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Google Maps, Apple Maps, and Bing Maps will all try to murder you if you ask for directions from Santa Maria, CA to Ventura, CA.

The obvious route is to follow the freeway that was built on the best route between the two cities. Instead, all three really enjoy routing you onto a two-lane twisty mountain road that is five minutes shorter if you are driving a sports car and all the lights are green. Heaven help you if you are driving an RV.

I've sent corrections to both Google and Apple about this. They both did nothing.



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I've driven highway 154 many times. It's nowhere near as bad as you say, and is actually a nice break from 101.

You're talking about 154, right? It's not that bad…

I recognize this. I live in a part of the Netherlands where there is only ONE highway going through the area. Yet Google Maps and TomTom both want to send me through the nature reserve instead of via the highway running parallel to the nature reserve. The reason is that the route through the nature reserve is a few kilometers shorter and the speed limits are set wrong. Both Google Maps and TomTom think you can drive at highway speeds on those roads.

Signs have been setup to block cars from entering those roads during morning and evening rush hour. But still you see many people taking that road, blindly following the map instructions.


Do you mean you would prefer the 101 route? That's what both Google, Bing as well as all OSM routers I tried suggested. https://i.imgur.com/vIWC5ti.png

Yep. Normally they prefer the side route. I'm sure if traffic is bad on the side route they will adapt and take the sensible route instead.

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