Alternative Junction Naming Scheme for UK

[Dave2084]

The (Temporary) changes I made to the top end of the M42 and A42 finally went live at the end of last week, so I drove them this morning and will again on my return trip on Wednesday so finally I can comment with authority on what my thoughts are;

Using the "City" field for junction number
Now I've driven routes with this I place I think it is a very bad idea. Not only is it bastardising the city field for a purpose it was never designed for in practice it doesn't work well.

The A42/M42 J10-14 and M1 J23A/24 have both POI's and the city field used for the roundabouts and slip roads, yet when navigating along the road, you only see the POI's unless you force Waze to zoom in:

In this one the POI is shown:

IMG_0274.jpg (73.77 KiB) Viewed 341 times

Here I managed to get the "City Name" to show (note the text is the same size as road names):

IMG_0276.jpg (75.46 KiB) Viewed 341 times

Additionally, when reporting events, it does tell you that it's close to the "City" if you are really close:

IMG_0277.jpg (72.9 KiB) Viewed 341 times

But otherwise it looks for something bigger even along the sparsely populated M42 area:

IMG_0278.jpg (78.65 KiB) Viewed 341 times

Slip road naming
I'm still more on the fence here. What I will say is that I totally agree with faitaru in that when I navigate or give directions on a motorway (or major road like the A1 and A42) I always go by junction number.

I'm not keen on the "to M1 (S)" convention, however to my surprise Waze's TTS announces the turn below as "At the roundabout take the second exit at A1 South" so the "to" is not used:

IMG_0274.jpg (73.77 KiB) Viewed 341 times

Additionally my (over the top) routing on the M42 (S) J10 exit shows that even in landscape mode there's not really enough space for much more than we're using now. Here (I think,would want to check again) that the TTS announces "Jct" as Junction, however in this example he's barely finished the 0.5 mile renouncement than I was at the turn!

IMG_0276.jpg (75.46 KiB) Viewed 341 times

So what do I think overall? Keep more or less what we have now, but perhaps we could adjust exit ramps to add road numbers e.g. "M1 (S) J23A to A42" or "M1 (S) J24 to A50/A6/A453" or similar.


I'll be restoring the M42 later (or more likely tomorrow) until we come up with a definitive answer.

[dmcconachie]

Nice roadtest Dave! I'm still not overly keen on moving from the status quo but my motorway exposure isn't a fraction of yours. Ours up here are barely glorified dual carriageways!

[Dave2084]

Nice roadtest Dave! I'm still not overly keen on moving from the status quo but my motorway exposure isn't a fraction of yours. Ours up here are barely glorified dual carriageways!

Thanks, ideally I would like to have done it as a passenger then I could have gotten better screenshots and maybe some audio/video too.

[Timbones]

Thanks for giving it a try, Dave.

I concede that abusing the city name is a bad idea. Still holding out for some tweaks to the ramp naming, particularly for A-roads. Using "to Axx" instead of "Exit" would be an improvement, and drop the town names for brevity.

So, refining my original proposal:
- A1(M) (M) J44 to A64
- A64 (E) to A19, A99
- Entry to M62 (E)

Personally, I'd like to drop the directions from the off-ramps too, but I'm guessing folks won't like that.

via TapaTalk

[xteejx]

Brilliant work!
I'm in agreement with Tim on the "to Axx/Mxx" BUT, I still think it's overkill to append it with all possible destinations, OR even with the major one, as it would just confuse. TTS is too slow to name a whole string of text like "in 0.5 miles, exit left to A249/M2/M20/B2208" etc. This is by no means correct, but an example of how silly it could get if we decide on having this (I don't fully agree) and the wiki conventions are adhered to a little TOO well.
Personally, I'd prefer it was either left as-is or we really get behind this...all of us!
The problem with using "to Axx" is when we come across one that has several A roads that can be taken directly from the exit (usually a roundabout), and this occurs on both motorway and dual carriageway exits. I think that's what everyone against the idea is getting at here, and I understand completely, and agree.
"Entry to M2 (W)"
"Exit left at J3"
To be perfectly honest, adding other stuff is confusing, both visually and TTS-wise. In all seriousness, if you need to be told any more than the junction number, then you really shouldn't be driving, it's in the test

[xteejx]

Reading my post back, I've contradicted myself a few times...perhaps I'm not sure either

[Timbones]

My client currently tells me to "exit left" regardless of how a slip road is named, or if it's even named before.

I've never seen my client (v2.0) say 'exit left'...

[Timbones]

I'm in agreement with Tim on the "to Axx/Mxx" BUT, I still think it's overkill to append it with all possible destinations, OR even with the major one, as it would just confuse.

I don't think all possible routes need to be listed, just the main one or two. This information helps the driver recognise that they have the correct exit. Once they are on the ramp, they'll then get updated instructions that are specific to the route they are actually taking.

[leocylau]

My client currently tells me to "exit left" regardless of how a slip road is named, or if it's even named before.

I've never seen my client (v2.0) say 'exit left'...

It used to be 'keep left'. I can't remember when it has been changed to 'exit left'. Maybe after installing 2.9.99.117 version.

[dmcconachie]

My client currently tells me to "exit left" regardless of how a slip road is named, or if it's even named before.

I've never seen my client (v2.0) say 'exit left'...

Actually happens too often in my opinion, eg I get exit instructions from a single carriageway minor highway!