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Automatically add travel time blockers to calendar using Google Directions API

Kevin ArmbrusterKevin Armbruster
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2/3/2026
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Automatically add Travel time blockers before Appointments

This bot automatically adds Travel time blockers to your calendar, so you never come late to an appointment again.

How it works

  • Trigger: The workflow is initiated daily at 7 AM by a "Schedule Trigger".
  • AI Agent: An "AI Agent" node orchestrates the main logic.
  • Fetch events: It uses the get_calendar_events tool to retrieve all events scheduled for the current day.
  • Identify events with location: It then filters these events to identify those that have a specified location.
  • Check for existing travel time Blockers: For each event with a location, it checks if a Travel time blocker already exists. Events that do not have such a blocker are marked for processing.
  • Calculate travel time: Using the Google Directions API it determines how lot it takes to get to the location of the event. The starting location is by default your Home Address, unless there is a previous event within 2 hours before the event, in which case it will use the location of that previous event.
  • Create Travel time blocker: Finally, it uses the create_calendar_event tool to create the Travel time blocker with a duration equal to the calculated travel time + 10 minutes for buffer.

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Set up steps

  1. Set Variables
    1. Home address
    2. Blocker name
    3. Mode of Transportation
  2. Connect your LLM Provider
  3. Connect your Google Calendar
  4. Connect your Google Directions API

Automatically Add Travel Time Blockers to Calendar Using Google Directions API

This n8n workflow automates the process of calculating travel times between locations and creating calendar events to block out that travel time. It leverages the Google Directions API to get accurate travel durations and uses an AI Agent to interpret user requests and manage the process.

What it does

This workflow streamlines your scheduling by:

  1. Triggering: It can be triggered either manually via an "Execute Workflow Trigger" or on a scheduled basis using the "Schedule Trigger" node.
  2. AI-Powered Request Interpretation: An "AI Agent" node, powered by an "OpenAI Chat Model" and "Simple Memory", interprets natural language requests for travel time calculations and calendar blocking.
  3. Dynamic Workflow Execution: The "Call n8n Workflow Tool" allows the AI Agent to dynamically execute other n8n workflows, likely one responsible for interacting with the Google Directions API and another for creating calendar events.
  4. HTTP Requests: The "HTTP Request" node is available for making API calls, which would typically be used to interact with the Google Directions API to fetch travel times.
  5. Data Transformation: The "Edit Fields (Set)" node is used for manipulating and structuring data as it flows through the workflow, ensuring it's in the correct format for subsequent steps.

Prerequisites/Requirements

  • n8n Instance: A running n8n instance.
  • OpenAI API Key: Required for the "OpenAI Chat Model" to function.
  • Google Directions API Key: (Assumed, based on the workflow's likely purpose and directory name) An API key for the Google Directions API to calculate travel times.
  • Google Calendar Account: (Assumed) A Google Calendar account configured in n8n to create calendar events.
  • Sub-workflows: This workflow likely relies on other n8n sub-workflows (called by the "Call n8n Workflow Tool") to handle the specifics of interacting with the Google Directions API and Google Calendar. These sub-workflows would need to be present and properly configured.

Setup/Usage

  1. Import the workflow: Import the provided JSON into your n8n instance.
  2. Configure Credentials:
    • Set up your OpenAI API credentials for the "OpenAI Chat Model" node.
    • (If not handled by sub-workflows) Configure a Google Directions API credential for the "HTTP Request" node.
    • (If not handled by sub-workflows) Configure a Google Calendar credential for creating events.
  3. Review Sub-workflows: Ensure that the n8n workflows called by the "Call n8n Workflow Tool" exist and are correctly configured to handle Google Directions API calls and Google Calendar event creation.
  4. Activate the workflow: Once configured, activate the workflow.
  5. Trigger the workflow:
    • Manually: Use the "Execute Workflow Trigger" node to test the workflow with specific inputs.
    • Scheduled: Configure the "Schedule Trigger" node to run the workflow at desired intervals (e.g., daily, weekly) to check for new travel needs or prompts.
  6. Interact with the AI Agent: When triggered, the AI Agent will be ready to process requests. You would typically feed it prompts like "Block travel time from home to office for tomorrow's 9 AM meeting" or similar natural language requests.

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