This page serves as the primary resource for editors of Arizona. 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.
Introduction
Arizona is a part of the Southwest region, which includes the states and/or territories of:
Thank you for your interest in editing the Waze maps for the State of Arizona. Please note Arizona follows the US national guidance with a few exceptions. Be sure to click on and read every link from this page for in-depth tips, guidance and advice.
All editors should have a real username, not a usa_username and are required to have their private messaging turned on.
Refer to the Glossary for common Waze related terms.
Tip: Editors are strongly encouraged to download & install the Waze Validator Plugin. This tool will identify map errors and offers guidance on how to fix them. Use this to identify issues in areas you are working on but make sure not to be distracted by errors that do not pertain to you.
Mapping resources
Before editing the maps in Arizona, 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 Arizona.
New editors should consider checking into the formal mentoring program available at no charge.
Formal Mentoring is a great tool to quickly learn the ropes of editing correctly and efficiently. It includes the potential for accelerated rank and role upgrades.
Contact via Social Media
The Arizona editing community communicates using Google Hangouts (GHO), Facebook, Twitter, and Discord. All social media accounts are run by senior state editors, and are not supervised by Waze, nor are they official Waze accounts.
Arizona on Discord
Discord has been adopted as the preferred method of communication by the Waze community. Users can chat with local editors and area/state/regional management. To create an account for the Southwest Region and gain access to the Arizona channel, click the link below.
Arizona has a Google Hangout (GHO) for the state, which is used to chat with local editors and area/state/regional management. If you're a new/existing editor in Arizona or even if you're just visiting and want to relay information to local editors you can do so by clicking the link below to jump into the group.
Google Hangouts is a free app available on Android and iOS devices. You also can use an extension in the Chrome Web Browser to access this chat. Go to GHO Extension to add the extension.
Arizona on Twitter
The Arizona Twitter account is where we post real-time closure notifications. These are mainly due to crashes, weather, or other incidents. We also interact with other Twitter users here.
Our Facebook account echos all Twitter posts, and provides us the ability to post more detailed information. This is where we share information on local closures, construction, traffic trivia, and any other information related to Waze and driving in Arizona.
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.
Arizona's Functional Classification settings are dictated by the Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT), at the request of the local jurisdictions. If you do not agree with our FC levels, please petition ADOT to change the rating they've assigned.
Regarding FC and roads on Native American (Indian Reservation) land. As Waze AZ strictly follows the State FC, the reservation roads in AZ may differ from what Waze common standards may be. The State FC takes into account certain issues on reservation roads, as in, differences in laws, local opinion on basic public access, and also a lack of public services which can also mean a lack of safety. Although a reservation road has the possibility of being a shorter route, we will not sacrifice time and distance in lieu of the issues stated above. Also note that some reservation roads, although dirt, may be classified as street or even PS (if state FC dictates PS), as that road may be the main, and only road in and out of some communities.
DO NOT MAKE RANDOM CHANGES ON YOUR OWN.
Locking Standard
In Arizona 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.
Arizona Minimum Locking Rank Standard
Segment Type
Default locks
Freeway
5
Ramp
Highest rank of connected segments
Major Highway
4
Minor Highway
3
Primary Street
2
Street
1
• • • • Ferry • • • •
5
|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-| Railroad |-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|
2
Additional Guidance
See Arizona/Major roads for additional guidance in procedures specific to editing Major Roads in Arizona.
Special roads
Drivable roads
Arizona 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.
Walking Trails and Pedestrian Boardwalks
It is the policy of Arizona that we do not map Walking Trails or Pedestrian Boardwalks. Waze is a navigation application, and walking trails do not add to that function, since they do not display on the map, and serve no routing purposes.
AZ Management - Nov 2014
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.
See Arizona/Closures for guidance in Arizona that may not be universal to all other states and territories.
Places
Arizona 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.
Locking Standard
Places should be completed as fully as possible any time they are created or updated. At a minimum, editors should:
verify correct spelling of the name, using the guidelines below
complete the address, to help when choosing among search results in the app, and
ensure the correct location of the Point or Stop Point, to guide drivers to the correct location. Note that this may not always be on the street side of the location.
Phone numbers and opening hours are also particularly helpful to Wazers. Complete them whenever possible, using an online search, if necessary. Photos should help Wazers recognize the destination when they arrive.
Recommended phone number formats: (987) 654-3210 or 987-654-3210 Others may not auto-dial properly in some phones.
ARIZONA 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
Universities / Colleges
4
All Places that have complete information (to include, at a minimum, address/city, hours of operation, phone number) are to be locked at Level 3. There is no need to lock places to their highest level until most of their information is completed, but do lock to a level higher than 1, once you have verified any information. This is 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.
Naming Standard
In an effort to standardize Place Names, Arizona uses the following list of Common names. Please note the appropriate category name, as well as the listed spelling. This is necessary for the proper display of any advertising associated with the site (i.e. SUBWAY discounts)
If a name is missing, please let a State Manager know, and it will be added to the list.
Area Editing
Area MappingWhen creating an Area, map it to the primary boundary of the of the area.
For instance, if you are mapping a shopping center, this means that you map the area to cover the shopping center buildings Only, and not the parking lots.
The exception to this rule is If you are mapping a school, you would map out to the fence line (if visible) or to a reasonable distance from the school. Contact a AM, SM, CM, or Champ for assistance.
Hospitals / Urgent Care
Hospital MappingA special Category of Hospital/Urgent Care is used for Hospitals, Medical Centers, Emergency Rooms, and Urgent Care facilities. ONLY Hospitals, Medical Centers, Emergency Rooms, and places offering Urgent Medical Care should use this category. Clinics and medical offices which do not offer urgent medical care for Walk-Ins should use the Doctor/Clinic category instead.
Set the Stop Point over the Main Entrance to the facility. Additionally, map the Emergency Entrance with the same category name, but place it over the emergency entrance location. ERs encompassed in a hospital Place Area should be Points.
Layered Areas
Places which are part of a larger encompassing place (i.e. place points for lot in a university area, Separate ER entrances in a hospital area, etc.) should be named with their unique name followed by a hyphen and the name of the larger area they belong to. For example "E.R. - Generic Medical Center"
Parking Lots
The Parking Lot Place marks a well-defined area constructed for off-street public parking, including parking structures and garages as well as at-grade lots. There are many elements that must be considered before deciding to map a parking lot. Currently, the details are covered in Places/Parking lot.
Cameras
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 Arizona.
Based on information researched at the time this page was created, red light and speed cameras are permitted statewide in Arizona.
No other camera types should be mapped in Waze.
a mobile speed camera is a speed camera which is easily moved from place to place to be deployed in targeted enforcement areas. These should be reported as Hidden Police. These are usually mounted on the roof racks of vehicles which can be parked on the shoulder of a roadway to capture vehicle traffic in one directions in all lanes of that road. They issue tickets to vehicles traveling above the speed limit. Most jurisdictions in the Phoenix Metro area utilize some form of these devices. There is limited usage outside of the Phoenix area, as well. Due to their nature of quickly changing locations, a Hidden Police report will instantly alert other drivers in the area of targeted enforcement. In the details section you can type mobile speed camera. The long delay in reporting a camera, getting it approved on the map, and waiting for a tile update to take effect, makes it futile for these types of cameras.
a dummy / fake red light camera should not be mapped in Arizona, because they CANNOT issue tickets.
Other camera types, cameras or signs that either provide driver feedback or are used for traffic control. These devices CANNOT issue tickets and should not be mapped.
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.
See Arizona/To do for guidance in Arizona that may not be universal to all other states and territories.
Other
Working with URs
Arizona has adopted a 72 hour/7 day standard when dealing with User Requests.
Our goal is to respond to new URs within 72 hours.
Fix the issue (if within our control), or solicit additional needed information from the reporter.
If the reporter has not responded after 3 days, send a reminder message.
Resolve URs that have no response to comment or reminder in 7 days, or are completed. NEVER close a UR without leaving a closing comment, even if it's something as simple as "No info received, closing."
When responding to URs, please remember the wise words of the scholar, brevity is the soul of wit.
More than likely, the user is going to be reading your response in the Waze App, so try and keep it as short as possible, while still conveying the information, or request desired.
If you're editing in Arizona, we ask that you turn on the LIVE USERS layer in the editor. If you see another editor show up where you are editing, and move around you, please check WME Chat. Also, check and see if you have a Private Message (PM) in the Forum.
There may be an issue with the area you're editing in, or what you are doing.
Never Be Unreachable!
Area Managers
The table below identifies the editors also designated as Area Managers or higher who are editing in Arizona. If you have any questions, please consider contacting them directly as needed. If you are an Area Manager that covers Arizona, or a USA Country Manager that does a lot of work in Arizona, please add yourself to this list (alphabetical by username) in the correct rank section.
The editor who also serves as the Regional Coordinator for Arizona 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.
Arizona — Area, State, Country Managers, and Regional Coordinators
The following editors are also editing in the state and may be working towards an Area Manager position. Feel free to contact them for assistance in their respective areas.
a mobile speed camera is a speed camera which is easily moved from place to place to be deployed in targeted enforcement areas. These should be reported as Hidden Police. These are usually mounted on the roof racks of vehicles which can be parked on the shoulder of a roadway to capture vehicle traffic in one directions in all lanes of that road. They issue tickets to vehicles traveling above the speed limit. 
a dummy / fake red light camera should not be mapped in Arizona, because they CANNOT issue tickets.
