There’s arguably nothing more frustrating than finding yourself stuck in traffic. Not just normal, “it’ll-get-moving-soon” traffic, but bumper to bumper, “I haven’t touched the gas pedal in a while”-kind of traffic.
That kind can awaken something deep inside of you that you didn’t know existed; a place where you’ve stored all your dad’s most colorful swear words which you now unleash upon anyone unlucky enough to be stuck inside that car with you.
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Yeah, traffic jams are the worst. So it’s really no wonder why so many people were quick to follow a Google Maps detour that didn’t turn out to be quite the “shortcut” they were promised.
A crash on a prominent road leading to Denver International Airport left commuters stuck inside their cars on Sunday.
While the Colorado drivers sat in the slow, barely-moving traffic jam, many turned to Google Maps to find them any alternate routes.
And, bless, the technology came through and offered commuters a much quicker detour.
One of these drivers, Connie Monsees, said she was promised a detour that would take half the time.
“It was 43 minutes initially and it was going to be 23 instead,” she told CNN of her new proposed route. “So I took the exit and drove where they told me to.”
She added, “There were a bunch of other cars going down [the dirt road] too, so I said, ‘I guess it’s OK.’ It was not OK.”
This “shortcut” ultimately took commuters down a rough road into a muddy, empty field.
Although it was sunny in the area on Sunday, it had previously rained earlier in the weekend, rendering the dirt field into a giant mud pit. Cars began sliding around in the slick mess.
“That’s when I thought, ‘Oh this was a bad decision’,” Monsees told the Denver Channel .
Unsurprisingly, since most of these cars were designed for Denver pavement and not muddy off-roading, most got stuck.
Nearly 100 cars in this convoy got stuck behind those whose tires just couldn’t make it through the thick mud.
“There was no turning back once you were out there.”
Monsees said she couldn’t even do a U-turn to escape the new traffic jam because the road was too narrow, only allowing enough room for one car at a time.
Some cars attempted to veer off the road and take to the fields in an attempt to escape their “shortcut.”
Monsee said she watched some of these drivers approach deep ditches in the field without realizing they were there, hitting them hard and sending their cars flying.
In a statement about the incident, Google said the road its technology sent the drivers down was not marked private.
“We take many factors into account when determining driving routes, including the size of the road and the directness of the route,” they said.
“We encourage all drivers to follow local laws, stay attentive, and use their best judgement while driving.”
“While we always work to provide the best directions, issues can arise due to unforeseen circumstances such as weather,” the statement continued.
Denver7 traffic anchor Jayson Luber said people have become far too dependent on smartphones and GPS apps rather than physical maps.
“You are driving. Google Maps is not driving,” he told Denver Channel. “You need to know where you are going and, if it does not look like that’s where you should be going, turn around and try again.”
Luber also said drivers should use their best judgement to determine what is the right route for themselves.
“Take a look at the Google map and it’s going to tell you where to go, but you are not a lemming and you don’t need to follow it exactly,” he said.
“It’s better to find your own way and take a look at the map.”
As much as it is convenient to use Google Maps, traffic apps, and other GPS services, sometimes it is better to listen to radio traffic alerts and simply use common sense to avoid areas that look more backed up than others.
Maybe our technology doesn’t always have our best interests at heart.
You know those large pieces of folding paper called maps? No no, not the online ones. The ones with street names written on them that you can hold and read and buy at convenience stores. We should maybe start investing in those.
h/t: CNN , Denver Channel
