Everyone has dealt with horrible traffic, causing cars honking, cars crashing, the list goes on and on. Everyone has tried an GPS app at one point, but have you ever used the app Waze? Waze is currently a very popular app. It helps people get out of traffic, but Waze has also been causing problems like disturbing residential streets and making more traffic. Neighbors are getting annoyed of hearing cars honking and angry drivers yelling in the wee hours of morning. Is Waze making the right decision to use quiet residential streets?
Waze shows you a faster way to get to your destination, saving more time, and is one of the most famous apps. It also helps you if there was an car crash or police around the area. Waze is also finding the cheapest and nearest gas station to help you save more money and time. As well as seeing where your friend is, if they’re near you, if you were to meet your friend you can see when your friend is arriving at their destination. Waze also helps by reminding you about road alerts like if there is a car crash, construction areas, or some other roadblock.
However, despite all these bonuses, many people are getting upset at Waze because of it creating traffic in residential streets. It directs drivers to use several short-cuts such as silent streets. One of the most used streets in Los Angeles is Baxter Street in Echo Park, solely because of this app. Waze is also using the steepest streets. This creates an abundance of problems. When many drivers drive up, they drive faster and when they reach at the top they stop abruptly, causing the car in the back to slide down because of how steep the hill is. Many cars have accidents on this street. This street has been so chaotic, many neighbors of this street have witnessed traffic several times and cars sliding down struggling to reach the top of this hill. These neighbors had enough of this mess and ready to fight back.
On May 18, 2018, KTLA 5 news announced that Baxter Street will have a makeover, and in the future this street will not be as steep. This street is the third steepest street in Los Angeles, proving that this street is really dangerous to drive on. Not only that, this street is having traffic, and the app does not even remind or tell the driver if the street is small, or even if it’s the steepest street.
Many well known GPS apps have been around for years, including Google Maps and Apple maps. Waze has caused a problem by creating even more traffic then we ever had before, making traffic more chaotic than it needs to be. Waze is making drivers go crazy by upsetting them. Waze is also making neighbors angrier than ever. Should Waze still use residential streets causing more traffic than ever? That is the question.
Kyla Penafiel, 2024 – Feature Writer
Photo Credit: KALW
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