Google Maps navigation lets users set departure or arrival times, rolling out now on Android

Ben Schoon | Jan 22 2019 - 7:30 am PT

Google Maps is a very powerful navigation tool, and it’s only getting better lately. Now, a new feature is rolling out to users on Android which assists in improved trip planning.

First spotted by Android Police and apparently rolling out to all Android users, a new navigation feature allows Maps users to set both departure and arrival times. This feature only works with car navigation, but it enables you to see in advance what time you’ll arrive somewhere based on when you leave, or when you need to leave to arrive at a specific time.

This functionality has been available on the web for quite some time and works on all forms of navigation there, but on Android, it’s just for driving in a car. To access the feature, simply plug in any address to navigate to and access the overflow menu. From there, “Set depart & arrive time” will appear.

Personally, I can see this feature being extremely useful for ensuring you know exactly when to leave for an event of some sort. Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem like Google has added a reminder/notification option for that yet though.

Google Maps 10.8.0 is available now via Google Play and adds this new functionality. By now, most users should also have the new speed limit functionality available on both Android and iOS.