This page serves as the primary resource for editors of Missouri. Review all the sections to better understand how the guidelines for this state might deviate from the overall USA or worldwide guidelines. If you have any comments or questions about this page or state refer to the community links below.
No general message at this time.
Introduction
Missouri is a part of the Plains region, which includes the states and/or territories of:
Before editing the maps in Missouri, be sure to fully review and understand the editing manual.
The Waze user community follows the Waze etiquette guidelines discussed in the Wiki. Be sure to familiarize yourself with these guiding principals while editing the maps and this Wiki, as well as when communicating with other Waze users.
The Waze forum is a great place to find answers to previously asked questions and also a place to ask new ones. Below are links to the forums specific to Missouri.
One of the most common errors when editing the maps is when an editor creates a road and does not confirm the road by setting the city and road name (or stating it has none).
Some states and territories manage a separate page on cities and towns to identify the specific city names that should be entered, and no others. For states that do not have a separate page to track the names, see this Wikipedia link and find the state or territory in question.
Missouri has two types of state highways: primary (numbered) and supplementary (lettered). The table below shows the minimum classification for state highways. These are only minimums and may need to be upgraded based on the Functional Classification or the qualities defined on the road types Wiki page.
MO Hwy Type
Waze Road Type
Minor Highway
Primary Street
State Highway Naming
Missouri primary numbered highways are named as MO-### (e.g. MO-13, MO-7 N). This includes their related business, loops, and spurs. (e.g. MO-13 BUS)
Missouri supplementary lettered highways are named as SH-xx. (e.g. SH-AA) This will pronounce via TTS as "State Highway A A". Lettered highways classified as 'Major Collector' according to MoDOT are designated as a Primary Street within Waze. This is because Major Collector in rural areas are not arterials that carry traffic over long distances. Additionally, these roads often lack shoulders and white fog lines. In other areas where MoDOT has classified a lettered highway as 'Minor Arterial' or higher, these would be designated as appropriate within Waze.
County Road Naming
County roads with the name designation of "County Road ###" are named as CR-### (e.g. CR-110). This shortened version takes up less space on the map screen and is announced correctly as "County Road ###" while navigating with the Waze app.
Farm Road Naming
Farm roads with the name designation of "Farm Road ###" are named as Farm Rd ### (e.g. Farm Rd 110).
The table below shows a cross reference for the minimum road types in Missouri. Keep in mind that these are only minimums, and may need to be upgraded based on the qualities defined on the road type guidelines.
MODOT Classification
Waze Road Type
Interstate
Freeway
Expressway
Major Highway
Principal Arterial
Major Highway
Minor Arterial
Minor Highway
Urban Collector
Primary Street
Major Collector
Primary Street
Minor Collector
Primary Street
Local Road
Street
Lock Levels
In Missouri we have a set minimum standard for locking roads based on segment type. Any road of a certain segment type must be locked at least to the rank (level) in the chart below. Roads may be locked higher for protection and special situations (areas with construction, tricky design, frequent mistakes, imaging inaccuracies, and the like), but should not be locked lower.
A great time to implement these locks is while bringing the road types of an area into compliance with the current US road type standards (FC and highway systems). Lock the roads based on type after they've been set to current US road type standards.
Missouri Minimum Locking Rank Standard
Segment Type
Statewide
Freeway
4
Ramp
Highest rank of connected segments
Major Highway
3
Minor Highway
3
Primary Street
2
Street
1
• • • • Ferry • • • •
5
|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-| Railroad |-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|
2
U-Turns
U-turns are generally permitted in Missouri except where prohibited by state, local municipal law, or posted signage. U-turns are specifically prohibited at intersections controlled by a traffic signal. See MO Statute 304.341(2) for complete legal restrictions.
For Waze routing, u-turns should ONLY be enabled where they provide the potential for improved routing, which includes recovering from missed turns. A common example is a median-divided primary street that has homes/businesses with their driveways/entrances directly on it, where reaching them would otherwise require lengthy, multi-turn deviations through side roads in order to end up on the correct side of the median.
The u-turn must also meet the following criteria:
The u-turn is explicitly allowed by signage or is otherwise legal and safe according to MO Statute 304.341(2).
The turn can be completed in one continuous movement. This is not a specific legal requirement in Missouri, however would be good practice for safer navigation.
There is at least 15 meters (49 feet) from the right edge of the legal departure lane to the right edge of the "destination" curb (49 foot turning circle).
There is no sign prohibiting a u-turn.
Note that when editing, a functional u-turn can arise from more than just the u-turn flag on a road segment, such as with these common scenarios:
Divided roads with box and partial-box intersections where the median segment is 15 m (49 feet) or longer.
Divided roads with explicitly-mapped inside turn lanes unless the turn arrow in the u-turn direction is disabled.
Special roads
Drivable roads
Missouri follows the standard USA guidelines for all of the following special road types.
Review the Wiki guidelines for non-drivable roads to ensure compliance with the general guidelines.
Alleyways
Alleys are drivable roads passing between or behind buildings and are not intended for thru-traffic. They can be an important component in routing when primary access is not on a local street or drivers start or end a route on an alley. However, their existence also presents many routing problems. Please avoid mapping alleys unless they meet the criteria set below:
Alleys should only be considered for mapping when one of the following criteria is met:
a) the main access to a business entrance is on an alley,
b) a parking lot entrance is in an alley,
c) current GPS tracks support a residential alley that is frequently used and would benefit from being added to the map, or
d) a UR indicates an alley should be added.
Please do not add every alley in a residential neighborhood.
All alleys should have their road type set to Parking Lot Road and should be named "Alley".
Please consult with an AM or SM before adding or removing alleys to verify whether a certain alley would meet the criteria to be mapped.
Driveways in Rural Areas
In rural areas, it may be helpful to a driver to see driveways mapped in the client app or even necessary for Waze to determine how to reach the destination. In those cases it may be prudent to map a segment, even if shorter than the general Driveways recommendation of 200 feet. See the article on Driveways for more information. This offers a number of benefits:
When traveling at high speeds on rural/county highways, the turn guidance onto the driveway provides advance warning of their upcoming destination.
Where roads may stretch for miles with no landmarks or other features in the landscape, driveways provide a sense of location and orientation, especially at night.
When not mapped, a user on the driveway may instead be mistakenly snapped to the main road, causing bad speed data and unwanted or confusing directions.
When mapping Driveways, use the Parking Lot Road type.
Mapping House Numbers on Driveways
If the addresses for properties on the driveway are known, delete the relevant House Numbers and add Residential Place Points (RPPs). Make sure the RPP is complete with address number, street name, city name, and entry/exit point as noted in the House Numbers page.
Urban Driveways
Urban driveways do not qualify for mapping in most circumstances unless they meet certain route-aiding criteria as defined in the national standards for Driveways.
Closures
When managing a section of roadway under construction or being closed for a major event, follow the Wiki guidelines on construction zones and Real time closures.
An Update Request (UR) is a Map Issue reported by a user from the Waze client app. It is also a layer in the Map Editor. See update requests for more information.
As of August 2024, Missouri has adopted a 1/4/7 (a.k.a. 4/3) system for response to Update Requests. This standard is consistent with the rest of the Plains Region, along with a number of other states.
Day 1
We typically want to answer a report within 24 hours, but this should be at least attempted within the first 3 days.
The first thing to do is to look at the UR and try to figure out the issue that happened. It is imperative to look at everything before ultimately deciding that you don't get it. If you click on More Information you can look at the Waze provided route and what the user took to determine this issues. Check the area roads for any restrictions, incorrect elevation, incorrect street names, bad geometry, etc.
If you can figure out the issue, Fix it or submit an unlock request!
Example:
"Volunteer editor here… thanks for your report! I made a few edits here to improve future routing. It should be available in the app within about a week. Feel free to report any other issue you find along your travels. Thanks!"
If you don't have enough information to solve the issue, ask the reporter for more information.
Example
"Volunteer editor here - unfortunately Waze did not give us much information about your issue. Could you tell us more about what went wrong? What was your final destination? Thanks!"
Day 4
If the reporter has not responded 4 days after the initial comment, post a reminder like the one below. Sometimes a reporter simply misses the initial comment, and a reminder might come at just the right time to trigger a response with more detail.
Example
Just checking in - if there's still an issue we should look into, please reply using the app (Waze can't handle email responses). Otherwise, we'll assume all is well and close this out in a few days. Thanks!
Day 7
If there is not enough information to solve the issue, and the reporter has not responded within 7 days of initial editor comment (or day 3 after a reminder message), a message should be sent telling the reported that we were unable to fix the problem. The Update Request then needs to be closed as Not Identified.
Example
"Volunteers received no response and can’t find anything wrong with the current map. Please feel free to submit a new report if you encounter any issues in the future. Thanks!
Stale URs / Rural Areas
Sometimes URs turn up in areas of Missouri with few active editors. In these cases, the 1/4/7 rule still applies, with "Day 1" being the first day an editor requests more info from the user. Messages like the example below have often succeeded in getting information from 6+ month-old reports.
Example:
Volunteer editor here - thanks for your patience as we've been extra busy with reports lately. Waze did not send much information about your issue. Can you by any chance remember what went wrong out here near [general location]? What was your final destination? Thanks!
Places
Missouri follows the USA standard for Places. Do not deviate from the guidelines without first obtaining consensus to do so via the state forum linked on this page.
Hospitals / Urgent Care
Only Hospitals, Emergency Rooms, and Urgent Care Facilities should use the Hospital / Urgent Care category. This category is to be used for places offering urgent / emergency care. Other medical facilities such as clinics and medical offices which do not offer urgent medical care for walk-ins should be categorized as "Doctor/Clinic" . Hospitals should be mapped as an Area Place encompassing the entire medical facility. Additionally, hospital Emergency Room entrances should be mapped as a Point Place at the ER entrance to aid in navigating to the proper entrance. Map non-24/7 urgent care as a place point even if a standalone building. For full details consult Places/Hospitals_and_urgent_care
In the Plains region, stations are named as Station Name (Brand). If the station brand is unknown, then Station Name. If the station name and brand are the same, then Brand. For example:
MinitMart (Shell)
[Store Name (Brand)]
Joe's Gas & Tackle
[Store Name with no Brand]
QuikTrip
[Store Name & Brand are the same]
Places Minimum Acceptable Information
All Places added to the map must contain the following entries:
Proper Category
Place Name
Address (including address numbers)
Placed in the correct location on the map
This is the minimum acceptable amount of information for inclusion on the map.
Places Locking Standard
Missouri Place Lock Level Standards
Place Type
Lock Level
Military Installation / Airport
4
Hospitals / Urgent Care / Police & Fire Dept
4
National & State Parks and Monuments
4
Gas Stations / Charging Stations
3
Schools / Universities / Colleges
3
Government Buildings / Consulates
3
City and Local Parks
3
All other places with complete information
3
Complete information includes at a minimum:
Proper Category
Place Name
Address/City (including address numbers)
Placed in the correct location on the map
Hours of operation (if available)
Phone number
These locks are in place to prevent loss of data due to automatic acceptance of Place Update submissions from Trusted Users, or Place Update Request approvals from other editors without careful examination.
If you do not have a high enough enough rank to lock the place as indicated, please lock it as high as you can, and notify a higher rank AM, SM, CM, or Champ to lock it higher.
Place Name Harmonization
These name spellings are standardized so that Wazers will receive consistent results when searching in the client. Please use them when you edit one of these chain or franchise businesses.
If you don't find the business you're looking for, please use this form to submit the missing information.
Not every camera-looking device at an intersection is a speed or red light camera. Generally speaking:
a speed camera takes a photograph of a vehicle when it passes by the camera at too high a speed.
a red light camera takes a photograph of a vehicle that enters an intersection after the light is red. In some areas, it takes the photograph when a vehicle is not clear of the intersection some period after the light turns red.
When adding a camera, be sure to review the camera placement recommendations.
Laws regarding speed and red light cameras vary between the states and territories, so be sure to understand the details of camera legality in Missouri.
Based on information researched at the time this page was created, red light and speed cameras are illegal statewide in Missouri.
No other camera types should be mapped in Waze.
Although speed and red light cameras are permitted in Missouri, at the time of this update there are pending Missouri Supreme Court cases regarding the legality of them and how they are used. This topic will need to be watched and updated accordingly when resolved.
Currently, I have taken affirmative action and deleted all the red light cameras we had in the KC metro area. Due to indefinite terms of when or even if the cameras would come back online, I felt it was not necessary to keep alerting users to what is now, dummy cameras. Since they are inactive and currently disabled, I felt it was not necessary to keep erroneously warning users of cameras that aren't even of legal bounds at this moment. Until further rulings and general public vote on different bills, I feel this is the best action to serve the Waze users in this area and they can better focus on other situations that come up instead. I hope you understand my position on this and why I have done this. I would do this for the rest of the state, but figured the bigger impact right now is the larger metro areas. STL might be included in this decision after further AM/SM/RC discussions. Thanks for your cooperation and you can always send me a message if you need more clarification on this. -the1who
Update 9/2017
Cameras are now illegal statewide. The city of Hannibal has elected to continue using red light cameras at designated intersections. Those are in place in the map. All other cameras have been removed from the map at this time. -ehepner1977
Other Camera Types
These are cameras or signs that either provide driver feedback or are used for traffic control. These devices CAN NOT issue tickets and SHOULD NOT be mapped.
Non-camera "driver feedback signs" are a radar/laser equipped sign that measures speed and displays the speed back to the driver. These can be fixed or trailer mounted with the later being much more prevalent.
There are also cameras mounted on traffic signals that are used as part of the signal control. These compare sequential images of the intersection approach to determine if there is a vehicle (car, truck, motorcycle, bicycle, etc) waiting and will trigger the sequence.
There are traditional traffic monitoring cameras covering most of the major highways in the state. These send live video to MODOT & local media and serve ONLY as a traffic monitoring system.
To do list
Many states and territories keep an active list of pending or closed actions that need to be done in the state by the editors. All editors are welcome to contribute to the list of activities.
This state does not currently have an active "to do" list at this time. Check in the Missouri section of the Waze forums to discuss creating one.
Area Managers
The table below identifies the editors also designated as Area Managers or higher who are editing in Missouri. If you have any questions, please consider contacting them directly as needed. If you are an Area Manager that covers Missouri, or a USA Country Manager that does a lot of work in Missouri, please add yourself to this list (alphabetical by username) in the correct rank section.
The editor who also serves as the Regional Coordinator for Missouri is automatically listed at the top of the table. That editor may not be highly active in this state and therefore may not be listed separately in the table.
Missouri — Area, State, Country Managers, and Regional Coordinators
