How to block a street?

[ve1bvd]

A street near my home has been blocked permanently for several years, but is not shown as blocked on my XL350TM.

I have tried to block the street using the map correction option, but all it will let me do is make the street one-way. This is NOT the case; the street is two-way, but is now a cul-de-sac. What to do?

Phil

 

[canderson]

I have tried to block the street using the map correction option, but all it will let me do is make the street one-way. This is NOT the case; the street is two-way, but is now a cul-de-sac. What to do?
Phil

I don't know if the 350 has all of the same correction features (the 350 is one of the dreaded "Easy Menu" models), but let's assume that they at least left that set of features alone.

It would require knowing what was on both sides of the street in question. I understand it used to be a through street, but is there even a stub of a street on the other side now that is of consequence?

The correct way to 'block' a street is not to use the blocking feature unless the street segment that is to be blocked is entirely impassible from all directions. The correct way is to restrict turns ("Change turn restrictions") that are no longer viable. But what they've done to you is really not possible using either method - if there's a street on the OTHER side of the cul-de-sac, you're in need of a road block right in the middle of a block -- something a TomTom wouldn't know how to do.

So let's assume you're doing this solely for your own benefit -- just block the entire street. I don't have an Easy Menu to describe this, so I'm hoping you can get to some equivalent position on your 350.

select Map corrections
select Correct a map error
select (Un)block street
select On map (or Near you)
select the street in question on the map - the bits you want blocked should turn green. Deselect, if you can, any other bits that light up green
press Done
Select both directions made available to you (N&S or E&W)

 

[Andy_P]

I have tried to block the street using the map correction option, but all it will let me do is make the street one-way.

You CAN block a street both ways in that menu, you have the option to make it "one way" in either direction or both! just by clicking on the two "roadsigns".

But as you say (and canderson describes above), when the reality is that the road is blocked by a gate or bollards at ONE point, that's is a bad way to block it on the TomTom as it suggests that no traffic can flow along it at all.

So to create a cul-de-sac, the best (but fiddly) way is to report several turn restrictions (both into and out of the road) at the blocked end.

 

[canderson]

Problem is, he's almost in the position of having to create two cul-de-sacs from a single block of road ... something that can't really be done. Picture this (if I can do it)...

[FONT=Courier New]       |    |                 |    |
       |    |                 |    |
       |    |                 |    |
[/FONT][FONT=Courier New]  -----+    +-----------------+    +------
                     X
  -----+    +-----------------+    +------
       |    |                 |    |
       |    |                 |    |
       |    |                 |    |
[/FONT]

I think the OP is needing to block the street in the middle of the block as indicated by the "X" in the diagram above, and there's really no way to block there without just blocking the entire street with either 'blocked road' or 'turn restrictions' for the entire length of the block where the 'X" occurs.

If, on the other hand, what the OP wants to do looks more like the diagram below, then the correct approach is to block turns from the right-hand vertical street westbound from both the north and south directions (more or less where the slashes are), and avoid a straight move headed westbound toward the x along the street from the east (more or less where my lousy arrow is).

[FONT=Courier New]       |    |                 |    |
       |    |                 |    |
       |    |                 |    |
[/FONT][FONT=Courier New]  -----+    +-----------------+ /  +------
                              X <-
  -----+    +-----------------+  \ +------
       |    |                 |    |
       |    |                 |    |
       |    |                 |    |
[/FONT]

and further, to block left, right and straight options heading east from the X.

[FONT=Courier New]       |    |                 |    |
       |    |                 |    |
       |    |                 |    |
[/FONT][FONT=Courier New]  -----+    +-----------------+ /  +------
                              X ->
  -----+    +-----------------+ \  +------
       |    |                 |    |
       |    |                 |    |
       |    |                 |    |
[/FONT]

All in all, it takes six turn restrictions to do it right in the 2nd case where it can be done properly. Sucks. As long as his neighbors down there don't have a TomTom and get locked into their neighborhood by his MapShare , it's easier just to block the street entirely for the length of that block, even if it's not the correct approach.

 

[Andy_P]

Nicely explained!

But the MOST impressive bit was getting the "ASCII art" to work in a forum post! That's seriously amazing!

I've been telling TomTom that they need to introduce the "single point roadblock" ever since MapShare was invented!
That's the way almost all the corrections I've ever wanted to make have been.

No joy though.....

 

[canderson]

But the MOST impressive bit was getting the "ASCII art" to work in a forum post! That's seriously amazing!

It's just a quick vB trick. There's a whole list of things between brackets that you are allowed to embed into messages if the feature is enabled, which it is here. In this case, it's using the |code| and |/code| feature with a monospaced font (Courier). Yeah, I used vertical bars instead of brackets just now -- else it would have interpreted it!

I've been telling TomTom that they need to introduce the "single point roadblock" ever since MapShare was invented!
That's the way almost all the corrections I've ever wanted to make have been.

As are most of mine. I'm with you on that one. I fully appreciate why the "turn restriction" option needs to be left as it is just to control that feature of an intersection, but the current "block road" + "permanent" is questionable. I'd guess that most of the time, people are using that for the wrong reasons and getting less than accurate results. A single point block, perhaps even with the N/S or E/W directional info, would be just fine and would get the job done 99% of the time.

 

[Andy_P]

A single point block, perhaps even with the N/S or E/W directional info, would be just fine and would get the job done 99% of the time.

Trouble is....that I don't think it's possible. (having said that's what I want!)


As we know, Mapshare doesn't alter the actual map "drawing" at all. The only things we can change are just the ATTRIBUTES of a piece of road.

We can tell it to consider a section of road to be "one-way or "no-way" but there's nothing we can do to change the shape of a road or make it longer or shorter.

A real single-point block would need for us to be allowed to redraw the end of the street to a different shape - way beyond what MapShare can do at the moment "live".

 

[canderson]

A real single-point block would need for us to be allowed to redraw the end of the street to a different shape - way beyond what MapShare can do at the moment "live".

I wouldn't need to have any streets redrawn to be happy with a single point block. The street could remain right where it is on the map for all I care -- just so long as it becomes impassible at whatever point I select. As in the examples above (either of them), I'd be happy if the point of the "X" in my examples became a cartoon brick wall from Super Mario Brothers. Whatever, so long as it was recognized as a point that could not be routed through. What happens to the rest of the street is of no particular concern as long as it's out of play. In fact, I wouldn't mind at all if blocking an entire section of street were accomplished by placing two such points on the map. It's really no different than a blocked road is now -- it stays on the map, but with a dashed line meaning that it isn't going to be used.