Tell me more ×
Geographic Information Systems Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for cartographers, geographers and GIS professionals. It's 100% free, no registration required.
up vote 2 down vote favorite
1

Specifically, where can I find a database of zip codes, their lat/lon centers, and intervening "obstacles" (for example, zip codes that are geographically close but separated by the Chesapeake Bay).

share|improve this question
What country are you interested in? did you want to restrict to road routing? – Rowland Shaw Jul 29 '10 at 21:00
@Rowland Shaw - any country is fine, though I'd like to start with the US – warren Aug 4 '10 at 14:28

1 Answer

up vote 6 down vote accepted

The distance not only depends on the origin and destination, but how you want to get between the two. If you're talking about Chesapeake Bay being an obstacle, then it sounds like you might be interested in driving directions.

The Google Directions API can be used to calculate driving routes (distances and times) between two locations. For example, to see routes between the 59715 and 94108 zip codes, you could make this request: http://maps.google.com/maps/api/directions/json?origin=59715&destination=94108&sensor=false (about 1,040 miles)

If you're talking about obstacles, then you're talking about routing around obstacles - and it's not as simple as working with zip code center location data.

share|improve this answer
Yes, by "obstacle", I'm looking at major geographic features (such as the Chesapeake Bay, Long Island Sound, etc) – warren Aug 4 '10 at 14:29

Your Answer

 
discard

By posting your answer, you agree to the privacy policy and terms of service.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.