Coming back (hat in hand)
Hi all,
I was a user and editor on Waze a number of years ago and participated quite a bit... a decision that was made at the administrative level (well above anyone here) rubbed me the wrong way and I walked away. Hopefully, not burning too many bridges, but we'll see.
I am a firefighter and work at a 911 dispatch center as well, so I have some pretty intimate knowledge of mapping and road situations in a sizable chunk of Alberta. The data provided to fire agencies and 911 centers is straight from the horse's mouth (municipalities and the road operators themselves), as it were, so there's rarely a better source of information.
In case anyone cares, the reason I am deciding to come back is multi-fold - one, with any luck the issue I got so hung up on that prompted me to jump ship may be dealt with; two, Waze is clearly getting more and more mainstream and integrated in systems; three, I had some obligations in the past to other mapping products that meant I couldn't always run Waze, but that's now over; and finally four, I learned of a product/system today that is interfacing with Waze and potentially going to make a big deal in the emergency services industry.
I don't intend for this to be an advertisement; but I want you to be aware of it and how groundbreaking it is. Emergency services all over this continent, and many (far too many, far too often) in Alberta, are endangered by inattentive drivers every time they get out on the road. The unluckiest of us get struck. Over the winter, in the same week, a crew west of Calgary had their truck hit and a crew north of Calgary had their truck hit hard enough that it was totaled. Luckily in both cases there were relatively minor injuries, but several cases each month involve injuries or deaths somewhere in North America. (Saying "several cases each month" is kind of aggravating.)
Anyway, I learned of this product today that is interfacing with Waze. I am not sure if it is American only at this stage or if it will be offered in Canada, but it basically does what fire crews have wanted for ages - it lets all the vehicles around you know (via Waze) that an emergency is happening. You'd think that flashing lights and giant 17-ton bright red vehicles would be enough of a clue, but evidently not.
(I tried to attach a link to the story on this device but I think the forum software blocked it. It's called a HAAS Alert system, and uploads "emergency ahead" notifications to Waze whenever the attached emergency vehicle's flashing lights are switched on.)
I intend to pitch the idea to my fire chief of getting one of these devices for one of our busiest trucks as a test. If they work as advertised, this could be a huge deal for emergency services and traffic notifications.
I was a user and editor on Waze a number of years ago and participated quite a bit... a decision that was made at the administrative level (well above anyone here) rubbed me the wrong way and I walked away. Hopefully, not burning too many bridges, but we'll see.
I am a firefighter and work at a 911 dispatch center as well, so I have some pretty intimate knowledge of mapping and road situations in a sizable chunk of Alberta. The data provided to fire agencies and 911 centers is straight from the horse's mouth (municipalities and the road operators themselves), as it were, so there's rarely a better source of information.
In case anyone cares, the reason I am deciding to come back is multi-fold - one, with any luck the issue I got so hung up on that prompted me to jump ship may be dealt with; two, Waze is clearly getting more and more mainstream and integrated in systems; three, I had some obligations in the past to other mapping products that meant I couldn't always run Waze, but that's now over; and finally four, I learned of a product/system today that is interfacing with Waze and potentially going to make a big deal in the emergency services industry.
I don't intend for this to be an advertisement; but I want you to be aware of it and how groundbreaking it is. Emergency services all over this continent, and many (far too many, far too often) in Alberta, are endangered by inattentive drivers every time they get out on the road. The unluckiest of us get struck. Over the winter, in the same week, a crew west of Calgary had their truck hit and a crew north of Calgary had their truck hit hard enough that it was totaled. Luckily in both cases there were relatively minor injuries, but several cases each month involve injuries or deaths somewhere in North America. (Saying "several cases each month" is kind of aggravating.)
Anyway, I learned of this product today that is interfacing with Waze. I am not sure if it is American only at this stage or if it will be offered in Canada, but it basically does what fire crews have wanted for ages - it lets all the vehicles around you know (via Waze) that an emergency is happening. You'd think that flashing lights and giant 17-ton bright red vehicles would be enough of a clue, but evidently not.
(I tried to attach a link to the story on this device but I think the forum software blocked it. It's called a HAAS Alert system, and uploads "emergency ahead" notifications to Waze whenever the attached emergency vehicle's flashing lights are switched on.)
I intend to pitch the idea to my fire chief of getting one of these devices for one of our busiest trucks as a test. If they work as advertised, this could be a huge deal for emergency services and traffic notifications.
Re: Coming back (hat in hand)