All articles by Brent van der Heiden
Catchment Area Analysis: Drive Times vs Circles
We drew 10-minute drive-time catchments and 5 km circles around 60 supermarkets in Lyon, Munich and Milan. The circle overcounts residents and reorders sites.
Low Emission Zones in Europe: What OpenStreetMap Maps, Country by Country
OpenStreetMap maps 170 low emission zones in 14 European countries. Counts per country, how they compare with official lists, and how to query them.
What Is a Proportional Symbol Map? Definition, Graduated Symbols, and How to Build One
A proportional symbol map sizes a circle at each location by a count. How to scale symbols by area, graduated vs proportional symbols, and a MapLibre build.
What Is a Dot Density Map? Definition, Examples, and How to Build One
A dot density map places one dot per N units of data inside each region. How dot maps work, how to pick a dot value, and how to build one on a web map.
What Is a Cartogram? Definition, Types, Examples, and How to Make One
A cartogram resizes regions by a data value instead of land area. See the types of cartogram map, worked examples, and how to build one with map data.
Intelligent Speed Assistance (ISA): How New Cars in Europe Know the Speed Limit
Intelligent speed assistance is required on every new car in the EU. How ISA finds the speed limit, what the law demands, and where the data goes wrong.
What Is a Map Legend? Parts of a Map Key, Examples, and How to Make One
A map legend, or map key, explains the symbols, colours, and lines on a map. See the parts of a legend, real examples, and code to build one for a web map.
What Is a Distance Matrix? Travel Times, APIs, and Routing
A distance matrix is a grid of travel times and distances between many origins and destinations. Learn how a distance matrix API works and where it is used in production.
Contour Lines Explained: How to Read Them and Other Isolines
Contour lines join points of equal height. How to read spacing, interval and landforms, how contours are computed, plus isobars, isotherms and isopleth maps.
What Is a Choropleth Map? Definition, Examples, and How to Build One
A choropleth map shades regions by a data value: population density, election results, GDP. Learn how choropleth maps work, when to use them, and how to build one with an API.
Map Projections Explained: Mercator, Web Mercator, and the Trade-offs
A map projection flattens the round Earth onto a flat surface and every projection distorts something. Learn how Mercator, Web Mercator, and equal-area projections work.
Traffic Enforcement Cameras: Free Speed Camera Map and Data
What traffic enforcement cameras are, the four types, and a free speed camera map of 106,646 of them across 106 countries, downloadable under CC BY 4.0.
Walkability Score: How It Is Calculated and How to Use It
A walkability score rates how much of daily life sits within a walk of an address. Here is the full method, an index we computed for 20 European cities, and how to publish it.
What Is a Geocode? Forward and Reverse Geocoding Explained
A geocode is the coordinate an address resolves to, plus the metadata that says how much to trust it. How forward and reverse geocoding work, how to turn coordinates into an address, and what the API returns.
What Is POI Data? Attributes, Sources, and How to Use It
POI data is the structured record of the places people go: shops, clinics, stations, cafes. Learn what a POI record contains and where the data comes from.
Hotel SEO: The Complete Guide for AI Search
A complete hotel SEO guide: the fundamentals that drive direct bookings, plus the location data layer that decides whether AI assistants recommend you.
The EU Data Act, Explained for Location and Maps APIs
The EU Data Act reshapes who controls machine-generated data. Here is what the September 2026 deadline means for location data and maps APIs.
What Is GeoJSON? Format, Geometry Types, and Production Pitfalls
GeoJSON is the JSON-based format every modern map library reads. The geometry types, the Feature pattern, how many decimals you need, how much line simplification saves, and the pitfalls that bite in production.
How to Build a Store Locator with a Maps API
A store locator turns a postcode into a ranked list of nearby shops on a map. Learn how to build one with a maps API: geocode, query nearby, sort, render.
EU Postal Code Formats: A Country-by-Country Reference for Developers
European postal codes vary in length, format, and meaning. This guide is a country-by-country reference for the 27 EU member states plus the UK, Switzerland, and Norway.
What Is Geofencing? How Geofences Work, With Examples
Geofencing triggers an action when a phone, vehicle or AI agent enters or leaves an area. How it works, where it is used, the Android and iOS limits, and how big a geofence must be for the location accuracy you have, computed.
How to Build a City Events Map: Venues, Categories, and Live Discovery
A practical guide to building a city events map: geocode venues, plot and cluster markers, filter by category and neighbourhood, and make listings discoverable.
What Is a Map Viewport? Center, Zoom, and the Visible Tile Window
A map viewport is the visible window of a map: the center coordinate, the zoom level, and optionally the bearing and pitch.
Building-Entrance Geocoding: Why the Rooftop Pin Is Not Enough
Entrance-level geocoding returns the door a driver actually walks to, not a rooftop centroid. Here is why last-mile teams are moving beyond the pin.
What Is a Bounding Box? A Developer's Guide to BBox in Maps and APIs
A bounding box is the smallest rectangle that contains a feature or a set of points. Learn the formats, conventions, and gotchas for bboxes in geocoding APIs and GeoJSON.
AI Maps Explained: What Maps With AI Actually Do
AI maps mean three things: AI features in map apps, AI-generated maps, and maps as tools for AI agents. What each does and which matters for business in 2026.
What Is Route Optimization? Algorithms, Constraints, and APIs
Route optimization orders stops and assigns vehicles so a fleet finishes its work in the least time, distance, or cost. Multi-stop planning, the vehicle routing problem, and measured savings on real roads.
What Is a Map MCP Server? Giving AI Agents Live Location Data
An MCP server lets AI agents call real tools. A map MCP server gives them live geocoding, search, and routing. Learn what it is and why it matters in 2026.
What Is Map Matching? Snapping GPS Traces to the Road Network
Map matching turns noisy GPS traces into clean paths on the road graph. Learn how Hidden Markov Models, OSRM, and Valhalla work.
What Is an Isochrone Map? Travel Time Polygons Explained
An isochrone map shows every place reachable within a given travel time from a starting point. Learn how isochrones are computed on the road network.
Types of Maps: 12 Map Types, What Each Shows and When to Use It
The 12 main types of maps, from political and topographic maps to choropleth, dot density and flow maps: what each shows, the data it needs, and when to use it.
Flock Camera Map: ALPR Cameras in Europe and the US on OpenStreetMap
OpenStreetMap lists 153,759 ALPR cameras worldwide and 8,900 in Europe. Counts per country, how to use the Flock camera map, and what is known about Flock in Europe.
What Is OpenStreetMap? The Free Map of the World, Explained
OpenStreetMap is the free, open, crowd-sourced map of the world. What it is, how the data is structured, and what the ODbL licence asks of you when you build a product on it.
What Are HD Maps for Autonomous Driving? Lane-Level Mapping
HD maps are centimetre-accurate, machine-readable maps that tell self-driving cars where the lane lines, signs, and stop bars are.
Longitude vs Latitude: How GPS Coordinates Actually Work
Latitude measures north-south position, longitude measures east-west. This guide explains how GPS coordinates work and the format conventions you will meet in production.
AI Hallucinated Addresses: Why It Happens and the Geo-Verified Fix
AI hallucinated addresses are common in ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini. Here is why location hallucinations happen, which listings are most exposed, and how verified geo data fixes them.
Google Maps DrawingManager & API Deprecations: 2026 Migration Guide
The Drawing Library and Heatmap Layer are gone from the Maps JavaScript API. DirectionsService and DistanceMatrixService are Legacy and deprecated. Current status, dates and replacements.
Google Ask Maps and Gemini: Why Location Attributes Decide Visibility
Google Ask Maps with Gemini AI launched March 12. Here are the location attributes it evaluates, why listings with thin geo data hide, and how to fix it fast.
Airbnb AI Search: How to Keep Your Vacation Rental Visible
Airbnb's ranking model weighs 800+ signals, and Airbnb is now testing natural-language search. Here is how hosts keep listings visible after the 2026 ranking overhaul.
Google Places API (Legacy) Is Frozen: What EU Developers Should Do
Google froze the legacy Places API in March 2025. No new features, capped volume discounts, and a deprecation date that will arrive with 12 months notice.
Google AI Overviews for Local Businesses: How to Appear
Google AI Overviews now appear on roughly one in six US searches. Here is how local businesses get cited in Google's AI-generated answers.
JavaScript Heatmap Tutorial: Build an Interactive Density Map
JavaScript heatmap tutorial: build an interactive density map with MapAtlas. Data formatting, intensity weighting, colour gradients, and real-world use cases.
How to Build a Healthcare Provider Finder Map (GDPR-Compliant)
Build a GDPR-compliant doctor finder map with specialty filter, postcode search, isochrone travel-time overlay, and patient privacy by design. Full JavaScript tutorial.
How to Build a Live Driver Tracking Map for Delivery or Rideshare Apps
Build a real-time driver tracking map with WebSocket GPS updates, smooth marker interpolation, route display, and ETA calculation with the MapAtlas Maps and Routing APIs.
Build a Real Estate Property Map with Clustering in JavaScript
Build a property listing map with price-label markers, clustering, address search, and price range filter in plain JavaScript or React using the MapAtlas Maps API.
Bulk Address Validation with the Geocoding API: Validate 10,000 Addresses at Once
Bulk address validation with the MapAtlas Geocoding API in Python: rate limiting, retries, confidence scoring, and EU address formats for 10,000+ records.
Address Autocomplete API: How One Field Lifts Checkout Conversion
Add address autocomplete to your checkout in React using the MapAtlas Geocoding API. Reduce cart abandonment, speed up mobile entry, and validate addresses at input time.
Google Maps API Alternatives for EU Developers (2026)
Choosing a maps API for a European product? Compare the main Google Maps API alternatives on pricing model, data residency, GDPR, and developer experience.
How to Style a Custom Branded Map (Dark Mode, Colors, No Watermarks)
Style a fully branded map in 2026: change background, roads, and water colors, add dark mode toggle, remove watermarks, and match your design system exactly.
Google Maps API Pricing and Licensing in 2026: Exact Cost Per 1,000 Calls Across Every SKU
Google Maps API pricing in 2026: per-SKU free caps that replaced the $200 credit, cost per 1,000 calls for Maps, Geocoding, Places and Routes, and worked examples.
The EU Developer's Guide to GDPR-Compliant Map APIs
GDPR compliance for map APIs goes beyond EU data centres. Learn why CLOUD Act exposure still applies to US providers, and what true EU data sovereignty requires.
How to Add Interactive Maps to Your Website | JavaScript Tutorial
Add interactive maps to your website in minutes. Step-by-step JavaScript tutorial covering markers, popups, geocoding search, and React/Next.js integration with MapAtlas.
Vector Tiles vs. Raster Tiles: Which Should Your Web App Use?
Vector tiles or raster tiles? The performance, styling and compatibility trade-offs, how z/x/y tile URLs and zoom levels work, and when each format is the right call.