View Full Version : iPhone App is very dangerous

23.05.2010, 05:30
I downloaded the iPhone app today and decided to give it a try. I entered my home address and my work address. (Houston, TX). It routed me sort of okay all the way up to the last freeway. It showed me getting off the freeway and the exit past where I really should get off, do a u-turn and it just stopped with end of route not even on the street I was going to. (This was looking at the route with out traveling it as I knew where I go).

What makes this application so dangerous is that it does not recognize one way streets. I drove to downtown Houston today. It made a mess of telling me to make a right turn on an overpass (what and fly off the top of it?). Then it was telling me to make a right turn into a shopping center because a street comes into the main street from the left but does not continue on the other side.

But what almost got me killed was that it was saying make a left turn in 900 feet. I was watching the signs and I saw the sign that said both left lanes can turn left (I didn't realize it was the next intersection not the one I was just approaching). Then I heard turn left now. I turned.... I did not see the center yellow line and I saw cars coming at me. That is when I realized I was on a one way street going the wrong way. I quickly moved into the far right lane and avoided an accident. When all the cars had passed, I turned around and went on my own way without using this app.

It has been removed from my phone and I would not recommend anyone using it. The reason you use it is because you do not know how to get somewhere. If it routes you down a one way street the wrong way, you are the loser.

23.05.2010, 08:51
Thanks for your comment, we would very much like to look into this to fix it with the next upcoming release.
Can you send me the exact start and destination address so we can reproduce this in our development and quality teams.

Regarding one way streets: Correct, some one-way streets are not yet covered in OpenStreetMap (but more and more are getting added very fast), please also use the "report" bug button in the app to notify the bug backchannel.

23.05.2010, 10:05
I guess quality in US is suffering from the maner data was added to OSM in US. There are still quite a lot errors in the data that has been imported from TIGER. Those imports did not contain any information concerning the streets neither oneway nor type of track. The region in question might not have volunteers to review the imports and improve their quality.

24.05.2010, 09:31
You're probably right. We hope to be able to stir some attention that even more people will start contributing to the OSM in the US.

Could you still send us the rough area of where you experienced the above-mentioned problems, so we can have a focussed look at it, please?

08.06.2010, 12:22
If it would be a help, I lived in Houston most of my life and know the downtown streets and the one-way pattern of all of them. There are only two streets in downtown Houston that are not one-way, but they are very easy to navigate. I you would like my assistance, please contact me at my email address on file and I will do what I can. At least that will help others not have this same problem. With more than 500,000 people working downtown a day and 4500 living in the area, we don't want a negligent homicide due to navigational errors. Glad to help.


08.06.2010, 12:24
As another note, since I now live in Austin, Texas, I would be more than happy to do the same for the downtown streets in Austin. They are a little more difficult, but since I am here, I would gladly offer any assistance I can.


21.01.2015, 06:56
I would also like the app to access my contact folder for addresses. Rather than manually typing in. Possibly even get it to work with google maps when I search for a destination, then ask it to send the location to Skobbler. Not sure how you'd be able to do that, but I would really find it useful.