Apple Maps Traffic Info Expands to Six New Countries

[MacRumors]

Real-time traffic information in Apple Maps expanded to several new countries today, including Brunei, Kenya, Mozambique, Philippines, Nigeria, and Vietnam, according to Apple's Feature Availability page.

The feature will allow Apple Maps users in those countries to see traffic congestion as depicted through orange or red lines on roads where there's heavy traffic to contend with.

Details on traffic conditions are now available in Apple Maps in more than 70 countries around the world.

In addition to expanding traffic information to new countries, Apple also expanded the availability of indoor maps for malls to Arizona and updated the Feature Availability page to reflect the recent rollout of transit directions to Rome, Italy and Estonia.

Article Link: Apple Maps Traffic Info Expands to Six New Countries

 

[69Mustang]

Does anyone know the order in which the countries got the traffic info capability in Apple Maps? I wonder what criteria was used to make the decision.

 

[LeoCastillo]

Hm.. I live in Metro Manila and with our traffic there's no way you can reach UP from NAIA in just 24 minutes!

Leo

P.S. Oops I was wrong. I was thinking UP Diliman instead of UP Manila. Yes, this is possible.

 

[actcyclist]

great, so more countries can see inaccurate traffic information compared to google Maps.

 

[Jedwardoo]

Yes. Finally, Philippines is on the list!

Real-time traffic information in Apple Maps expanded to several new countries today, including Brunei, Kenya, Mozambique, Philippines, Nigeria, and Vietnam, according to Apple's Feature Availability page.

The feature will allow Apple Maps users in those countries to see traffic congestion as depicted through orange or red lines on roads where there's heavy traffic to contend with.

Details on traffic conditions are now available in Apple Maps in more than 70 countries around the world.

In addition to expanding traffic information to new countries, Apple also expanded the availability of indoor maps for malls to Arizona and updated the Feature Availability page to reflect the recent rollout of transit directions to Rome, Italy and Estonia.

Article Link: Apple Maps Traffic Info Expands to Six New Countries

 

[e1me5]

And I am still waiting for Cyprus to get Turn by Turn Voice instructions that Google Maps have for years.

 

[Jedwardoo]

Did it say walk or drive, Leo?

Hm.. I live in Metro Manila and with our traffic there's no way you can reach UP from NAIA in just 24 minutes!

Leo

[doublepost=1531472689][/doublepost]Maybe Cyprus will get their turn next month or soon?

Things take time, Apple really takes time. Lol.

And I am still waiting for Cyprus to get Turn by Turn Voice instructions that Google Maps have for years.

 

[BuffaloTF]

great, so more countries can see inaccurate traffic information compared to google Maps.

If you read the terms for Maps, you'd see they get their traffic data from Google. And from Waze. And then dozens of public transit authorities. In other words, it'd be the same as Google Maps.

 

[truthertech]

great, so more countries can see inaccurate traffic information compared to google Maps.

Please stop the fake news. The studies show that Apple Maps is most accurate when it comes to estimating impacts of traffic and getting you to your destination closest to their estimate.

 

[MozMan68]

Please stop the fake news. The studies show that Apple Maps is most accurate when it comes to estimating impacts of traffic and getting you to your destination closest to their estimate.

Seriously...every single iPhone is default set to share location information to help Maps with traffic and routing info. Every...single...phone.... since iOS9 (unless you can find out where to turn it off...)

Apple Maps updates routing times and traffic data WAY faster and more accurately then the other map apps.

Don't let all the fancy colors Google Maps shows you lure you into some false sense of security that it is actually correct at that exact moment.

btw...to access the traffic and routing input data sharing option...settings/privacy/location services....go all the way to the bottom to "System Services"...."Product Improvement" is listed...

 

[jonblatho]

If you read the terms for Maps, you'd see they get their traffic data from Google. And from Waze. And then dozens of public transit authorities. In other words, it'd be the same as Google Maps.

Alphabet and its subsidiaries are not mentioned once as a traffic data source in Apple Maps’s list of data sources.

That’s...kind of the point of Apple Maps. They wanted to stop paying Google.

 

[MozMan68]

Alphabet and its subsidiaries are not mentioned once in Apple Maps’s list of data sources.

That’s...kind of the point of Apple Maps. They wanted to stop paying Google.

Waze is clearly noted in there as “Map Data”.

 

[MozMan68]

Hm.. I live in Metro Manila and with our traffic there's no way you can reach UP from NAIA in just 24 minutes!

Leo

I guess you’re right...it’ll take 28 minutes according to Google....

 

[ISU Clones]

Yesterday I drove past an Apple Maps van on I-680 in Omaha.

 

[jonblatho]

Waze is clearly noted in there as “Map Data”.

Map data ≠ traffic data, but apologies for my having missed Waze in that list. Edited the post to correct/clarify.

 

[MozMan68]

Map data ≠ traffic data, but apologies for my having missed Waze in that list.

Yes it does...they stopped calling “traffic data” a while ago....I think...

 

[MozMan68]

Yes it does...they stopped calling “traffic data” a while ago....I think...

Edit: Maybe you’re right about the traffic from Waze...hard to confirm that with a search. Could just be closed road data.

Traffic seems to be just from iPjones from what I can find.

 

[jonblatho]

Yes it does...they stopped calling “traffic data” a while ago....I think...

“Map data” is not the same as traffic data. Waze had (and may still use, though I haven’t checked in detail as to whether they’ve switched to use Google’s) its own basemap from which Apple borrowed at some point, in some region, for Apple Maps—likely at launch as indicated by 2012 being the copyright date.

Real-time data would be cited as such, and there’s next to no chance that Waze would provide it to Apple without one hell of a licensing fee given that Apple’s in direct competition with Google for mapping services. The map data from Waze may also long since have been mostly or even completely overwritten with data from other sources.

(We’ll have to wait and see what happens as Apple expands its own basemap with the updates coming over the next year-plus, but I suspect that a lot of the data sources listed are going to vanish given some time.)

Apple crowdsources its traffic data from iOS devices and it’s been this way since 2013; this is well-publicized.

 

[BuffaloTF]

Alphabet and its subsidiaries are not mentioned once as a traffic data source in Apple Maps’s list of data sources.

That’s...kind of the point of Apple Maps. They wanted to stop paying Google.

http://gspa21.ls.apple.com/html/attribution.html

Yes it is.
[doublepost=1531512006][/doublepost]

“Map data” is not the same as traffic data. Waze had (and may still use, though I haven’t checked in detail as to whether they’ve switched to use Google’s) its own basemap from which Apple borrowed at some point, in some region, for Apple Maps—likely at launch as indicated by 2012 being the copyright date.

Real-time data would be cited as such, and there’s next to no chance that Waze would provide it to Apple without one hell of a licensing fee given that Apple’s in direct competition with Google for mapping services. The map data from Waze may also long since have been mostly or even completely overwritten with data from other sources.

(We’ll have to wait and see what happens as Apple expands its own basemap with the updates coming over the next year-plus, but I suspect that a lot of the data sources listed are going to vanish given some time.)

Apple crowdsources its traffic data from iOS devices and it’s been this way since 2013; this is well-publicized.

Apple gets it's maps from TeleAtlus. Waze provides traffic data to the map, and is compiled with Clear Channel's traffic stream, iOS user data, and municipal authorities. Just like other "map data" is exclusively POI information. It's a catch-all term, and they've received traffic data from them since inception of both Waze's monetization of their data and the launch of Apple Maps - both coincidentally happening in 2012. Apple's traffic data has always been top notch.

 

[LeoCastillo]

Leo
[doublepost=1531540754][/doublepost]

I guess you’re right...it’ll take 28 minutes according to Google....

Wait, you're right. I confused UP Manila with UP Diliman.

Leo

 

[Gasu E.]

Real-time data would be cited as such, and there’s next to no chance that Waze would provide it to Apple without one hell of a licensing fee given that Apple’s in direct competition with Google for mapping services.

Why not? Does Google actually enjoy being on the losing end of anti-trust suits?

Before Waze acquisition: data freely available under standard licensing terms.

After Waze acquisition: data not available to competitors of some other line of business of acquiring company.

Hmmm...

 

[jonblatho]

Why not? Does Google actually enjoy being on the losing end of anti-trust suits?

Before Waze acquisition: data freely available under standard licensing terms.

After Waze acquisition: data not available to competitors of some other line of business of acquiring company.

Hmmm...

No, they’d make it prohibitively expensive for everyone or, more realistically, disable it altogether. If Waze is as good as they say it is (it’s not, but whatever), it’d be a strong competitive advantage. At no time has Waze (or Google) been required by law to open its real-time data to anyone for any price.

 

[MozMan68]

Did a 13 hour drive from Alabama to Michigan on Saturday with Maps and Waze on.

Identical route from both until Indian until Waze tried to route me around some traffic. I stayed with Maps and it was there, but fine...I’m guessing Waze wanted to save me a minute or so.

Interestingly though, Waze’s original time estimate was 45 minutes faster than Apple’s....At the end of the trip, Apple’s estimate was the one that was spot on.

I guess longer trips is just not one of Waze’s strengths, although a couple of things:

- Love that Maps gives an arrival time in the time zone I’m ending in, Waze shows it in the current time zone.

- Apple MUST give the ability to enter a waypoint along the route like Waze does. Their food suggestions suck and only tell me what is coming up in typically the next ten miles. On a long trip, I want to know where I may want to stop WAY earlier than 10 minutes before I get there. Just let me search after the route has started and show me answers along the route.