JONESBORO, Ark. – It’s bad news for law enforcement who love to catch unsuspecting drivers and give them a bill to pay – but it’s good news for everyone else.
Google Maps is adding new features to its app, similar to Waze, that allow users to see where police are at along the roadways. Drivers can place a marker on the map that shows cops, objects in the road, broken down vehicles, or many other warnings for future drivers along the same path.
It is a direct retaliation to the Waze app, which has found tremendous success allowing its users to mark objects along the roadway for future drivers. The most popular warning: speed traps.
Google actually owns the Waze app after buying it out from start-up status. However, they’re more well known for their own Maps software, which is available to about 1 billion users worldwide.
“We believe that informing drivers about upcoming speed traps allows them to be more careful and make safer decisions when they’re on the road,” said Google spokeswoman Genevieve Park to the Washington Post.
It’s an evolution of the old school heads-up drivers would give to one another on the road by flashing headlights, for example. And it’s one that is virtually guaranteed to draw the ire of law enforcement.
The app will not have options for reporting sobriety checkpoints, although, users could simply mark where police are and include a notation.
While this will add to the obstacles for law enforcement, the default map application for Apple users is still has just the basics – that’s Apple Maps. Of course, Apple had the Washington Monument in the wrong location when it launched in 2012...
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