Google Maps is apologizing to its users after sending a number of California drivers down a dirt road as they were returning from Las Vegas on the weekend of the recent Grand Prix. The company says it will not send vehicles down that road anymore – thanks Google!
Shelby Easler and her family were in one of the vehicles that got stuck in a desert traffic jam that resulted from this Google quirk, and said that the event could have easily become dangerous. More of an off-road trail than a road, the excursion wound up taking one of their crossover’s tires off the rim.
She and a number of others decided to take the detour after Google Maps warned them that a sand storm near Interstate 15 made driving along the main route between Las Vegas and Southern California dangerous. In addition to avoiding the storm, the alternative route promised to cut two hours off their drive.
Read: Google Sued After Man Dies Following Maps Directions Off Collapsed Bridge
However, after the pavement gave way to gravel, and then that became a dirt trail, she and her family realized that something was wrong. However, she (and no doubt others) were lulled into believing that they were headed the right way because Google had led so many others down the same path.
“Nobody was turning around. So we figured that it led somewhere,” Easler told the Washington Post. “We were bumper to bumper.”
Unfortunately, she and her family eventually learned that the trail had been washed out ahead, and that it was impassable. She said she phoned 911, but the California Highway Patrol were too busy handling crashes on the Interstate to respond.
Eventually, Easler’s family decided to turn around. That was no mean feat because of the number of other vehicles driving down the same path. However, after suffering many scratches, a flat tire, and several thousand dollars in damage, she said, they eventually made it back to a paved road, and then to a gas station.
From there, they called an Uber back to Vegas, and flew home to California. Although they were safe, Easler said that the detour added a bitter aftertaste to what was otherwise a fun trip. For its part, Google says it will no longer route people down that particular trail.
“We apologize for what happened last weekend, and can confirm that we’ll no longer route drivers traveling between Las Vegas and Los Angeles down these narrow backroads off Interstate 15 near the California-Nevada border,” a Google spokesperson wrote in a statement to The Post. “Today, drivers making that trip are being routed through Interstate 15, which has been reopened.”
@ktownk1d Video credit: @shelby; I couldn’t stitch it so I did it this way. But this is a real #road that people do get stuck on often. @Google needs to change this as a “viable” path. #offroading #f1vegas #vegasf1 #lasvegas ♬ original sound – Justin D. Bernardino