Finding a space with Google Maps

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February 9th, 2023

I’m the first one to admit I rely heavily on Google Maps, even if I know the journey I still use it to make sure I get there on time and to check for any real-time traffic jams. But one thing that annoys me is that I plan my journey to the minute (thanks to Google Maps) but I am always late because I’m looking for a car park space, but with Google Maps newest update and through the use of user data that could be a thing of the past.

A new update on the app is ranking car parks to tell users how busy a car park will be on their time of arrival, similar to how Google can tell you how busy a public place can be, or what the peak times are.

Depending on where you are going Google Maps will tell you how likely you are to get a space near your final destination, it gives each car park 3 different rankings – Easy, Medium or Limited. This update is not in real-time but can help Google Map users plan their journey even better!

Although this feature is not in real-time plenty of features on Google Maps are. And amazingly none of the information Google uses is over 3 years old.

It’s not quite clear how Google uses the data collected from location services on phones but it certainly plays a part in Google Maps. Anyone that uses Google Maps and keeps their location services on while driving is helping to build Google’s database. This information helps to show real-time traffic, estimated times of arrival and diversions from roadworks and congestion.

While this new update can only tell you the likelihood of getting a space at a certain time it can still save you plenty of time when planning a journey. And as Google is collecting more data from its users this update may become real-time in the future, updating as you get closer to your destination and offering parking alternatives. There’ll never be another excuse for being late to an interview again.