The invention relates to a method for acquiring traffic situation data in a network of traffic routes which is covered by a cellular mobile radio network comprising a multiplicity of base stations and in which a multiplicity of vehicles is moving which are in each case provided with an operating mobile terminal for the mobile radio network. In this method, characteristic patterns of values (called signal transit times in the text which follows), which are representative of the signal transit times with respect to the respective base station during the movement of a terminal along the course of the respective traffic route, are determined and permanently stored at least for some of the individual traffic routes of the network of traffic routes at least for selected base stations, the respective characteristic pattern or a sequence of values representative of this pattern is mapped onto the course of the respective traffic route (calibration). To obtain current traffic situation information, the signal transit times of selected terminals which are located within the transmission area of the respective base station are detected and compared with the stored patterns.