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Comment by buildbot | Hacker News Reader

Google Maps has actually led me wrong far more than Apple Maps, obv. anecdotal. I feel like Google Maps has way too much ML applied to it, and now that is coming back to bite it hard. The last time I used google maps was on a forest road, following directions to a remote-ish campsite. It literally had mistaken a light path through the trees as a road, and then had us try to turn into the bushes. Looking at the map of the area is was clear the road finding algorithm has mistaken a lot of small paths and tracks of light colored trees (!!!) as valid roads.

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Google Maps also has an unfortunate tendency to go route-flapping, telling me that first one route, then another, is better. Often these routes diverge quite some distance away, and the "best" route switches back and forth a lot. I am also assumed to opt in to each route change unless I click "No thanks" — even if I was previously offered the route and chose another one. I am not going to click No Thanks, because I'm riding a motorcycle, thanks; therefore I use Apple Maps.

I absolutely despise that auto route change feature. Whether (but especially) on a motorcycle or in a car. It’s dangerous and it fills me with rage.

Also, that software is so non-configurable these days: Is an “Automatically accept better routes” checkbox that esoteric?! I’d say I want to find the product developer responsible but it seems like it’s most of them these days. It’s like not being able to turn off auto-playing previews in streaming apps.

Sorry, rant over.

That auto-opt in for alternate route is the worst feature ever.

I've had cases where I was on a highway far away from any exits and there was a jam caused by an accident, and google maps started flip flopping between 2 different "optimal" routes that required me to first take one exit that's ahead of me, and then another exit that was far behind me. Presumably google was seeing the traffic jam and determined that my current route is no longer optimal, and wanted me to do a U Turn on a highway where there are no exits.

Apple Maps will suggest alternate routes with an automatic opt-in if you don't respond, but, in my experience, it's much more conservative about making those suggestions.

And some people trust it without a second thought. This past New Years there was a huge snow storm in the Tahoe area, many roads were closed, and clueless Bay Area people were following google maps directions around the closures into unmaintained mountain roads in a huge blizzard.

even in the days of paper maps people would drive to tahoe utterly unprepared. Much as I dislike Google I don't think they can be blamed for clueless Bay Area people.

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