turbopilot
RVF Supporter
- Joined
- Nov 2, 2019
- Messages
- 974
- Location
- Prescott, AZ
- RV Year
- 2026
- RV Make
- LightShip
- RV Model
- Turbo Edition
- RV Length
- 27
- Engine
- Electric
- TOW/TOAD
- 2025 Ford F-150 PowerBoost HEV, 7.2 kW Propower Generator
- Fulltimer
- No
There is a lot of chatter on the web about this mainstay for roads navigation degrading in the last year. I have been driving a lot this year and Google Maps is just not performing like it once did. My first big experience with this was last July. I set up a trip to take the LightShip back to EAA AirVenture. I plotted the trip the night before and checked that the highways I planned to take were clear. The next morning before departure I check again, then launched. Twenty miles from my house on a normally busy Arizona state highway (AZ89) I hit a road block. I talked to the workers at the block and was told there was a fatal motorcycle accident on the highway 12 hours before. I looked at Google and no indication of the problem.
Since then I have run into various versions of the same thing. Last week a busy US highway (US-168) crossing the Navajo Nation was closed with a flood washout. This is the only highway available to exit Arizona to the Northeast through the 4 corners area. That closure was not registered on Google for 7 days. I you plotted a trip through that area Google would take you right through like it was open. Anyone that crosses the Navajo Nation regularly knows there is rarely an option for a closed road.
So what's happening? I did a few searches and the best I can find out is that Google has pulled a lot of human support for Google Maps and is now relying on signals from moving vehicles almost entirely. If you ask Google AI (Gemini) it freely admits it has changed its model for managing traffic awareness. It even suggested that if you want "timely" information you should consult with one of the 50 state "511" pages. Bottom line do not count on Google Maps for timely information.
Since then I have run into various versions of the same thing. Last week a busy US highway (US-168) crossing the Navajo Nation was closed with a flood washout. This is the only highway available to exit Arizona to the Northeast through the 4 corners area. That closure was not registered on Google for 7 days. I you plotted a trip through that area Google would take you right through like it was open. Anyone that crosses the Navajo Nation regularly knows there is rarely an option for a closed road.
So what's happening? I did a few searches and the best I can find out is that Google has pulled a lot of human support for Google Maps and is now relying on signals from moving vehicles almost entirely. If you ask Google AI (Gemini) it freely admits it has changed its model for managing traffic awareness. It even suggested that if you want "timely" information you should consult with one of the 50 state "511" pages. Bottom line do not count on Google Maps for timely information.
