Bad Directions: Wilmington US-74 crossing Cape Fear River

[brimmle]

Hello Waze editors,

I was using Waze to navigate to Wilmington, coming from the north down US-421, onto US-74.

Unfortunately, the Waze directions were incomplete, missing an important navigation step where US-74 splits into a left and a right exit. No directions were given at this junction, and the driver is forced to make an assumption about where to go.

I think the map needs to be edited so that navigation steps will include the green highway guide sign directions, either directing a driver to go left or right at this junction.

This is the list of navigation steps. After getting onto US-74E, the next “turn” expected is Dock St.

This is the map as shown to the driver. When presented with this split in the road, with exits both left and right, it appears as if you should go right, but actually you should go left. This is not clear.

The visual situation at the junction.

This is a potentially confusing situation for drivers unfamiliar with the road. I think things would be more clear if Waze told drivers to take the “Wilmington Downtown” exit.

Thanks!!!

[dfortney]

Hello brimmle, and thank you for taking the time to find this forum and post this information, complete with pictures!

Short answer is we’re taking your suggestion and adding an instruction there. Longer answer if your’re interested:

What you are describing is something we volunteer map editors call a “wayfinder”. Waze by default does not provide a driving instruction to continue on the same roadway, but under certain circumstances it can be helpful to have that additional instruction. Wayfinders have been the source of debate, as some (perhaps most) Waze users prefer to keep the directions to a minimum, and the volunteer community has leaned toward that point of view, shying away from wayfinders except in certain confusing situations. Wayfinder criteria

The situation you outlined definitely meets the criteria (for example - only one lane continues to Downtown after the exit right), so I’ve added a “Stay to the Left” instruction for that route. The exit to the right already had an Exit instruction, and that is being left as-is.