Why We Use Telegram Over Google Maps for Road Trips
▼ Summary
– Google Maps is a leading navigation app but lacks a feature for multiple people to coordinate during group road trips.
– The author identifies a need for a “co-driving mode” that would let drivers on the same route see each other’s live locations within the app.
– Currently, users must rely on third-party messaging apps like Telegram to share locations and coordinate, which is a fragmented and imperfect solution.
– The technology for such a feature exists, as evidenced by Google-owned Waze’s discontinued Carpool feature, which offered a form of shared navigation.
– Implementing a co-driving mode in Google Maps would significantly improve group travel coordination, especially for emergencies and staying in sync.
While Google Maps remains the go-to navigation app for millions, its utility can feel surprisingly limited the moment you embark on a journey with others. The app excels at getting an individual from point A to point B, yet it lacks a fundamental tool for group travel: a way for multiple drivers or passengers to stay visually synchronized on the same route in real time. This glaring omission forces travelers to seek clumsy workarounds, highlighting a significant gap in what is otherwise a powerhouse of digital mapping.
The need for a dedicated co-driving mode within Google Maps becomes painfully clear on any multi-vehicle road trip. Planning a solo drive is seamless; you input your destination and follow the turn-by-turn guidance. However, the dynamic changes completely when coordinating with a second or third car. There is no native way to see your companions’ live positions superimposed on your own navigation screen. You can share your trip progress, but this is a one-way broadcast, not a collaborative map. This forces drivers to divert their attention to messaging apps to share locations and coordinate stops, which is neither safe nor efficient.
Envisioning how this feature could work reveals its potential value. A co-driving mode would allow users to create a shared trip session, inviting others to join. Once connected, each participant’s vehicle would appear as a live icon on everyone else’s map display, all following the same synchronized route. This shared view would simplify every aspect of group travel. Deciding on a rest stop, checking if someone is falling behind, or quickly regrouping after a wrong turn would become intuitive visual actions rather than a series of frantic texts or calls. In emergency situations, such as a breakdown, it would provide immediate, silent awareness that a vehicle has stopped, enabling a quicker response.
Privacy concerns are often cited as a barrier, but these could be elegantly managed through granular user controls and explicit, one-time permissions for each shared trip. The underlying technology is not speculative; Google already possesses the capability. Its owned service, Waze, previously operated Waze Carpool, which demonstrated a framework for connecting multiple users on similar routes in real time. While that service was for ride-sharing, the foundational concept of shared, active navigation is proven and could be adapted for social travel.
In the absence of this native functionality, many groups, including mine, have turned to messaging platforms like Telegram as an imperfect substitute. We create a group chat, paste the route link, and use it as a running log for decisions on stops, traffic updates, and timing. Yet, this solution is fraught with problems. Critical information gets lost in a fast-moving conversation. Someone with poor signal must scroll endlessly to catch up. It creates a disjointed experience where we rely on a world-class navigation app alongside a separate chat just to feel connected, with no single, authoritative source of truth for the journey.
The argument for this feature is compelling and its absence is puzzling. Google Maps continues to add impressive capabilities like immersive view, yet it overlooks this fundamental social aspect of travel. A co-driving mode would transform the app from a solitary guide into a collaborative travel hub, perfectly aligning with how people actually experience road trips, together. For an application so deeply integrated into our daily mobility, failing to address this common use case feels like a missed opportunity of significant proportions. The framework exists, the user need is evident, and the implementation is straightforward. It’s a feature that is, quite simply, long overdue.
(Source: Android Police)
