Setting up a travel estimate provider

  • Release version: Zurich
  • Updated January 30, 2025
  • 2 minutes to read
    • Summarize
    Summarized using AI
    This content was generated using new OpenAI-powered functionality. Results are provided on an as is basis and are not guaranteed to be accurate or complete.

    Summary of Setting up a travel estimate provider

    In Schedule Optimization, setting up a travel estimate provider for each technician group is essential to streamline and improve travel planning. Accurate travel time estimation, based on technician and task locations, enables efficient allocation of work order tasks. The technician’s starting location is derived from their home or their most recent task location.

    Show full answer Show less

    Key Features

    • Travel Estimate Providers: Two supported providers are available:
      • Straight-line: The default, backup provider for distance estimation; it can be modified but not deleted.
      • Beans.ai: Offers more accurate travel time estimates by considering road reachability and geocoding validity.
    • Map Vendor Call Types: You can configure the property mapvendorcalltypes to use either synchronous (default) or asynchronous mode. Switching to async may improve performance and increase outbound requests.
    • Travel Band Modifiers: These modifiers adjust travel time estimates based on time-of-day traffic patterns (e.g., rush hours). Applying a multiplier greater than 1 increases travel time to simulate heavy traffic, while a multiplier less than 1 decreases it for lighter traffic periods.
      • Modifiers can be applied to either straight-line or Beans.ai configurations.
      • Travel bands must be between 30 minutes and four hours with no overlapping times.
      • Example: Setting a travel band from noon to 3 PM Monday through Friday with a multiplier of 1.2 to increase travel time during rush hour.

    Practical Benefits for ServiceNow Customers

    By configuring travel estimate providers and applying travel band modifiers, customers can achieve more accurate travel time predictions within Schedule Optimization. This leads to better scheduling decisions, more efficient technician task assignments, and improved service delivery timelines.

    Set up a travel estimate provider in Schedule Optimization for each of your technician groups to streamline and enhance the travel planning process.

    Travel estimate providers

    Efficient allocation of work order tasks depends on accurately estimating travel time, considering both the technician's location and the task's location. The technician's starting location is determined using either their home location or the location of their most recently completed task. Schedule Optimization uses travel estimate providers, which calculate distances between technicians and task and are assigned by admins to groups. The two supported travel estimate providers are straight-line or Beans.ai.

    • Straight-line: This default configuration serves as a backup when a primary configuration isn’t available and a secondary configuration hasn’t been selected. This provider can be modified but it cannot be deleted.
    • Beans.ai: This map provider provides more accurate travel time estimates. Locations that are deemed invalid through geocoding or aren’t reachable by road are excluded from task assignments

    For more information, see Create a scheduling attribute for Schedule Optimization.

    Map vendor call types

    Property: map_vendor_call_types property

    • Sync: Default value.
    • Async: Changing the default value to async can improve performance and may result in more outbound requests.

    For more information on properties, see Schedule Optimization properties.

    Travel band modifiers

    Travel band modifiers adjust travel times based on the time of day, such as during rush hour. You can add these modifiers to either straight-line or Beans.ai configurations. A multiplier is a number used in the configuration to adjust travel time based on expected traffic conditions. When traffic is expected to be heavier than usual, a multiplier greater than 1 increases the travel time. For example, a multiplier of 1.2 adds extra time to account for delays. When traffic is lighter, such as during off-peak hours, a multiplier less than 1 reduces the travel time. For instance, a multiplier of 0.8 shortens the estimated travel time to reflect faster travel.
    • Purpose: Adjust travel times during certain times of day, such as rush hour.
    • Configuration:
      • Add travel band modifiers to your straight-line or Beans.ai configuration.
      • Modify travel time results using a multiplier or the time-of-day feature provided by a travel time provider.
      • Travel Band Details:
        • Range: 30 minutes to four hours.
        • Can’t overlap.
        • Set different start and end times for each travel band.
          Note:
          For example, to increase travel time during rush hour to simulate traffic not capture by the baseline values, you could set a travel band for your straight-line configuration between noon and 15:00 Monday through Friday with a multiplier of 1.2.