Checking if I can fix the clogged trading posts issue but at the same time also punish the players, who cheese and build right on the map edge, by making the traffic painfully slow. Thoughts?

Btw this is before the changes:

Transport distance = added cost for import export? Common with a few transportation games. Limit post to 1 per region with shiny upgrades.

But woulnd't that do the opposite, building right on the edge to minimize transport distance not only would be faster but also less expensive, making the cheese even more OP. And limiting tradeposts to 1 per region will again increase traffic jams which I'm trying to solve atm 🤷‍♂️

When traders leave the map, how long do they stay out there before returning? If that period were longer, it would make the placement of the trade building have less of an effect on the overall duration of the route. (My terminology might be wrong here, hopefully I'm clear).

That is also a great point, in the launch build they almost instantly returned. I should make that period longer.

It’s a single player game so cheeses like that should not influence you heavily in balancing. People who play Manor Lords are not speed runners or competitive streamers. Make it balanced in a way that reflects the common play style.

I feel like building right at the edge of the map is a valid place to build it. If you want to trade, building where the trade route is the shortest is the correct thing to do. I'm not sure about punishing that.

I'd prefer if optimal strategies also resulted in realistic layouts

Don't slow down the traffic. Can't you just make it so you cannot build that close to the border? Force a buffer zone to drop the trading post?

I experimented with building on the map edge but actually found building further into the town more optimal, due to the relative speed of traders vs granary/store workers.