Date Of Publication:2020-02-16 Click-Through Rate:14
If you were trying to get from point A to point B 15 years ago, you were probably printing out a map and taking it with you. That's how Google Maps started when it went into the world on Feb. 8, 2005, but it's made a long journey since.
Google is celebrating the fifteenth anniversary of Maps with a redesign, a host of new features, and an installation in New York's Madison Square Park.
The redesign won't turn Maps into unfamiliar territory. It adds five tabs along the bottom: Explore, Commute, Saved, Contribute, and Updates. Nested within those are some new elements to Maps and easier ways to access existing ones.
In Explore, setting departure and arrival times for planning future trips is a feature that's now front and center. It's accesible by clicking three dots on the map itself.
Commute has enhanced information for riders on public transportation. Users can find out if a train is wheelchair accessible, the average temperature, and—in countries where such things exist—if there are women-only cars or ones with security onboard.
They can also see expected arrival times for trains and buses and how crowded they might be. In New York, arrival times work using real-time data through a partnership with the MTA and in other places, they're powered by prediction based on historical data. City dwellers will appreciate other transit features like bike-share program information, which includes availability at locations and ride-share options with estimated wait times and prices.
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