Street address errors in Google Maps • Hacker News Board

Re: Street address errors in Google Maps

#161

Post by Twirrim » Sat, Apr 26, 2025, 3:55 PM UTC

kccqzy wrote: post #28

If the author can use the Google Maps feedback tool to get the errors fixed, I'm pretty sure somewhere on the internet someone with malice can also use the same feedback tool to place the address at the wrong location. The only safeguard is probably a low-paid contractor in India reviewing these manual suggestions. One year ago the Elizabeth line disappeared from the maps in London. There are many Reddit posts about…

Someone did this a couple of years ago for a major thoroughfare near where I lived. They marked it as one way for a key stretch, and traffic ended up being re-routed down much smaller roads to avoid it. It caused all sorts of chaos, both due to the increased traffic on roads not made for it, and in the long queues that formed where the traffic then rejoined the thoroughfare.

It took google at least the best part of a month to fix it (at least, it was around a month from when I submitted the correction, no idea if others beat me to it)

Re: Street address errors in Google Maps

#162

Post by Twirrim » Sat, Apr 26, 2025, 4:01 PM UTC

paulmooreparks wrote: post #55

Google does have a nearly impossible task making Maps work around the world, and I think it does an admirable job. One just has to have a bit of local knowledge to work around the quirks. For example, the walking directions Maps gives for Singapore are usually ridiculous. They're almost always twice the distance they need to be, since it's very common to cut through the open lower floor (void deck) of apartment build…

Google Maps can be downright dangerous in its lack of knowledge, and it'll make routing decisions that other GPS devices don't make (despite similarly working around the world). For example, it cannot comprehend the idea of country lanes in the UK, where e.g. TomTom can. Country lanes are narrow, twisty, and single file with passing places. But they're "national speed limit", or 60mph. You will never, ever go down one of these at 60mph. In most cases it's flat out impossible. Google Maps thinks you can go that fast.

If enough people using google maps have been down it in the right time frame it'll know the road is slow and account for it in time calculations, and generally not send you down it. The fact that no one using google maps has ever managed to go down that lane at 60mph never seems to enter into its consideration.

I've never had TomTom send me down a country lane unless it's literally the only way to get to where I'm going.

Re: Street address errors in Google Maps

#163

Post by Twirrim » Sat, Apr 26, 2025, 4:06 PM UTC

at_a_remove wrote: post #120

jwr wrote: post #74

The real problem is that Google Maps isn't regulated like a utility. I know, I know, we all hate regulation, we love free markets, and all. But bear with me for a moment. I had a problem where Google Maps showed the wrong location for my address. I reported the issue. I was told the correction was accepted. But it wasn't — Google Maps would still show the wrong location. After doing this dance several times over a co…

I used to work mapping in EMS. It is absolutely not that simple, nor will it ever be. Yes, Google was often wrong. Sometimes I would drive out to a street to make sure I had not lost my mind. Sometimes, the local addressing authority was wrong, and I would have to prove it to them. "But it was checked!" It was checked wrong . Street numbers would be off by thousands. It would take some pointing out of obvious problem…

In this particular case, Apple Maps seems to have it correct, so at least some official source of data must be right?

https://duckduckgo.com/?q=136+W+6th+Ave%2C+Vancouver%2C+BC%2...

Re: Street address errors in Google Maps

#164

Post by ajsnigrutin » Sun, Apr 27, 2025, 12:09 PM UTC

criddell wrote: post #102

ajsnigrutin wrote: post #68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Wait what? I live in a small country of ~2mio pop, and we have approximately 6000 settlements with streets and street addresses and many different standards of numberings, depending on many reason, mostly historic. Technically yes, a few thousand systems could be programmed into some google processing engine, but you'd have to manually classify every road to set the correct system, and even there, you'd never know wh…

> Good luck writing a general model for that. Sounds like you described the general model. Anyway, if your little country is difficult for Google, they should probably skip it for now. Do New York first. Then L.A. Then Toronto. It doesn’t have to cover everything, just make things better for a meaningful number of people.

But it's not a general model.

Are house humbers 6 and 7 next to each other? 6 and 8? What number would come next if the building numbers go 2, 4, 6, 8, ? If there's is a "7b", is there a 7 too? 7a?

Re: Street address errors in Google Maps

#165

Post by tough » Mon, Apr 28, 2025, 9:16 PM UTC

wheybags wrote: post #140

jbl0ndie wrote: post #121

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I remember a time before Ireland set up postcodes (zip codes) for the whole country. If postcode was mandatory field in an e-commerce address form, you couldn't mail stuff from the UK unless it was in Dublin. Dublin had postcodes. I managed to find one site that would accept 'null' so the form would submit.

I used to just do "n/a", "na", "none", or "0000", whatever would make it accept.

In US sites i usually input 90210 because Beverly Hills lol