Google Maps has become an indispensable tool for over 2 billion users worldwide, yet many are unaware of its full capabilities. From finding the nearest mobile money vendor in rural Kenya to navigating complex city layouts in Johannesburg, Google Maps offers a suite of features that can enhance your travel experience, especially within Africa. Here are seven functionalities to help you maximise the app’s potential:
1). Live View
This feature helps you navigate unfamiliar streets using augmented reality. If it’s your first time in a noisy market, it can feel overwhelming. People are talking, bargaining, and moving around everywhere. Finding your way to the store you need can be a real challenge.
Live View solves this by tapping the camera icon. It overlays directions onto the real world through your smartphone’s camera, using augmented reality. Instead of staring at a map and trying to match it to your surroundings, arrows and directions are superimposed on your actual view, making it incredibly easy to follow routes on foot, even in the most confusing environments.
2). Offline Maps
Traveling through areas with limited internet connectivity? Download maps for offline use. By downloading maps for offline use (select ‘Offline maps’ in the app menu) before you set off, you ensure uninterrupted navigation even in remote regions. You can still get turn-by-turn directions, search for locations, and access saved places, all without needing an internet connection. This is crucial for safe and efficient travel.
3). Indoor Maps
This functionality helps you explore large indoor spaces like airports, malls, and transit stations with ease. Think about navigating a massive airport like OR Tambo International in Johannesburg during a tight layover. Finding your gate, a specific restaurant, or the restrooms can be stressful.
Google Map can provide detailed floor plans, helping you find your way inside complex buildings. These indoor maps show you the layout of each floor, including shops, gates, and other amenities, making navigating these spaces much less daunting.
4). Add Multiple Stops
A perfect day trip from Cape Town would involve a visit to Boulders Beach to see the penguins, a drive along the stunning Chapman’s Peak Drive, and a delicious dinner in Hout Bay. Instead of creating separate routes for each leg, use the ‘Add stop’ feature to include multiple locations in your route. Google Maps will then optimise the route for you, ensuring the most efficient order of stops and providing an estimated arrival time for each destination. To add multiple stops to a route in Google Maps, you can:
- Open Google Maps
- Enter your starting point and destination
- Click Directions
- Click More or the three dots (more options) icon
- Click Add stop
- Enter the address or location of the stop you want to add
- Repeat steps 4 and 5 to add more stops
- Click Done when you’re finished
5). Measure Distance and Area
Imagine a feature that helps you assess the direct distance between two points before setting out on your journey or calculate the area of a specific location. This is incredibly useful for planning and also valuable for real estate, especially when purchasing land. You can use this feature to get a quick estimate of the plot’s area, or to measure the distance to the nearest town or water source, aiding in your decision-making.
To measure distance and area in Google Maps, you can:
- Open Google Maps and search for your location
- Click Layers to see satellite imagery
- Right click on the map and select Measure distance
- Click on the map to draw a polygon around the area you want to measure
- Close the shape to automatically show the area measurement
You can also measure distance in Google Maps by:
- Touching and holding anywhere on the map to place a red pin
- Selecting Measure distance
- Moving the map to place the black circle on the next point
- Tapping Add point at the bottom right
- Finding the total distance in miles or kilometers at the bottom
6). Real-Time Transit Information
Google Maps is an indispensable source for mobility data. Not only does it provide real-time traffic information, it also enables users to find the right connection of public transportation based on the timetables provided by the cities. This real-time transit info lets users see live arrivals for buses, metros and subway systems—and even alert them to cancelled routes—so they can better navigate the sometimes complex public transit system of the city.
Google Maps may not yet have public transportation data for your city. This is because its static map feature relies on static timetables provided by the city’s transit services, which may not be available for all locations. Regardless, real-time transit information is a game-changer. It provides live updates on bus and train schedules, alerts you to any delays, and sometimes even shows how crowded the vehicles are. This allows you to plan your commute more effectively, avoiding long waits and overcrowded buses.
7). Report Road Incidents
Google Maps encourages community-driven updates by allowing users to report accidents, hazards, or speed traps. While driving, you may encounter an incident that could impact other drivers, such as a major accident causing traffic delays. Although you cannot safely operate your phone while driving, a passenger can easily report the incident; else, you can use voice commands through Siri or Google Assistant. This helps keep other drivers informed about current road conditions and potentially avoid congestion. This community-driven approach makes everyone’s journey safer and more efficient.
Conclusion
As technology gets better, Google Maps will become even more important for how we move around and connect with each other. Google is always improving the app and adding new features, which will help people, businesses, and communities. By learning how to use these seven key features, you can get the most out of Google Maps now and be ready for what’s coming in the future. There’s always more to discover, and Google Maps can help you find it.
