Newsletter
The first signs of Google Maps introducing traffic lights on its app are showing themselves as reported by Droid-Life. Apple brought this feature into its offering almost 13 years ago and it looks like finally Google is catching up.
A number of upcoming Google Maps features have been revealed in recent weeks. These include support for Uber and a system to show users crowds on public transport.
The app has also received a sleeker design and better Android Auto support at the start of July as well.
Google Maps adds traffic lights to the mobile app
Images have shown it looks like Google Maps will add traffic lights onto its visual offering. The icon for traffic lights is pretty small and not that easy to see but it is still a good move to bring into the app.
Right now it looks like Google Maps will not be actively showing traffic lights to users. It looks more like it will be a passive addition for now. However, this could change and the traffic light icons could become more meaningful over time.
The icons do seem to grow a bit when navigating so they are a bit easier to see. In terms of instructions, they are not yet being included as part of the offering.
Apple Maps currently does this so there is a fair chance that at some point in the future this will change.
A useful change but could be more meaningful
This addition is clearly a useful and important addition to Google Maps. Being able to know where the traffic lights are whilst navigating can be very helpful for travelling by road. However, it is not currently as meaningful an addition as it could be.
If you know where lights are being able to avoid them and potentially travel a more efficient route could be a great use of this addition. However, given how small the icons are and the fact users are not being notified about them means it is not a huge change.
This does look like something that Google is slowly testing and will roll over a period of time. This indicates that by the time the feature fully rolls out there could be more to it.
Hopefully, this means it will become a part of the instruction function. Being notified of traffic lights whilst navigating will make the feature much more impactful than it is currently.
