I really have to disagree with Waze on this one. Even if the U-turn is 20 seconds faster, which if you have to wait to make a U-turn because of traffic or the red light there, I doubt it is going to be faster, the more sane route is always going to be getting on the ramp in front of you.
I would be giving my phone the finger while not waiting at the traffic light and getting on the ramp in front of me.
We’re in a no-win situation here. Particularly given that there is a dedicated U-turn lane here, we have to keep that u-turn allowed and I suspect that other drivers may prefer that uturn.
My advise in this situation would be to use your own common sense. Waze tries to find the fastest route based on AVERAGE travel times. If you know you’re going to hit a red, exit right and take the cloverleaf. If you think you’ll get a green at the uturn give it a try and it’ll probably save a couple minutes.
Remember that waze provides guidance but it’s up to you to use best judgement and follow relevant traffic regulations. We verify road regulations to our best ability in the map editor and then the routing computer handles the part of figuring out what’s the “fastest” or “best”. We don’t really have the power to play much with the nuances of the routing itself.
So feel free to exit right, or give the phone the finger, I’m sure it’ll get over it!
A dedicated U-turn lane there does make that a no-win for sure. Too bad there is no “preferred onramp” setting in Waze or a way to restrict the u-turn to get on the highway.
Oh well, my phone is used to me giving it the finger and 90% of the time I’m getting on heading 95-South from there.
Should I just clear the pile of user reports there and mark them as solved or not identified? Should a note be placed on that spot to indicate Waze is doing what it thinks is right even though it makes little sense to most of us?
Just for laughs, I tried routing from Centerville Rd to 295N and no matter how many times I did it and what time of the day I selected, the best route was shown taking the obvious on ramp to 95N. Weird.
Also worth noting: the pink route shown, takes you down Orchard Ave, which is a 1/4 mile of narrow bumpy hell.
In GooberKing’s defense, he in principal, as well as a few others of us, looked at that intersection for months and ran multiple route time tests and what he said happened was reproducible, the U-turn is faster. When we ran tests, set the start point as if one was waiting at that traffic signal… the extra half mile taking the long loop traveling at 30-40 mph will incur a 20-30 second increase in travel time, which might be longer than the time at the light… For example, if the light was already red when I approached, I’d take the U-turn… but if I saw the light turning red and knew I’d be sitting, then I’d turn right. Probably it’s a wash. Since he’s discussed that with the reporter, I’d say nothing more but ask the reporter if that explanation made sense and look for a reply.
