OpenStreetMap
Rail Crossing Warnings Are Sought for Mapping Apps
Plasing deur scruss op 21 Desember 2016 in English.via The RISKS Digest Volume 30 Issue 04:
Rail Crossing Warnings Are Sought for Mapping Apps
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/19/technology/google-digital-maps-railroad-crossings-ntsb.html
The National Transportation Safety Board asked tech companies to add the locations of grade crossings into digital maps and to provide alerts for drivers.
So the US NTSB are asking “the other map companies” to provide locations of railway=level_crossing or at-grade intersections of highway=* and railway=* ways? Hmm, if only they knew people not just providing ad platforms as scrolly bitmaps to further distract drivers …
Discussion
Kommentaar van Vincent de Phily op 21 Desember 2016 om 17:19
While OSM has that data (quite complete in my experience), getting OSM-based routing apps to issue a warning is going to take a fair bit of outreach effort (given how many apps would need to add the feature).
Kommentaar van scruss op 21 Desember 2016 om 18:41
True, but we have the data, and it’s readily available. So for app providers not to provide it could be classed as negligence — oh wait, what was I thinking? Software developers taking responsibility for anything? Sheesh!
Kommentaar van Warin61 op 21 Desember 2016 om 23:30
There are already ‘speed camera warning’ apps … they work from a POI file … so simply a matter of extending the app and extracting the data from OSM. ?? The motivation for the ‘speed camera warning’ app is money and points off your license (where applicable). Motivation for railway crossing .. life, injury and damage. Frequency of ‘being caught’ is higher on the speed cameras, less so on the railway crossings, so the demand of railway crossings is very low … basically most don’t care about getting a warning from their GPS about a railway crossing so any app and/or POI for railway crossing warnings won’t get used. Sorry for my poor respect for my fellow humans.
Have a good Xmas.
Kommentaar van MRPockets op 22 Desember 2016 om 15:26
For what it is worth, OsmAnd already includes a rail crossings warning option. I don’t recall if it is on or off by default but it is quite easy to turn on.