Compare the straight-line distance to an estimated driving distance.
Roads rarely follow a straight line, so the driving distance almost always exceeds the linear distance. The detour ratio quantifies that overhead for route planning. Knowing the typical detour factor for a region keeps you from budgeting a drive based on an unrealistic straight-line distance.
Driving vs Linear Distance
Detour ratio = driving / straight-line; extra% = (driving - linear)/linear
Detour ratio = driving / straight-line; extra% = (driving - linear)/linear Roads rarely follow a straight line, so the driving distance almost always exceeds the linear distance. The detour ratio quantifies that overhead for route planning.
Knowing the typical detour factor for a region keeps you from budgeting a drive based on an unrealistic straight-line distance.
This calculator takes 2 inputs: Straight-line distance, Actual driving distance. The pre-filled defaults are a realistic starting point — replace them with figures from your own environment for a result you can act on.