container">
      <div id="map"></div>
      <div id="sidebar">
        <div>
          <b>Start:</b>
          <select id="start">
            <option value="Halifax, NS">Halifax, NS</option>
            <option value="Boston, MA">Boston, MA</option>
            <option value="New York, NY">New York, NY</option>
            <option value="Miami, FL">Miami, FL</option>
          </select>
          <br />
          <b>Waypoints:</b> <br />
          <i>(Ctrl+Click or Cmd+Click for multiple selection)</i> <br />
          <select multiple id="waypoints">
            <option value="montreal, quebec">Montreal, QBC</option>
            <option value="toronto, ont">Toronto, ONT</option>
            <option value="chicago, il">Chicago</option>
            <option value="winnipeg, mb">Winnipeg</option>
            <option value="fargo, nd">Fargo</option>
            <option value="calgary, ab">Calgary</option>
            <option value="spokane, wa">Spokane</option>
          </select>
          <br />
          <b>End:</b>
          <select id="end">
            <option value="Vancouver, BC">Vancouver, BC</option>
            <option value="Seattle, WA">Seattle, WA</option>
            <option value="San Francisco, CA">San Francisco, CA</option>
            <option value="Los Angeles, CA">Los Angeles, CA</option>
          </select>
          <br />
          <input type="submit" id="submit" />
        </div>
        <div id="directions-panel"></div>
      </div>
    </div>

    <!-- 
      The `defer` attribute causes the script to execute after the full HTML
      document has been parsed. For non-blocking uses, avoiding race conditions,
      and consistent behavior across browsers, consider loading using Promises. See
      https://developers.google.com/maps/documentation/javascript/load-maps-js-api
      for more information.
      -->
    <script
      src="https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/js?key=AIzaSyB41DRUbKWJHPxaFjMAwdrzWzbVKartNGg&callback=initMap&v=weekly"
      defer
    ></script>
  </body>
</html>
index.html

Try Sample

JSFiddle.net Google Cloud Shell

Clone Sample

Git and Node.js are required to run this sample locally. Follow these instructions to install Node.js and NPM. The following commands clone, install dependencies and start the sample application.

  git clone -b sample-directions-waypoints https://github.com/googlemaps/js-samples.git
  cd js-samples
  npm i
  npm start

Other samples can be tried by switching to any branch beginning with sample-SAMPLE_NAME.

  git checkout sample-SAMPLE_NAME
  npm i
  npm start