Waze, Google Maps’ more helpful cousin, is adding yet another useful feature. After almost a year of beta testing, Waze is now introducing a new alert system for accident-prone roads, so you’ll know to be on high alert when turning on a street with a history of incidents.
How Waze’s crash history reports work
Waze uses a combination of AI and user-reported crashes to generate this data. The AI technology analyzes the historical crash data in combination with various data points, such as the road’s usual traffic levels, elevation, curves, and whether it’s a highway or a local road. The AI synthesizes the data with reports from millions of Waze users, where, according to Google, users report accidents every two seconds.
When you’re traveling with Waze, the app will bring up a prompt to show the next mile, or a patch of road, has a history of crashes. According to Google, Waze doesn’t distinguish between major and minor accidents, so it isn’t obvious from the alert how serious any given road’s crash history is. Instead, use this nudge to be mindful of your driving: Slow down, and, of course, if needed, change the route altogether. The alert also doesn’t consider if the car accidents involved other vehicles, cyclers, or pedestrians.
How to check if Waze crash history reports are enabled
To minimize distractions, Waze won’t show you notifications on roads you frequently navigate, but will be more vigilant when you’re in unknown territory. The feature is now available for all users on iOS and Android. You can check or disable this feature by going to Settings > Alerts & Reports > Reports.
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