Narrow Lane Obsessed Garmin
Discussion
I have a Garmin Nuvi that's obsessed with taking the most difficult route it can possibly find to anywhere whilst lying about how long this odyssey into the unknown reaches of Devon will require.
It's set to Fastest Time rather than Shortest Distance and on a recent 25 mile trip was initially happy to send me via a nice, quiet A30 but then directed me off into the midst of nowhere for over 10 miles while ignoring decent A-roads.
This morning I set out on a short trip with the Garmin telling me that it was 5.6 miles and 12 minutes. Cool, I thought.
It actually took 20 minutes because it didn't allow for the incredibly slow and narrow lanes, that it insisted on using, that in most places had a maximum safe speed of 20 mph.
It almost seems to deliberately pick out the most ludicrously narrow and mostly unused lanes it can find - but then refuses to believe in the existence of local places and lanes that have been there for about 300 years.
My TomTom in my other car, whilst not as feature laden, seems to find the easiest way to get you to your destination without causing any distress and, unlike the Garmin, learns from your previous choices in calculating future routes.
Are there any Garmin options I'm missing in the set up menu or is this just a characteristic of the Garmin algorithms ?
It's set to Fastest Time rather than Shortest Distance and on a recent 25 mile trip was initially happy to send me via a nice, quiet A30 but then directed me off into the midst of nowhere for over 10 miles while ignoring decent A-roads.
This morning I set out on a short trip with the Garmin telling me that it was 5.6 miles and 12 minutes. Cool, I thought.
It actually took 20 minutes because it didn't allow for the incredibly slow and narrow lanes, that it insisted on using, that in most places had a maximum safe speed of 20 mph.
It almost seems to deliberately pick out the most ludicrously narrow and mostly unused lanes it can find - but then refuses to believe in the existence of local places and lanes that have been there for about 300 years.
My TomTom in my other car, whilst not as feature laden, seems to find the easiest way to get you to your destination without causing any distress and, unlike the Garmin, learns from your previous choices in calculating future routes.
Are there any Garmin options I'm missing in the set up menu or is this just a characteristic of the Garmin algorithms ?
blank said:
CoolHands said:
Use Waze on your phone
Might not work down in the South West.I've used Waze around Cornwall and it seems to have a love of single track lanes with grass down the middle. Although for all I know they could be the best route!
My trip to Thorverton was immensely tedious and twice as long as the Garmin claimed.
The routing was incomprehensibly stupid.
I tried the iphone mapping, which is fine in West Dorset, but found the continuous gaps in the data coverage meant it was next to useless.
The TomTom seems, by default, to consider the best route that makes use of actual roads.
I live in the midst of nowhere and spend considerable time off road in my truck but I don't want 10 miles of daft, narrow lane driving when it would be quicker and easier to stay on the A-roads.
If you think about it it makes sense the garmin would be worse.
Most standalone sat navs won't send home data on how fast they were actually able to traverse a route, so they can't improve their predictions. Any phone will, so they have a much better data set to say 'the limit might be 60 but actually in the real world people drive it at 16.45'
Most standalone sat navs won't send home data on how fast they were actually able to traverse a route, so they can't improve their predictions. Any phone will, so they have a much better data set to say 'the limit might be 60 but actually in the real world people drive it at 16.45'
I’ve started ignoring the iOS maps if it wants to deviate from a motorway. What it normally does is detect a slowing down or delay of motorway traffic and decides it can save 15 mins by changing route.
The first couple of times I followed it and couldn’t comprehend how the best route from London to Leeds can include driving on a single track past farms. It always ended up adding huge amounts of time onto the journey rather than save the 15 minutes of slow m1 traffic it predicted.
I wouldn’t mind so much, but every time it did it, I was the only car I could see often for miles. So where was everyone else if this was the best route?!
The first couple of times I followed it and couldn’t comprehend how the best route from London to Leeds can include driving on a single track past farms. It always ended up adding huge amounts of time onto the journey rather than save the 15 minutes of slow m1 traffic it predicted.
I wouldn’t mind so much, but every time it did it, I was the only car I could see often for miles. So where was everyone else if this was the best route?!
shouldbworking said:
If you think about it it makes sense the Garmin would be worse.
Most standalone sat navs won't send home data on how fast they were actually able to traverse a route, so they can't improve their predictions. Any phone will, so they have a much better data set to say 'the limit might be 60 but actually in the real world people drive it at 16.45'
On previously travelled routes the TomTom seems to either remember or have some understanding of the road layout.Most standalone sat navs won't send home data on how fast they were actually able to traverse a route, so they can't improve their predictions. Any phone will, so they have a much better data set to say 'the limit might be 60 but actually in the real world people drive it at 16.45'
I used to regularly travel down the A35 and A30 to Cornwall. On the A35 between Axminster and Honiton the total journey time could be shortened by about 6 minutes if there was little traffic on that section. It's mostly 60 mph with a short 50 section and a 30 / 40 through Wilmington. With normal traffic and 40 ish mph average, it was about right.
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