Photo: Bogdan Popa/autoevolution/Essex Police - Uttlesford District
Navigation apps have become must-have driving companions for people worldwide for a simple yet obvious reason. These software solutions offer turn-by-turn directions to get you to a new destination, and features like traffic information help make the journey safer and more convenient.
Unfortunately, some people misuse navigation apps in the most horrible way, trusting everything they say and taking the presented information for granted. The tiniest error in their routing engine or the mapping data could put them in danger, and a driver in England figured this out the hard way.
The Essex Police revealed in a Facebook post earlier this week that officers at the Uttlesford District were called to a potential collision in Dunmow. However, when they arrived at the scene, they found a car nearly entirely submerged in water, as you can see in the photo. The driver rapidly exited the vehicle after plunging into the water, so he was safe and uninjured.
Police say the one to blame for the incident is the driver, but the second culprit is the sat-nav that provided wrong instructions. It's unclear how a navigation solution directed the man into the water, but police officers have very simple advice for people using Google Maps, Apple Maps, Waze, or any other similar application. These applications "are rarely wrong, but they aren't perfect," the Essex Police explained in a post.
The first thing you should do is to check if the route is suitable, and as the police emphasize, "if something doesn't seem right, check again."
The car looks like a Ford Focus, and you can almost bet it was wrecked after this ad-hoc diving experience.
As for the sat-nav, it's unclear what app the man was using, as judging from the vehicle's model year, chances are he was running a mobile navigation application on his smartphone. It's another reminder that applications like Google Maps and Waze can be fantastic companions when used correctly, but they can also wreak havoc behind the wheel and send drivers to the middle of nowhere due to a simple error.
The best thing drivers can do (and are strongly recommended) is to pay attention to road signs. Many people who use navigation apps trust them blindly and ignore the traffic signs, looking at the infotainment screen for speed limit information and directions to arrive at the destination.
However, these applications can't be up-to-date with everything happening on the road, especially with real-time changes such as accidents, roadworks, or temporary restrictions. Crowdsourcing could help, as is the case with Waze, but nothing showing up on the screen should be taken for granted. Police are right: if something doesn't look right, stop on the side of the road, look for more information, and only proceed when you're certain the route is safe.
The Essex Police revealed in a Facebook post earlier this week that officers at the Uttlesford District were called to a potential collision in Dunmow. However, when they arrived at the scene, they found a car nearly entirely submerged in water, as you can see in the photo. The driver rapidly exited the vehicle after plunging into the water, so he was safe and uninjured.
Police say the one to blame for the incident is the driver, but the second culprit is the sat-nav that provided wrong instructions. It's unclear how a navigation solution directed the man into the water, but police officers have very simple advice for people using Google Maps, Apple Maps, Waze, or any other similar application. These applications "are rarely wrong, but they aren't perfect," the Essex Police explained in a post.
The first thing you should do is to check if the route is suitable, and as the police emphasize, "if something doesn't seem right, check again."
The car looks like a Ford Focus, and you can almost bet it was wrecked after this ad-hoc diving experience.
As for the sat-nav, it's unclear what app the man was using, as judging from the vehicle's model year, chances are he was running a mobile navigation application on his smartphone. It's another reminder that applications like Google Maps and Waze can be fantastic companions when used correctly, but they can also wreak havoc behind the wheel and send drivers to the middle of nowhere due to a simple error.
The best thing drivers can do (and are strongly recommended) is to pay attention to road signs. Many people who use navigation apps trust them blindly and ignore the traffic signs, looking at the infotainment screen for speed limit information and directions to arrive at the destination.
However, these applications can't be up-to-date with everything happening on the road, especially with real-time changes such as accidents, roadworks, or temporary restrictions. Crowdsourcing could help, as is the case with Waze, but nothing showing up on the screen should be taken for granted. Police are right: if something doesn't look right, stop on the side of the road, look for more information, and only proceed when you're certain the route is safe.
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