In line with our Revised Waze Editing Philosophy, our mapping standards have changed in 2020. For more information, see new technology, new mapping standards.
Micro-doglegs
Micro-doglegs are map hacks have been used by map editors to:
- Force turn instructions before turn instruction overrides were introduced
- Force lane arrows before lane arrow overrides were introduced
- Bypass the automated u-turn prevention mechanism
- Make junction locations stand out on the map before the on-route turn arrow overlay was introduced, and more.
They are no longer valid, as the Waze Map Editor and app limitations that necessitated them have been addressed with native features, and they can cause problems with snapper which is sensitive to the angle of the driver’s movements. The map needs to be as accurate as possible and representative of reality: the position of the segment on the road, and the direction and angle of intersecting segments are important to snapper.
Where found, micro-doglegs should be removed, and the segments mapped with the above guiding principles. Add Voice Prompts (previously known as turn instruction overrides) and Lane Angle Overrides (LAOs) where necessary to provide the best driver experience.
Below are some examples of what to look out for and remove:
Segment stubs
Fictional segments added to an intersection to manipulate lane guidance. Not allowed, please remove if you find it.
Roundabout hack
Physically impossible turns on a roundabout to manipulate instructions. Not allowed, please remove if you find it. Failure to do so will make Gil cry.
Segment map hack
Poor practice to manipulate routing based on times. Remove where possible to replace.
Wayfinder Short Stub Segments
A wayfinder is a junction that instructs users on a certain road how to continue on that same road, in situations where it may be unclear, and there would otherwise be no instruction. The simplest case of this is a surface road with half of its travel lanes splitting off to another road, half of its travel lanes continuing on the same road, and no overhead signs with extra information. A single turn instruction override can force an instruction to provide wayfinding for the continuing traffic. Source: USA/Wayfinder
In some cases, short segments or "stubs" were intentionally created with the purpose of forcing the Waze app to make an specific voice announcement. With the introduction of Turn Guidance, the interface was changed in WME to allow editors complete control over the TTS announcement provided to users. With this, and that short segments are known to create some technical issues, this practice is now considered obsolete. These short segment "stubs" with the specific purpose of providing wayfindering announcements should be removed and the TTS corrected on the subsequent segment by an editor of a suitable level and editing ability.