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The Bay Bridge is gradually disappearing from Google Maps
- znowi 13y agoGoogle sign in is required. I'd appreciate if HN had less posts from the "walled" sources.
- Stratoscope 13y agoHuh? I right-clicked the link and opened it in a Chrome incognito window (thus not signed in) and it displayed the map fine.
- PStamatiou 13y agoHere's a screenshot for the lazy http://f.cl.ly/items/2L0s1j0y3r2b2U1F2d0N/Screen%20Shot%202013-08-31%20at%202.04.33%20PM.png http://f.cl.ly/items/2L0s1j0y3r2b2U1F2d0N/Screen%20Shot%2020...
- straight_talk_2 13y agoNo, it's not required. Try the link in a private mode tab or different browser. This is one of those evil tricks, if Microsoft or Google know somehow you have an account they'll try to force a sign in ever after.
- packetslave 13y ago"evil trick" is pushing it, a bit. If I had to guess, the algorithm is more likely something like "you have a Google auth token in your cookies but it's too old, so you need to log in again"
- cududa 13y agoWeird. I didn't have that issue. I'm on the latest version of chrome, and not signed into my google account
- Stratoscope 13y agoWhat's amusing is that if you do a hard refresh of the page it shows the old bridge routing for a fraction of a second and then reloads new tiles with the truncated new bridge. Maybe this just says I'm easily amused...
- vxNsr 13y agoProbably has to do with chrome cacheing
- codeka 13y agoI don't really know the significance of this, it just looks like an error to me and it's certainly not news that errors exist. A quick Google search and apparently there's a new section of the bridge opening or something? I still don't quite see why this is significant?
- barkerja 13y agoPerhaps it's how expedient Google Maps is being updated. If you're unfamiliar with what has been going on with the Bay Bridge for the past ~10 years: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_span_replacement_of_the_San_Francisco%E2%80%93Oakland_Bay_Bridge http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_span_replacement_of_the... The new span opens on Tuesday. It'll be interesting to see how long it takes other map platforms to make the change(s).
- etler 13y agoIt's not an error. If it were, it would be a very big error, as their directions would be completely broken for everyone going to or from San Francisco and Oakland, dis-servicing hundreds of thousands of people. But the bay bridge is closed this weekend: http://www.sfmta.com/baybridgelaborday http://www.sfmta.com/baybridgelaborday The reason why this is interesting is that it shows that google is very responsive about updating their maps in real time based on recent events. It's impressive. It is also interesting because the Bay Bridge is a major thoroughfare in the area, and it's odd and unique to see a portion of it cut off in the map.
- nraynaud 13y agoThis is a bridge in Bay Area next to the center of their world. I'm pretty sure african bridges are not updated for road work or even for a long time after completion.
- davidw 13y agoIt'd be interesting to see some stats on average update times for various places. Do they update North Dakota road work with the same frequency/speed? Canada? Norway? Italy? Japan? Australia?
- sidwyn 13y agoBay Bridge is undergoing repair works till Sept 3rd, 5am. http://baybridgeinfo.org http://baybridgeinfo.org
- deckar01 13y agoProbably because it is under construction. http://baybridgeinfo.org/ http://baybridgeinfo.org/
- johns 13y agoIt's actually the opposite: it's gradually appearing. At least it looks to me like its displaying the new unfinished span and will connect it when the transition is done.
- aasarava 13y agoThe Bay Bridge is currently closed until Tues at 5am. It's actually two bridges that meet at Treasure Island. The Eastern half is being rerouted this weekend onto a newly completed bridge. (A pretty amazing project, by the way.) This includes a slight change in the connectors at Treasure Island and in Oakland. And since it's an entirely new bridge, the map probably treats it as a new road. So, quite possibly, the new tiles for the map are in transition or not yet propagated? Edit: A correction - they meet on Yerba Buena Island technically, not Treasure Island.
- hack_edu 13y agoBoth eastern spans have displayed on Google Maps for the past month or two. The traffic data was even available, just directions didn't tell you to use the new bridge yet.
- U2EF1 13y agoIt's not a bug. This is how you display that there's no road there right now (unless you are working on construction). Likely this is a pretty good representation of the information available for pathfinding as well.
- delgaudm 13y agoMore frustrating is that the "New" google maps doesn't support this link, and it rolls back to "classic maps". The new maps significantly lack parity with the "old" maps. I guess we should be grateful that we can roll back at all.
- chockablock 13y agoAnother regression: you can't 'add a stop' to directions using the new maps. "Currently, you can only route between two locations in the new Google Maps. If you'd like to add a destination or waypoint, you can temporarily use the classic Google Maps experience." https://support.google.com/maps/answer/3092447?ctx=c2n_directions2 https://support.google.com/maps/answer/3092447?ctx=c2n_direc...
- tommoor 13y agoside note: so nice to see the classic maps again - feel the speed!
- sudomal 13y agoSeeing the 'classic' Google Maps is like an upgrade. It's like moving from something that's aimed at touch screen devices, to something that's aimed at fully featured computers.
- helper 13y agoI assume its an intentional modification so that Google Maps doesn't give driving directions that use the bridge.
- lnanek2 13y agoGoogle Maps never worked well for that bridge anyway...you'd be driving along to go to either end and it would get confused and start giving you directions like you had gotten off on treasure island.
- trimbo 13y agoBTW, I found this super-cool construction cam page earlier today, where you can look at the construction over the past few years. http://baybridgeinfo.org/construction-cams http://baybridgeinfo.org/construction-cams The YBI camera is the most interesting IMO
- kordless 13y agoI tried navigating from Moraga to Treasure Island, and it flat out says it can't route me there.
- xsmasher 13y agoAnd it's probably correct; access to Treasure Island is restricted until the new bridge is opened.
- asveikau 13y agoThey have a ferry don't they?
- xsmasher 13y agoNot that I can locate. You may be thinking of Alameda or Angel Island.
- asveikau 13y agoI guess I figured it was a logical place to have a ferry. Wikipedia says it was created the same year as the bridge opened (1936), so a totally bridge dependent island does make sense. Googling for "treasure island ferry" has a lot of results. Apparently some would suggest there is one planned?
- gasda 13y agoIt is also showing the new bridge with east and west lanes side by side.
- tghw 13y agoThe Bay Bridge is gradually appearing on Google Maps. Zoom in and you'll see the missing segments with "Planned" on them.
- kristopolous 13y agoDoc: Don't you see? The bridge will exist in 1985. It's safe and still in use. Therefore, as long as we get the DeLorean up to 88 miles per hour before we hit the edge of the ravine, we'll instantaneously arrive at a point in time where the bridge is completed. We'll have track under us and coast safely across the ravine!
- ahaefner 13y agoDirections are routed away from the bridge while it's closed, so maybe they removed it for this reason.
- abirkill 13y agoOn a similar vein, I was very impressed to note that, when the I-5 bridge over the Skagit River in Washington collapsed in May this year, it took roughly 1-2 hours from the news breaking (around 7:00pm PDT) for Google to have removed that section of the I-5 from their maps. I would be very interested if anyone has insight on how it was done so quickly (particularly as to whether it's some automated process driven by a reliable data feed, or whether human intervention was required). It seemed too quick to be instigated by Map Maker edits, but maybe if enough people submit the same change, updates are pushed through faster?
- dmazin 13y agoThough strongly informed by satellite and Street View data, Google Maps are heavily modified by hand.
- Sanddancer 13y agoI used to work for a map company when the Macarthur Maze fire hit, and we were able to push out a change at about that rapidity. The data files for the maps aren't terribly complicated to parse, so pushing a change isn't difficult at all.
- hartror 13y agoWhat sort of data files are they (hoping you don't say MID/MIF).
- Sanddancer 13y agoWe were using deCarta's DDS software, so their proprietary RMF format.
- andyking 13y agoThen again, it took them about three weeks to add the Isle of Jura back to their maps when it somehow got wiped: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-23331456 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-23331456
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- badclient 13y agoI clicked on the link from my iPhone. I'm offered to download the Maps app even though I already have it. When I click "no thanks" I'm taken to the homepage. Fuck you to the PMs and devs at google for such big screw ups all across google priorities.
- baddox 13y agoIs it possible to do any better from mobile Safari? I know the Google native apps can launch each other directly, but is that possible from Safari?
- badclient 13y agoAnything would be better than what they are doing at present. What keeps them from just showing the desktop version of maps? Or the mobile web version?
- deleted 13y ago[deleted]
- baddox 13y agoOh, I know what you're talking about now. Sometimes, Google Maps URLs will show up on the mobile web version, but sometimes they'll just redirect to a splash page for the mobile app.
- spullara 13y agoYes, you can use an application URL handler.
- charleslmunger 13y agoTake it up with Apple, on android there's an API apps can use to launch themselves for certain web requests. However, there's no way to do this with iOS.
- comex 13y ago
- tantalor 13y agoEven more impressive in the 3d satellite view: http://i.imgur.com/J1apYPf.jpg http://i.imgur.com/J1apYPf.jpg