GPS = Going Places Slowly
I was heading to Glen Arm from Morrell Park over the weekend using the Fort McHenry Tunnel when I came to the newly reconfigured, still-a-work-in-progress interchange of Interstate 95 and the Beltway. I decided to put my Garmin GPS system with the lovely feminine voice to the test. I suspended my own local knowledge and just followed her instruction to the letter.
She flunked.
Acting on her instruction, I got into the left lane headed toward New York. Wrong move. It made it impossible to get on the new, soaring overhead ramp that leads to the westbound Beltway. We ended up taking a detour via White Marsh Boulevard.
It was an illustration of something everyone who gets a GPS system should know: These systems are far from perfect. Not only will they lag behind the news of a reconfigured interchange, they have a host of quirks motorists need to look out for.
My Garmin system sometimes has a problem figuring out complicated interchanges and giving instructions in a timely manner. At certain key forks when a motorist faces a confusing choice, such as whether to take northbound U.S. 1 or Alternate U.S. 1 where they split near Relay, it has no advice to give. If you aren't a local, you're on you're own.
Then, there's its bias toward the straight line at the expense of the quickest route. Plot a course from Columbia to Parkville, and she's likely to take you through the heart of the city -- consistently underestimating the time lost to stop-and-go traffic. The same happens when you're returning to Baltimore from Annapolis: She wants you to take Route 2, when anyone with an ounce of local road savvy know Interstate 97 is faster.
When you travel with her through rural stretches such as central Pennsylvania, she's likely to pick out routes you would have never found on a state or national road map -- tiny, twisting farm roads you never knew were there. That's actually one of the cooler features as far as I'm concerned, but I wouldn't want to be directed onto those roads at night or in a snowstorm.
This critique is not a rejection of my GPS lady -- far from it. I think she's adorable -- even if her voice sounds exasperated when I make her repeat "recalculating" by rejecting her advice. There have been many times when she got me to unfamilar places without a hitch and without the distraction of having to read printed directions.
But if you use GPS, it's important to learn the system's idiosyncracies. Don't hesitate to go with your own local knowledge and override its advice. You're the boss. And your operating system is more sophisticated than hers.
Anyone out there have some interesting stories of GPS quirks to relate? Please do.
Comments
If you are in downtown Annapolis and trying to get to the beltway, take Rt. 2 to Rt. 10 to I-695, its much faster than I-97. If you are trying to get to Parole (Annapolis Mall area), then yes, take I-97.
REPLY: In my experience, that depends on the traffic levels on Route 2 and how many red lights you hit. And Lady Garmin wasn't suggesting Route 10, just staying on Route 2. Perhaps they've tweaked the system since I was last making that drive. One late afternoon, I decided to follow the GPS instructions as an experiment, and I lost about 15 minutes. But under ideal conditions, you're route may be better than I-97.
Posted by: Richard | April 16, 2009 1:25 PM
My navigation system (which is integrated into my Acura) allows you to change the settings- most direct route (the 'straight' line you refer to), favor highways, avoid highways, etc. It also allows you to turn the voice off - in case you might find her annoying which does not seem to be your case. I have noticed that if I am on a particularly complicated exit ramp (exiting I-95 via MLK vs. 395) she cannot tell which exit ramp I'm on until I practically reach the end. Of course, the ramps are on top of one another- maybe she is one-dimentional!
REPLY: Mabe I need an Acura. I've noticed the same thing at the I-395/MLK split.
Posted by: Maddogg280 | April 16, 2009 2:41 PM
A few notes:
You can buy upgraded maps from Garmin which may help belay some confusion in places where roads are changed.
You can also buy one of the more expensive models which offer actual lane-by-lane directions, which may also help belay confusion and help with your lane choices and decision making speed.
You can also change the voice of your Lady Garmin, as I did, when I chose the British accented one for fun.
You can also download a lot of information to your Garmin maps from the web, in the form of "POI's" which can be useful. Some are free, most are not.
Finally, I have personally experienced that detouring on my Garmin doesn't work very well, as it often will guide you back to a place you needed to avoid. If I'm on the highway locally I usually leave it in "avoid highways" mode and activate the directions when there is traffic on the highway, giving me an alternate route.
Posted by: noble | April 16, 2009 4:19 PM