Find a route and directions

Learn how to find a route and directions with the route service.

Routing is the process of finding the path from an origin to a destination in a street network. You can use the Routing service to find routes, get driving directions, calculate drive times, and solve complicated, multiple vehicle routing problems. To create a route, you typically define a set of stops (origin and one or more destinations) and use the service to find a route with directions. You can also use a number of additional parameters such as barriers and mode of travel to refine the results.

In this tutorial, you define an origin and destination by clicking on the map. These values are used to get a route and directions from the route service. The directions are also displayed on the map.

Prerequisites

The following are required for this tutorial:

An ArcGIS account to access API keys. If you don't have an account, sign up for free.
Confirm that your system meets the system requirements.
An IDE for Android development in Kotlin.

Steps

Open an Android Studio project

To start this tutorial, complete the Display a map tutorial. Or download and unzip the Display a map solution in a new folder.
Modify the old project for use in this new tutorial. Expand More info for instructions.
1. On your file system, delete the .idea folder, if present, at the top level of your project.
2. In the Android tool window, open app > res > values > strings.xml.
  
  In the <string name="app_name"> element, change the text content to Find a route and directions.
  strings.xml
  Use dark colors for code blocks
  1 2 3 4 5
  Change line
  1 2 3 4 5 <resources> <string name="app_name">Find a route and directions</string> </resources>
3. In the Android tool window, open Gradle Scripts > settings.gradle.
  
  Change the value of rootProject.name to Find a route and directions.
  settings.gradle
  Expand
  Use dark colors for code blocks
  21 21 21 21 21 21 21 21 21 21 21 21 21 21 21 21 21 21 21 21 21 22 23 24
  Change line
  1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 rootProject.name = "Find a route and directions" include ':app'
4. Click File > Sync Project with Gradle files. Android Studio will recognize your changes and create a new .idea folder.

If you downloaded the solution project, set your API key.

An API Key enables access to services, web maps, and web scenes hosted in ArcGIS Online.

Go to your developer dashboard to get your API key. For these tutorials, use your default API key. It is scoped to include all of the services demonstrated in the tutorials.
In Android Studio: in the Android tool window, open app > java > com.example.app > MainActivity.

In the setApiKeyForApp() method, find the ArcGISRuntimeEnvironment.setApiKey("YOUR_API_KEY") call and paste your API key inside the quotes, replacing YOUR_API_KEY.

MainActivity.kt
Use dark colors for code blocks
    override fun onDestroy() {
        mapView.dispose()
        super.onDestroy()
    }

    private fun setApiKeyForApp(){
        // set your API key
        // Note: it is not best practice to store API keys in source code. The API key is referenced
        // here for the convenience of this tutorial.

        ArcGISRuntimeEnvironment.setApiKey("YOUR_API_KEY")

    }

Add import statements and class properties

Modify import statements to reference the packages and classes required for this tutorial. Then add properties to the class that are used in multiple functions within this tutorial.

Replace app-specific import statements with the imports needed for this tutorial.

MainActivity.kt
Use dark colors for code blocks
Change lineChange lineChange lineChange lineChange lineChange lineChange lineChange lineChange lineChange lineChange lineChange lineChange lineChange lineChange lineChange lineChange lineChange lineChange lineChange lineChange lineChange linepackage com.example.app

import android.os.Bundle
import androidx.appcompat.app.AppCompatActivity

import android.R.layout
import android.graphics.Color
import android.util.Log
import android.view.MotionEvent
import android.widget.ArrayAdapter
import android.widget.ListView
import android.widget.Toast

import com.esri.arcgisruntime.ArcGISRuntimeEnvironment
import com.esri.arcgisruntime.mapping.ArcGISMap
import com.esri.arcgisruntime.mapping.BasemapStyle
import com.esri.arcgisruntime.mapping.Viewpoint
import com.esri.arcgisruntime.mapping.view.DefaultMapViewOnTouchListener
import com.esri.arcgisruntime.mapping.view.Graphic
import com.esri.arcgisruntime.mapping.view.GraphicsOverlay
import com.esri.arcgisruntime.mapping.view.MapView
import com.esri.arcgisruntime.symbology.SimpleLineSymbol
import com.esri.arcgisruntime.symbology.SimpleMarkerSymbol
import com.esri.arcgisruntime.tasks.networkanalysis.RouteTask
import com.esri.arcgisruntime.tasks.networkanalysis.Stop

import kotlin.math.roundToInt

import com.example.app.databinding.ActivityMainBinding

Within the MainActivity class, add the following class properties.

MainActivity.kt
Use dark colors for code blocks
Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.
class MainActivity : AppCompatActivity() {

    private val activityMainBinding: ActivityMainBinding by lazy {
        ActivityMainBinding.inflate(layoutInflater)
    }

    private val mapView: MapView by lazy {
        activityMainBinding.mapView
    }

    private val listView: ListView by lazy {
        activityMainBinding.listView
    }

    private val directionsList: MutableList<String> by lazy {
        mutableListOf("Tap to add two points to the map to find a route between them.")
    }

    private val arrayAdapter by lazy {
        ArrayAdapter(this, layout.simple_list_item_1, directionsList)
    }

    private val routeStops: MutableList<Stop> by lazy {
        mutableListOf()
    }

    private val graphicsOverlay: GraphicsOverlay by lazy {
        GraphicsOverlay()
    }

    override fun onCreate(savedInstanceState: Bundle?) {
        super.onCreate(savedInstanceState)
        setContentView(activityMainBinding.root)

Update the map

A streets basemap layer is typically used in routing applications. Update the basemap to use the ARCGIS_STREETS basemap style, change the position of the map to center on Los Angeles and add a GraphicsOverlay.

In the setupMap() function, update the Basemap style property from ARCGIS_TOPOGRAPHIC to ARCGIS_STREETS, and update the latitude and longitude coordinates to center on Los Angeles.

MainActivity.kt
Expand
Use dark colors for code blocks
Change lineChange line    // set up your map here. You will call this method from onCreate()
    private fun setupMap() {

        val map = ArcGISMap(BasemapStyle.ARCGIS_STREETS)

        mapView.apply {
            // set the map on the map view
            this.map = map

            setViewpoint(Viewpoint(34.0539, -118.2453, 144447.638572))

        }

    }
Expand

Add the graphicsOverlay to the mapView. A graphics overlay is a container for graphics. Graphics will be added later in this tutorial as a visual means to display the route stops and route result on the map.

MainActivity.kt
Expand
Use dark colors for code blocks
Add line.        mapView.apply {
            // set the map on the map view
            this.map = map

            setViewpoint(Viewpoint(34.0539, -118.2453, 144447.638572))

            graphicsOverlays.add(graphicsOverlay)

        }
Expand

Add a `ListView` to display driving directions

To display the turn-by-turn directions from the route, use an Android list view to display it on the screen.

In the activity_main.xml file, create an AndroidListView which will display a vertical list of directions.

activity_main.xml
Expand
Use dark colors for code blocks
Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.    <ListView
        android:id="@+id/listView"
        android:layout_width="0dp"
        android:layout_height="0dp"
        android:background="@android:drawable/screen_background_light"
        app:layout_constraintHeight_percent="0.35"
        app:layout_constraintWidth_percent="0.5"
        app:layout_constraintStart_toStartOf="parent"
        app:layout_constraintTop_toTopOf="parent" />
Expand

In MainActivity.kt, in the onCreate() function, set the arrayAdapter to the listView. The ArrayAdapter will create and populate the listView with TextViews as required.

MainActivity.kt
Expand
Use dark colors for code blocks
Add line.    override fun onCreate(savedInstanceState: Bundle?) {
        super.onCreate(savedInstanceState)
        setContentView(activityMainBinding.root)

        listView.adapter = arrayAdapter

        setApiKeyForApp()

        setupMap()

    }
Expand

Create an `addStop` function

A RouteTask requires at least a single origin and destination stop to find a route. Create a function to handle user interaction with the map and to add stops and display them as graphics when the map is tapped.

When a user taps on the map, a stop will be added to a list of route stops. In this tutorial, the first tap will create the origin stop and the second will create the destination stop.

Create an addStop(stop) function.

MainActivity.kt
Expand
Use dark colors for code blocks
Add line.Add line.Add line.    private fun addStop(stop: Stop) {

    }
Expand

Add the stop to the MutableList<Stop> named routeStops.

MainActivity.kt
Expand
Use dark colors for code blocks
Add line.    private fun addStop(stop: Stop) {

        routeStops.add(stop)

    }
Expand

Create a SimpleMarkerSymbol and use the stop's Geometry to create a new Graphic and add it to the graphicsOverlay.

MainActivity.kt
Expand
Use dark colors for code blocks
Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.    private fun addStop(stop: Stop) {

        routeStops.add(stop)

        // create a blue circle symbol for the stop
        val stopMarker = SimpleMarkerSymbol(SimpleMarkerSymbol.Style.CIRCLE, Color.BLUE, 20f)
        // get the stop's geometry
        val routeStopGeometry = stop.geometry
        // add graphic to graphics overlay
        graphicsOverlay.graphics.add(Graphic(routeStopGeometry, stopMarker))

    }
Expand

Create a `findRoute` function

A route task makes a request to a service and returns the results. Solve the route between the origin and destination stops using a RouteTask, which accesses a routing service. A routing service with global coverage is part of ArcGIS location services. You can also publish custom routing services using ArcGIS Enterprise.

Create a findRoute() function.

MainActivity.kt
Expand
Use dark colors for code blocks
Add line.Add line.Add line.    private fun findRoute() {

    }
Expand

Create a RouteTask with a string URL to reference the routing service.

MainActivity.kt
Expand
Use dark colors for code blocks
Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.    private fun findRoute() {

        val routeTask = RouteTask(
            this,
            "https://route-api.arcgis.com/arcgis/rest/services/World/Route/NAServer/Route_World"
        )

    }
Expand

Get default RouteParameters from the routeTask and set the return directions property to true. This specifies that the route results should include turn-by-turn directions. Also, set the routeStops list to the routeParameters with setStops(routeStops).

The createDefaultParametersAsync() method is asynchronous and you must handle its completion and check for errors.

MainActivity.kt
Expand
Use dark colors for code blocks
Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.    private fun findRoute() {

        val routeTask = RouteTask(
            this,
            "https://route-api.arcgis.com/arcgis/rest/services/World/Route/NAServer/Route_World"
        )

        val routeParametersFuture = routeTask.createDefaultParametersAsync()
        routeParametersFuture.addDoneListener {
            try {
                val routeParameters = routeParametersFuture.get().apply {
                    isReturnDirections = true
                    setStops(routeStops)
                }

            } catch (e: Exception) {
                val error = "Error creating default route parameters: " + e.message
                Toast.makeText(this, error, Toast.LENGTH_LONG).show()
                Log.e(MainActivity::class.simpleName, error)
            }
        }

    }
Expand

To find the route between the origin and destination stops, solve the route using the RouteTask with the routeParameters.

MainActivity.kt
Expand
Use dark colors for code blocks
Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.        val routeParametersFuture = routeTask.createDefaultParametersAsync()
        routeParametersFuture.addDoneListener {
            try {
                val routeParameters = routeParametersFuture.get().apply {
                    isReturnDirections = true
                    setStops(routeStops)
                }

                // get the route and display it
                val routeResultFuture = routeTask.solveRouteAsync(routeParameters)
                routeResultFuture.addDoneListener {
                    try {

                    } catch (e: Exception) {
                        val error = "Error solving route: " + e.message
                        Toast.makeText(this, error, Toast.LENGTH_LONG).show()
                        Log.e(MainActivity::class.simpleName, error)
                    }
                }

            } catch (e: Exception) {
                val error = "Error creating default route parameters: " + e.message
                Toast.makeText(this, error, Toast.LENGTH_LONG).show()
                Log.e(MainActivity::class.simpleName, error)
            }
        }
Expand

Obtain a RouteResult The result is a collection of computed routes. and get the list of Routes from the result. Each element represents an independent route with its own driving directions.The routing service only returns the optimal route. Check that a route was returned, and retrieve the first one.

MainActivity.kt
Expand
Use dark colors for code blocks
Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.                // get the route and display it
                val routeResultFuture = routeTask.solveRouteAsync(routeParameters)
                routeResultFuture.addDoneListener {
                    try {

                        val result = routeResultFuture.get()
                        val routes = result.routes
                        if (routes.isNotEmpty()) {
                            val route = routes[0]

                        }

                    } catch (e: Exception) {
                        val error = "Error solving route: " + e.message
                        Toast.makeText(this, error, Toast.LENGTH_LONG).show()
                        Log.e(MainActivity::class.simpleName, error)
                    }
                }
Expand

Display this route on the map by creating a new Graphic using the route's Geometry and a SimpleLineSymbol, and adding it to the graphicsOverlay.

MainActivity.kt
Expand
Use dark colors for code blocks
Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.                        val result = routeResultFuture.get()
                        val routes = result.routes
                        if (routes.isNotEmpty()) {
                            val route = routes[0]

                            val shape = route.routeGeometry
                            val routeGraphic = Graphic(
                                shape,
                                SimpleLineSymbol(SimpleLineSymbol.Style.SOLID, Color.BLUE, 2f)
                            )
                            graphicsOverlay.graphics.add(routeGraphic)

                        }
Expand

You can get driving directions from the route service by passing true to the setReturnDirections() method on RouteParameters. To display the driving directions, get each DirectionManeuver from the route, and add them to the listView.

MainActivity.kt
Expand
Use dark colors for code blocks
Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.                        val result = routeResultFuture.get()
                        val routes = result.routes
                        if (routes.isNotEmpty()) {
                            val route = routes[0]

                            val shape = route.routeGeometry
                            val routeGraphic = Graphic(
                                shape,
                                SimpleLineSymbol(SimpleLineSymbol.Style.SOLID, Color.BLUE, 2f)
                            )
                            graphicsOverlay.graphics.add(routeGraphic)

                            // get the direction text for each maneuver and display it as a list in the UI
                            directionsList.clear()
                            route.directionManeuvers.forEach { directionsList.add(it.directionText) }
                            arrayAdapter.notifyDataSetChanged()

                        }
Expand

Create a `clear` function

Create a function to clear the current route.

This function will clear the routeStops list, clear any Graphics from the graphicsOverlay, and reset the listView.

MainActivity.kt
Expand
Use dark colors for code blocks
Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.            } catch (e: Exception) {
                val error = "Error creating default route parameters: " + e.message
                Toast.makeText(this, error, Toast.LENGTH_LONG).show()
                Log.e(MainActivity::class.simpleName, error)
            }
        }

    }

    private fun clear() {
        routeStops.clear()
        graphicsOverlay.graphics.clear()
        directionsList.clear()
        directionsList.add("Tap to add two points to the map to find a route between them.")
        arrayAdapter.notifyDataSetChanged()
    }
Expand

Handle user input

Create a DefaultMapViewOnTouchListener and override onSingleTapConfirmed with a Kotlin when expression.

The Kotlin when expression adds the first stop on the first tap, the second stop on a second tap, and so forth on all subsequent taps, calls findRoute(), calls clear(), and adds a new first stop as the route progresses.

MainActivity.kt
Expand
Use dark colors for code blocks
Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.Add line.        mapView.apply {
            // set the map on the map view
            this.map = map

            setViewpoint(Viewpoint(34.0539, -118.2453, 144447.638572))

            graphicsOverlays.add(graphicsOverlay)

            onTouchListener =
                object : DefaultMapViewOnTouchListener(this@MainActivity, mapView) {
                    override fun onSingleTapConfirmed(e: MotionEvent): Boolean {
                        val screenPoint = android.graphics.Point(e.x.roundToInt(), e.y.roundToInt())
                        when (routeStops.size) {
                            // on first tap, add a stop
                            0 -> {
                                addStop(Stop(mapView.screenToLocation(screenPoint)))
                            }
                            // on second tap, add a stop and find route between them
                            1 -> {
                                addStop(Stop(mapView.screenToLocation(screenPoint)))
                                findRoute()
                                Toast.makeText(
                                    applicationContext,
                                    "Calculating route.",
                                    Toast.LENGTH_SHORT
                                ).show()
                            }
                            // on a further tap, clear and add a new first stop
                            else -> {
                                clear()
                                addStop(Stop(mapView.screenToLocation(screenPoint)))
                            }
                        }
                        return true
                    }
                }

        }
Expand

Click Run > Run > app to run the app.

The map should support two taps to create origin and destination points and then use the route service to display the resulting route and turn-by-turn directions.

What's next?

To explore more API features and ArcGIS location services, try the following tutorial:

ArcGIS Runtime API for Android

Find a route and directions

Was this page helpful?

ArcGIS Runtime API for Android

Find a route and directions

Prerequisites

Steps

Open an Android Studio project

Add import statements and class properties

Update the map

Add a ListView to display driving directions

Create an addStop function

Create a findRoute function

Create a clear function

Handle user input

What's next?

Was this page helpful?

Add a `ListView` to display driving directions

Create an `addStop` function

Create a `findRoute` function

Create a `clear` function