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Waze does not expect or want Lane Guidance to be applied to every junction with multiple lanes. |
Considerations for Lane Guidance
As with all mapping in WME, less is more. Lane Guidance is intended to help with potentially confusing junctions; these have historically raised URs and may already have been mapped with extra segments and TIOs to simulate lane guidance.
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Lane Guidance will appear in the client approx 1km in advance of a junction for mH road types and above, 500m in advance for lower road types. |
Lane Guidance should never be used when a single lane is used for all directions (unless required as part of a wider heuristic H / # junction), nor should Lane Guidance ever contain more lanes than are available to the user.
Lane Guidance should not be mapped when there is only one possible route no matter the number of available lanes (unless required as part of a wider heuristic H / # junction).
Lane Guidance should not be mapped for filter lanes for side roads. These are not running lanes but allow vehicles to stop off the main carriageway line to ensure traffic flow is maintained.
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Single lane for all directions
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Multiple lanes with single direction
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Filter lane
Keep left/keep right junctions
Using current rules for keep left/keep right, Lane Guidance should not be added to simple motorway or highway junctions (exits) unless it meets the requirements for KL / KR.
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Lane Guidance does not currently have text-to-speech so any existing KL / KR TIOs added to the map should be retained. |
Complex junctions
Lane Guidance should allow us to simplify many complex junctions, making the map cleaner and clearer in the client. When simplifying a junction, you should consider how it may affect routing through the junction. Additional turn lanes are often physically mapped to control u-turns better; you may wish to remind yourself of how to control u-turns at H and # junctions. You should also try to preserve any verbal instructions given through a junction to ensure the simplification does not harm user experience.
Bus lane at junction
Restricted lanes
Junctions that include a restricted lane should not be mapped with Lane Guidance at this time. There is currently no way to mark a lane as being restricted by vehicle type or time. Due to this, any Lane Guidance mapping is likely to cause confusion as the guidance displayed will not match what the Wazer sees on the ground.
Lane Guidance limitations
Segments with only one exit direction can not have multiple lane directions mapped using Lane Guidance.
Because of this limitation, Junction Boxes will need to be used, for which only one lane guidance for the whole Junction Box can be used. This means that Roundabouts can only have one instruction, which will be on entering the Junction Box / Roundabout.
Turn Guidance Overrides will only display if there is an associated turn instruction, only Straight (without voice/with voice) will show where there is no turn instruction
Adding Lane Guidance
Animated gif, you may need to click the image to load animation
- Select the segment
- Click on the Lanes tab
- Click Add lane guidance for the appropriate direction of travel (you may only see 1 option)
- Change the number of lanes to match the road layout (in the direction of travel only) at the point of the exit node
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The choice of Lane Guidance turns shown for each segment is initially determined by the angle of the exit segments, snapping to the nearest 45 degree angle
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This is not the same angles as used for verbal instructions; using the JAI script will help but is not always correct for Lanes. Example: Straight on (not instructed); Verbal: ±45 degrees from straight, Lanes: ±22.5 degrees from straight. -
Select the lane check box*(es)* that apply for each of the generated turns
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You can override the suggested lane guidance directions by clicking on the arrow image for each group of lanes
Disabling a turn with Lane Guidance will delete all store information; if the same turn is re-enabled, Lane Guidance will need to be input again.
Changing the angle of junction segments that already have Lane Guidance may lead to issues with how Lane Guidance is displayed in the app.
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Do not split segments to provide Lane Guidance before a junction; this will cause a loss of all Lane Guidance data on the segment. |
Continue straight arrows
It is possible to override the behaviour of Lane Guidance when you map a junction with straight-ahead arrows; this override is unique to each mapped segment and can not be set globally for a junction. The behaviour is as follows;
- Waze default - the client will only show the mapped straight ahead arrow(s) if there is an associated instruction
- Without voice - the client will show the straight-ahead arrow(s) regardless of the need for an instruction, this is a visual instruction and will not display as the Next Turn
- With voice - the client will provide a verbal continue straight instruction (similar to a TIO) and also show the straight-ahead arrow(s), this will be displayed as the Next turn
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If you are adding a straight ahead override to a junction that is a candidate for heuristics, the override must be added to the entry segment only. |
H / # Junction mapping
For H or # junctions that are;
- mapped at near 90 degrees
- have near parallel segments
- and have a median segment of 50m or less
Waze will combine Lane Guidance, using a heuristic approach, to give the appropriate images depending on the direction of the route through the junction. The Lane Guidance should be mapped in sections through the junction as shown below:
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H junction Lane Guidance
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1. Add Lane Guidance to entry segments
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2. Add Lane Guidance to the median segments
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3. Heuristics will combine them for the client
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4. All directions mapped
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# junction Lane Guidance
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1. Add Lane Guidance to entry segments
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2. Add Lane Guidance to median segments
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3. NB - Heuristics will combine them for the client
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4. EB - Heuristics will combine them for the client
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5. SB - Heuristics will combine them for the client
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7. WB - Heuristics will combine them for the client
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6. All directions mapped
Lanes suggested by WME will not include the U-turn option; this is created automatically by the system.
You should always add Lane Guidance to the entire H or # junction to ensure the heuristics work correctly and to prevent unwanted instructions from an unmapped direction. Heuristics will not work for more complex junctions or those not fitting the stated criteria.
Roundabouts with Lane Guidance on approach
Roundabouts can be mapped with Lane Guidance. A Junction Box needs to be mapped around the roundabout, so it can only be added by editors with L4+ rank.
After adding the Junction Box, Lane Guidance can be added at each entrance to the roundabout. Each exit will be listed as a far lane when lane guidance is added. Add the number of lanes at the entrance point and enable the appropriate lane for each exit. Select the correct turn arrow as marked on the road surface - usually left or straight for the first exit and straight for all other exits. A right turn arrow can occasionally indicate a right turn or last exit. The U-turn should match the last exit unless there is a specific sign for a U-turn. The position and voice overrides can be left as default.
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The Junction Box Util script allows you to add a rough-shaped Junction Box, and the script will automatically redraw it neatly around the roundabout. |
Bypass Lanes
Some roundabouts include Bypass Lanes. These are lanes that allow traffic to avoid entering the roundabout.
| Roundabout with junction box and lane guidance. | Lane guidance being edited with relevant lanes enabled and directional arrows selected |
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Roundabout bypass lane with simple Exit Left.
Roundabout bypass with lane drop.
If the roundabout being mapped has a bypass lane, the junction box path must be disabled. Doing so will remove that path from the list of available exits when lane guidance is added.
Simple Exit
If the bypass lane is a simple exit from the main road without a drop-lane, it does not need to be part of the junction box. A simple Exit Left instruction is sufficient, with no lane guidance.
Lane Drop
If the bypass lane involves a lane drop from the approaching road, the mapped junction box should be stretched to include the segment before the divergence point. The Lane Guidance should be mapped from that point, with the bypass lane using the immediate turn and the roundabout’s lane guidance as far lanes. If the length between the divergence and the roundabout is less than 50m (164ft), then the lane guidance countdown will be shown to the roundabout.
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Push instructions cause nagivation display issues and should therefore not be used - please use alternative solution below |
Showing the lane guidance position change.
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~If it’s more than 50m, the countdown will be shown to the divergence point, with no lane guidance at the roundabout. This needs to be fixed by changing the Position instruction so that “drivers will see the instruction towards the first turn point” or Pushed. This will ensure the lane guidance is shown at the roundabout, regardless of distance.~
~Consider if the number of lanes between the divergence point and the roundabout changes. If the number is different, then with our current mapping tools, it will not be possible to map both the lane guidance at the divergence point and the roundabout. Work out which will be best for the driver and map that. With the possible improvements to the Paths feature, it may be possible to map these.~
Painted Chevrons
When a road includes painted chevrons near where vehicles queue at the roundabout, drivers can get confused if that lane isn’t included in the lane guidance. However, the mapping above means that direction is not shown in the lane guidance selections screen. To overcome this limitation, we can set the junction box path to restricted instead of setting the junction box path to disabled
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If the junction box path is already disabled, it will need to be re-enabled, then saved, before it will allow you to set it as restricted |
To set a restriction, hover over the green arrow for the path exit, then select + next to Restrictions. Apply a 24/7 restriction prohibiting all vehicles. Now, in Lane Guidance, you can select the bypass lane as a lane to the left, even though no drivers will get that as guidance.
Removing Lane Guidance
To remove Lane Guidance, select the lanes tab for the segment, then edit lane guidance, then change the number of lanes to zero (0).