Really bad routing

[pau3157]

Just bought a TomTom Via and am practicing on my commute which has two logical routes. However the routes suggested by this unit are completely ridiculous. One of them would detour me first in the exact opposite direction and use all surface streets for a trip over twice the mileage and three times the time. The other
starts out by directing me through a subdivision with several turns and stop signs in order to get onto the freeway when all I need to do is drive up one major road and make a right and the mileage to the same point is identical but the time is twice as long. After 8 miles on the freeway it is directing me to turn off and take a myriad of surface streets instead of simply continuing on the freeway for another 24 miles and then turning South on a major road for the remaining 6.

I have tried to update the maps but without success, but I don't see how an update can avoid this situation. Also my home town is wrongly named although the map location is correct.
There is no such named town in the entire State.

I cannot believe how bad this is. Am I doing something wrong?
Fortunately I bought it at Costco so I can return it without a problem.

 

[Andy_P]

Any chance you could describe the start and end points so other people can try demo-ing the same route?

Obviously, move them around a little bit so as not to tell us your actual Home address!

What's the town name?

 

[dash8]

Does the same thing happen in "Prepare Route"? Have you actually tried to drive following the route instructions yet? If you are still inside, the GPS may put you a road behind your house. It's common for the route to be reset once you've driven a block or two away from your starting point.

Also, it's normal to get a totally illogical route when selecting "Shortest Route." The only time I would use that feature is when driving a pay-by-the-mile rental truck.

 

[pau3157]

More detail

Thanks for your responses. My starting point was a street address in Gold Canyon, AZ 85118, and the destination was in Chandler, AZ 85224. More specifically Kings Ranch Rd about 1 mile N of US 60 to Alma School Rd at Ray Rd in Chandler. There are two logical routes, the shortest one is E on US 60 and S on Alma School Rd, and the other is E on US 60 to the 202 freeway and take the southern loop exiting at Alma school rd and turn North.

No, I have not followed the routes prescribed for obvious reasons, but when it has instructed me to turn South off the freeway some 20 miles before I should, I simply continued and receive an exit left notice at every exit ramp, which FINALLY includes the appropriate one.

The longest route it calculated was described as the shortest.
Last night I returned on the 202/ US60 route and although the 202 merges directly via a ramp with the 60 Tomtom instructed me to get off the 202 onto Baseline Rd and presumably continue to Ellsworth Rd which has a freeway entrance ramp. It's probably about the same distance but at least twice as long because of turns traffic signals etc. Makes no sense! Also when I got near to Kings Ranch Rd it instructed me to detour through the Mountainbrook retirement subdivision - crazy.

This is certainly not something I would want to rely on in strange and new territory.

 

[Andy_P]

I've not tried your route myself yet (I don't have a very recent US map handy).

But might the odd routing off the freeway be due to a dodgy Mapshare correction someone has made to shut a section of road or to disallow a turning?

 

[Andy_P]

OK, I don't have access to any US maps on a new model like a Via, unfortunately, but I've loaded up the (latest) v875 US map on my old Go940 and done a route from S Kings Ranch Rd, Gold Canyon, to Alma School Rd Chandler, both in Arizona.

and it seemed to produce a very sensible straight route.

Here's a couple of screenshots:



Is that what you would expect to see?

Assuming it is, we need to work out why yours isn't producing that.

 

[dash8]

I got the same route as Andy. I think you need to begin at Kings Ranch Rd. and see if it recalculates the route. GPS units for auto navigation are different than those for hiking in that they pull your location over the nearest street or highway, rather than accurately telling you where you are. When I'm parked in back at a large shopping center below a steep hill, my Tomtom thinks I'm on the street at the top of the hill.

So, don't worry too much about what it's telling you at home. Get in the car and go somewhere with it, and it should recalculate almost immediately.

 

[pau3157]

Andy,
Your jpg does in fact show the correct or best route. It would seem that I have a problem with this particular unit as even though I am unable to update the map, the one I have seems to show the current streets.

Thanks for your research