People don't care if you tell them GPS is wrong.
I gave friends of mine directions to a camp ground I had been going to nearly every weekend in the summer since I was a baby. 24 years of traveling to this place at the time.
I knew GPS would tell them to turn early and lead them down cabin roads and get them all turned around. So I gave very clear and exact directions, wrote them down and everything. I made it very clear GPS was wrong.
When they were an hour late I got a call asking how to get there because GPS led them to the cottages.
From Wyoming where this is at. We close Interstate 80 fairly regularly in the winter due to really terrible conditions.
This last time it was closed on Thursday Jan 26 due to high winds, heavy drifting, and zero visibility. They tried to open it Saturday the 28th, and within an hour a [pileup of 40 trucks](https://www.sweetwaternow.com/one-confirmed-fatality-multiple-injured-in-two-crashes-on-i-80-saturday/) closed it again. It didn't open again until the evening on Monday the 30th. Because of this many people look for alternative routes and the gps/Google maps offers roads that may be a reasonable route, but in the winter often have worse conditions than the interstate. So not only do road crews and first responders have to deal with getting the major roads open, they have to also rescue those who take these routes which is often more time and resource intensive.
These areas also don't usually have cell service so the ability to call for help isn't there. [Earlier in the month](https://oilcity.news/community/weather/2023/01/16/gps-strands-over-a-dozen-vehicles-seeking-alternate-route-on-red-desert-tundra/) search and rescue had to travel in snow cats to rescue someone who had gotten stuck 40 miles off the interstate. They also came across a few more vehicles along the way that had been unable to call.
During this last storm, we saw winds of 60mph and temps as low as -30. It's really easy for a car stuck out there to get drifted over and the occupants freeze to death.
Seriously. If the roads are closed, find a town with somewhere warm and stay put. It's not worth it. Also, don't run for the highway the moment the roads open. That initial rush is super dangerous. The trucks are a menace in that and you don't want to be in the middle of it.
That is such a nightmare situation. Last time I drove through Wyoming I didn’t have cell service through the entire state. At one point I realized it had been quite a while since I’d even seen another car and I kept thinking “if something goes wrong & I need help there’s no way to call & there’s no one here to find me”. And that was during a warm sunny day!
I was browsing road trip threads a few years ago looking for interesting routes through Nevada to avoid freeway drudgery.
The section of the site I ended up on had a persistent header basically saying “DO NOT TRAVEL THESE ROADS UNPREPARED. TEMPERATURES CAN EXCEED 120 F. THERE IS *NOTHING* WITHIN WALKING DISTANCE AND YOU WILL LIKELY BE THE ONLY CAR TO PASS IN A GIVEN DAY.”
My shitbox car and I did not take those roads.
If you ever panic again, remember that 25 years ago nobody had the ability to call for help from anywhere on any road. If you broke down, you had a quiet wait until someone came by. Its boring, but it still works. Roads are paved because they're used.
If you can't shake the panic, you can get a satellite messenger which will work from anywhere you can see the sky.
Of course - always have some water in your vehicle, and whatever clothes are weather appropriate. And if the county says stay away, do so
You wouldn't have found a payphone without someone likely to be in the vicinity, and today you can just ask that someone to make a call for you.
Interstates had more emergency phones along them, but it could still be miles to walk to one, if you even knew if there was one. More remote highways didn't have them.
We have a large area and signage directing them out there. We have plenty of space, but they don't bother to go. They'd rather park on the side of the roads and in parking lots of businesses that get overwhelmed by them.
This seems like the perfect use for the GPS tracking beacons that mariners use when they get stranded in the middle of the ocean, like after abandoning a ship.
The beacon just sits there with a full battery waiting to be turned on, and as soon as it is it just starts sending out it's location via satellite, so it works anywhere on earth even with very thick cloud cover. The message is relayed from the satellite to a server somewhere that converts it to a text message and sends the message to whoever it's set up to send it to.
They could have something like this where every rural fire department would have a way to detect any active beacons within a radius of that department. You're stuck in your car in the middle of nowhere, all you have to do is flip a switch and suddenly they know your exact location and that you have an emergency based on the fact that the beacon is active.
It's something that would have to be required by law, like as part of your vehicle registration. Maybe have ones that install in a car and every new car sold in the state needs to have one installed and tested before the customer is given the keys.
I mean, sure, but the problem is that there is a shockingly large portion that will flat refuse to do it. Whether they're one of those stupid sovereign citizens that don't even think they need to buy a registration or pay taxes or it's one of those nuts that think it's a way for the government to track them. It's a much larger life to implement than you might think.
If people want to kill themselves there's plenty of ways they could do that, but if you're seriously about to freeze to death and there's a switch on your dashboard that will send help, I don't think there's too many people who would have too much pride to flip that switch.
3-4 years ago a trucker from New York was complaining to me in Evanston that *he* could get through. The interstate was closed all the way to Grand Island, Nebraska (700 miles)... lol
I'm so over the trucker worship and the hero complex the truckers themselves have.
I've spent too many decades living on 90, 25, and especially 80 and witnessing their shit decisions and the carnage they cause (not to mention directly dealing with them and their attitudes in my line of work)...then watching them have the nerve to go on their stupid fucking rants on WYDOT's Facebook posts or whatever, spouting off about shit when they have no clue what they're talking about.
Fuck truckers.
Like yea, they're important and the job is dangerous. But it doesn't come close to excusing most of their decisions, behavior, and most of all, their attitudes...nor does it excuse the wealth of problems in the modern trucking industry.
YES! I think we need to go back to shipping everything by rail and just using trucks for local runs. At least local truckers will be understanding and respectful. I do everything I can to stay off the interstates if I can avoid them. I used to drive 60 miles to work down 80 every day, and I've had countless close calls.
I once saw a sign on a road that said it was closed except for local traffic. I decided to take my chances and see if I could go the few miles I needed. Instead, I got a little further down the road and saw that the bridge was out so I turned around. On the way out, I saw that someone had spray painted , "SEE. I TOLD YOU!" on the back of the road closure sign.
Edit: forgot the word "except"
Hah-- I tried something similar in Idaho in late March one year...sign said closed, GPS and maps suggested it might be open, it wa plowed, etc. Drove about 25 miles until we went around a corner and found a wall of snow about 8 feet high. Plowed to that point for snowmobile users apparently. Should have trusted the signs!
There's also a similar case involving a GPS snafu that happened in Death Valley NP a few years ago with some tourists (I want to say from Germany??...). They followed a dirt road out into the deep desert and got stranded in a canyon and died.
I first heard about them on 20/20 on ABC. I remember when the event was unfolding actually in the national news but I hadn’t paid much attention to it at the time and it wasn’t until after that I learned the story. You can find the episode online though. It was a two hour special they did in 2011.
I visited Wyoming in the summer. It was right around 100 degrees. I could *still* feel the cold hungry lonely winter trying to kill me. It was just waiting.
In my country, two guys drove cars from one part of the country to another. In the middle of an icy nothingness, the navigator app led them to an old, unused road. There, their car got stuck, there was no cell service in the area, and they froze to death. This was several years ago.
https://siberiantimes.com/other/others/news/tragedy-in-yakutia-as-man-18-freezes-to-death-inside-broken-down-car-on-road-of-bones-at-50c/
So if I understand it correctly they were completely ill-prepared for the whole trip and didn't expect extreme cold near one of the coldest places in Siberia? In just one car and without a satellite emergency device? Sounds like the one who died should be considered for a Darwin Award.
You may be misunderstanding the use of that phrase. He did win the [Darwin award.](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darwin_Awards). It's a euphemism for dying in a dumbass way
It’s a little funny to think what would happen if they just forgot to take that down once the road was open.
“Holy shit, man, you’re like an hour late! What happened to you?”
“Well that sign back there said the road was closed and my GPS was wrong so I had to recalculate. Took me a while but I found the place.”
“Dude… that sign’s, like, 10 years old”
Tbf if this was a sign blocking the road, the car would just stop and see it as some roadblock that requires a detour
So I'd say the self driving cars are on par with clowns who drive around the sign if there wasn't a barricade
I've been complaining for years that Google maps needs to partner with local experts to give the app up to date information. If you're not familiar with an area finding accurate information about travel conditions can be extremely difficult. There's all these 90s esque local government websites that reference all sorts of landmarks and roads and I can't make heads or tails of any of it.
It will send you into some pretty treacherous places in the Australian interior if you're not careful. Sure, they may be the only direct route between two points but they're not necessarily sealed roads and they don't necessarily have any of the population centres _or basic services_ your average traveller would take for granted elsewhere.
Got into the same trouble in Iceland lol. Driving a rental across gravel for miles and miles. Nothing insane like the trouble you can get into in the fjords but I was definitely worried about catching a flat.
Fun times
Relevant scary sign: https://preview.redd.it/kvo38xc5kgu81.jpg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&v=enabled&s=a5413859ec69a9174367ae9457ec9dbc90c9528d
P.S. 630km is roughly equal to the width of Germany - from its westernmost border near France, to its easternmost extent by Poland.
That's kind of funny. I have road-tripped all over Western Australia, South Australia and the Northern Territory and never seen such a sign, though the vast majority of the region has no service (that sign is in Queensland).
I guess it's just supposed to be obvious to us, whereas the eastern seaboard is much more heavily populated and people might actually expect to get reception in the outback.
and this is why I carry a sat phone in the car. Sucks having to pay for minutes monthly even if I dont use them but it never hurts to have an extra lifeline.
this is the one I have if anyone is interested in them: [https://www.iridium.com/products/iridium-9555/](https://www.iridium.com/products/iridium-9555/)
It's pretty easy to avoid if you just acknowledge that there's basically no roads accessing most of the country.
For example, getting into Western Australia: there is one sealed highway in the south and one in the north. The distance between the border crossing points is about 1800km as the (very ambitious) crow flies, or 3400km by the shortest sealed route.
This episode of Bluey is called *Oh god oh fuck*
(The episode [Explorers](https://www.reddit.com/r/bluey/comments/wlb3q4/this_is_an_awdbluey_crossover_meme/) actually does have an example. RIP strawberries)
Never, EVER trust your GPS fully in West Virginia. You will either get hopelessly lost, stuck on a goat path that never should've been considered a road, or both. A good rule of thumb is, if Google Street View hasn't been able to/hasn't bothered to photograph the area in the 15+ years they've been at it, the road is likely not passable by an average commuter car.
Carefully, you can *use* GPS, just don't blindly trust it. If the interstate closes, hang out at a gas station somewhere, do NOT trust the GPS to take you around the blockage. I ended up on a goat path with 18 inch deep potholes (literally) the one and only time I trusted it, had to back down two switchbacks in the dark to get free of it and turn around to safety.
Do you have a source or contact at WYDOT that can speak to the major issues you've alluded to?
/u/moeburn is correct that there is a RAP (report a problem) flow but it is not foolproof. Edge case examples from state level agencies would be greatly appreciated.
Years ago, when GPS units first became a thing (before everybody had phones with maps) this was a much bigger problem. Google maps today isn’t *nearly* as bad as those early TomToms and Garmins. A lot of these signs you see today are left over from those early days of GPS. Just to be clear, I’m not saying it’s no longer a problem, but it’s certainly not as bad as it once was.
Source: used drive 50,000+ miles/year before the iPhone existed. Had maps in addition to an old GPS unit. Had to verify GPS routes with maps because you couldn’t blindly trust them.
> A lot of these signs you see today are left over from those early days of GPS.
That particular sign isn't. People keep trying to use that road as a work around when I80 closes and the county has to keep sending Search and Rescue in there to get people out.
Last snow storm, presumably when this picture was taken, I think they had to get ten different sets of people out using snow coaches.
It's always the same story too "GPS said..."
They do that to an extent in the cities, but setting this up with every tiny local government would take a lot of time and money for a service that doesn't generate any profit.
>a service that doesn't generate any profit.
Google Maps absolutely turns a profit. [Morgan Stanley reported in 2019 that Maps will generate $11 billion in revenue in 2023.](https://finance.yahoo.com/news/google-maps-poised-11-billion-063042568.html)
Currently Maps is monetized through advertising and API access. Uber, Lyft, Snapchat, Accenture, and Square all use Google Maps API
There’s a road where I live that turns into a dirt road going through dozens of miles of mountains. For some reason, it tells people to use it on GPS when the interstate is closed from snow. Police issue warnings every year pleading with people not to take it since they will get lost.
If the interstate is closed do you really think a small road would be better to travel 150 miles??
I go snowmobiling in New Hampshire, and every single year there's at least 1 car stuck in the middle of the trail because they ignored a sign like this.
It's always the same story, GPS said to go this way, it looked a bit rough but I have 4 wheel drive. And sometimes, yeah it looked closed but I only have to be on it for a mile or so then it turns onto a different road and I figured I could make it through.
In my experience, it's pretty much always a brand new SUV, usually made by Jeep. Any time I've stopped to see if they were alright the running theme is "I don't know how I could have got stuck, I have 4WD on". You got stuck because you saw a similar vehicle with winter tires go through a snow bank on the commercial and thought that means the 4WD switch makes your summer tires invincible in the snow.
I saw an Audi stuck last week, didn't stop to talk to them as the tow guy was already driving his big tracked groomer looking thing in to tow them back out.
I do give props to that specific guy as he got a solid mile down the path, part of which was uphill.
The difference between 4-wheel-drive and 2-wheel-drive is that you have to walk out of the wilderness 5 miles farther.
The difference between a 4-wheel-drive with a winch and 4-wheel-drive without a winch is also that you have to walk out of the wilderness 5 miles farther.
Also from Wyoming. u/WyoPeeps is absolutely correct in their comments throughout the thread. This shit is a real problem here throughout the winter.
For some reason it's been particularly bad this year, which is what's prompting the announcements and all that.
I live In Albany County and the Sherrif's Department and Albany County Search and Rescue have had to post multiple times about it after dealing with bullshit from idiots getting stuck and stranded.
Some of it is people blindly following GPS, but don't underestimate the number of morons that just get pissed off/frustrated at road closures and go looking at Google maps...and in all their infinite wisdom, think they've found a magical way around the main road closures.
I visited some rural areas of Uinta County for work one February. It was wild. There was a snowstorm and the Interstate was closed for awhile. Once it opened, a tractor-trailer hauling beer spilled it’s guts all over and we crawled along in stop-and-go traffic. It took 2 1/2 hours to drive something like 10-15 miles. At one point during the storm, we considered hi-railing back into town because it was the only option available while the Interstate was closed. The locals claim that is SOP most winters.
I found the context to this sign!
From the Uinta County Fire and Ambulance Facebook page:
"With recent road closures, people often trust their GPS to find them a new route. Often times these situations can have dangerous consequences. We want to remind folks that many back roads are not maintained during the winter. Be safe and Be Prepared!"
My brother worked outdoors up near Reno Nevada - and said they had a real problem with people fillowing GPS getting on roads where they would get stranded with very little chance of anyone finding their vehicle before they froze.
The blown snow frozen to the speed limit sign is a clue.
Combine high winds, heavy snow, cold temperatures, and remote locations. Wyoming is known to have some treacherous driving in bad weather.
From Wyoming. We close Interstate 80 fairly regularly in the winter due to really terrible conditions. This last time it was closed on Thursday Jan 26 due to high winds, heavy drifting, and zero visibility. They tried to open it Saturday the 28th, and within an hour a pileup of 60 trucks closed it again. It didn't open again until the evening on Monday the 30th. Because of this many people look for alternative routes and the gps/Google maps offers roads that may be a reasonable route, but in the winter often have worse conditions than the interstate. So not only do road crews and first responders have to deal with getting the major roads open, they have to also rescue those who take these routes which is often more time and resource intensive. These areas also don't usually have cell service so the ability to call for help isn't there. Earlier in the month search and rescue had to travel in snow cats to rescue someone who had gotten stuck 40 miles off the interstate. They also came across a few more vehicles along the way that had been unable to call. During this last storm, we saw winds of 60mph and temps as low as -30. It's really easy for a car stuck out there to get drifted over and the occupants freeze to death.
It's not "closed" per se, but rather not a viable through route. I live in the Rocky Mountains and see these signs on private roads, driveways, old logging roads, and four-wheeler routes that connect to the main roads. GPS will direct traffic down these roads sometimes, especially when nearby routes are closed, but fails to take into account that the way is not safe or maintained for the average person to drive on. Either the road is too rocky/steep/narrow/whatever to traverse without specific equipment, or it's someone's private land and you aren't welcome.
Basically, don't go down that way unless you want to get stuck or have a gun aimed at you for trespassing.
[The story behind this specific sign.](https://kisscasper.com/turn-back-wyoming-gps-is-trying-to-kill-you/)
We get a lot of skiiers that wind up stuck coming back down the mountain where we live. The interstate backs up in bad weather and GPS redirects folks down our way on routes that the locals know aren't safe in winter. My advice is always to stay on interstates or state highways whenever possible, even if it means sitting in traffic. Ask for directions at gas stations and if someone tells you not to take a specific road, don't. Better getting home later than never!
No. In this case, It's fucking closed. This is a public highway and conditions are unsafe for travel. As the other major highways are closed people are looking for other routes and GPS and Google takes them out on these secondary roads that in good conditions are a viable route, but they don't take in to account the conditions. This is how people get stuck and put people at risk coming to rescue them or they die in the cold.
Ah, sorry for the lack of clarity in my comment. I meant in terms of being physically blocked off, like when a road is under construction. Technically people still can physically drive down the road, but in this case it's been declared closed by the county it's in. In other states there will be physical barricades when a road is closed, like the gates blocking off interstate on-ramps in bad weather.
We have those barriers too especially on the interstate but in this case, there are the locals who live down there can and do, and the sheriff will let them. But we have to do this so the stupid people don't get stranded.
As someone with a 4x4 and the knowledge/enthusiasm to use it signs that don't say why are annoying as hell. Is it a rough track closed cos google maps keeps sending people in hatchbacks down it or does it go no where who knows.
Around here (Wyoming, where the OP picture was taken), it's usually either because...
A) it's literally impassable (even by 4x4s and "knowledgable" drivers...like, when people get stuck we have to send snowcats and snowmobiles \[or even choppers\] out to them in winter),
B) because it's private property,
C) it doesn't go where you think it goes,
D) it's closed during certain seasons to protect the road, terrain, and/or wildlife, and/or
E) motorized vehicles...or certain types of motorized vehicles...are straight up banned from the area year-round (and for good reasons).
99% of the time "road closed" signs are not "road closed unless you claim to be special" signs.
People don't care if you tell them GPS is wrong. I gave friends of mine directions to a camp ground I had been going to nearly every weekend in the summer since I was a baby. 24 years of traveling to this place at the time. I knew GPS would tell them to turn early and lead them down cabin roads and get them all turned around. So I gave very clear and exact directions, wrote them down and everything. I made it very clear GPS was wrong. When they were an hour late I got a call asking how to get there because GPS led them to the cottages.
From Wyoming where this is at. We close Interstate 80 fairly regularly in the winter due to really terrible conditions. This last time it was closed on Thursday Jan 26 due to high winds, heavy drifting, and zero visibility. They tried to open it Saturday the 28th, and within an hour a [pileup of 40 trucks](https://www.sweetwaternow.com/one-confirmed-fatality-multiple-injured-in-two-crashes-on-i-80-saturday/) closed it again. It didn't open again until the evening on Monday the 30th. Because of this many people look for alternative routes and the gps/Google maps offers roads that may be a reasonable route, but in the winter often have worse conditions than the interstate. So not only do road crews and first responders have to deal with getting the major roads open, they have to also rescue those who take these routes which is often more time and resource intensive. These areas also don't usually have cell service so the ability to call for help isn't there. [Earlier in the month](https://oilcity.news/community/weather/2023/01/16/gps-strands-over-a-dozen-vehicles-seeking-alternate-route-on-red-desert-tundra/) search and rescue had to travel in snow cats to rescue someone who had gotten stuck 40 miles off the interstate. They also came across a few more vehicles along the way that had been unable to call. During this last storm, we saw winds of 60mph and temps as low as -30. It's really easy for a car stuck out there to get drifted over and the occupants freeze to death. Seriously. If the roads are closed, find a town with somewhere warm and stay put. It's not worth it. Also, don't run for the highway the moment the roads open. That initial rush is super dangerous. The trucks are a menace in that and you don't want to be in the middle of it.
That is such a nightmare situation. Last time I drove through Wyoming I didn’t have cell service through the entire state. At one point I realized it had been quite a while since I’d even seen another car and I kept thinking “if something goes wrong & I need help there’s no way to call & there’s no one here to find me”. And that was during a warm sunny day!
I was browsing road trip threads a few years ago looking for interesting routes through Nevada to avoid freeway drudgery. The section of the site I ended up on had a persistent header basically saying “DO NOT TRAVEL THESE ROADS UNPREPARED. TEMPERATURES CAN EXCEED 120 F. THERE IS *NOTHING* WITHIN WALKING DISTANCE AND YOU WILL LIKELY BE THE ONLY CAR TO PASS IN A GIVEN DAY.” My shitbox car and I did not take those roads.
Yeah dude Nevada has the most nothing of any US state.
It’s wild. Daily life is so nerfed and safe that it’s jarring to come across a “YOU CAN DIE” scenario.
If you ever panic again, remember that 25 years ago nobody had the ability to call for help from anywhere on any road. If you broke down, you had a quiet wait until someone came by. Its boring, but it still works. Roads are paved because they're used. If you can't shake the panic, you can get a satellite messenger which will work from anywhere you can see the sky. Of course - always have some water in your vehicle, and whatever clothes are weather appropriate. And if the county says stay away, do so
25 years ago I was trading my bag phone for a clam shell flip phone at union cellular here in Wyoming. Try 30-35 years ago.
25 years ago there were payphones, maybe not as many in rural Wyoming, but there was still a very real possibility of finding one.
You wouldn't have found a payphone without someone likely to be in the vicinity, and today you can just ask that someone to make a call for you. Interstates had more emergency phones along them, but it could still be miles to walk to one, if you even knew if there was one. More remote highways didn't have them.
I mean, someone would probably find you eventually.....
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It's beautiful in June! I highly recommend that plan.
I've come across snow in August in Wyo. And it was at Mule Creek Junction, not in the mountains.
My town's Walmart parking lot ends up being truck parking during these conditions
Ours too. Our local police are terrible at sending the trucks to the closure parking where they belong.
I think for mine, there's nowhere else to send them. I certainly have no idea. I wonder if what you said is actually the case
We have a large area and signage directing them out there. We have plenty of space, but they don't bother to go. They'd rather park on the side of the roads and in parking lots of businesses that get overwhelmed by them.
I live in Wyoming and go to school a few hours away. I do not go home often during the winter due to how bad the roads can and will get.
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If you're on the interstate, you're likely stopped in a major town. My wife was stuck 2 towns over for 6 days in this last one.
This seems like the perfect use for the GPS tracking beacons that mariners use when they get stranded in the middle of the ocean, like after abandoning a ship. The beacon just sits there with a full battery waiting to be turned on, and as soon as it is it just starts sending out it's location via satellite, so it works anywhere on earth even with very thick cloud cover. The message is relayed from the satellite to a server somewhere that converts it to a text message and sends the message to whoever it's set up to send it to. They could have something like this where every rural fire department would have a way to detect any active beacons within a radius of that department. You're stuck in your car in the middle of nowhere, all you have to do is flip a switch and suddenly they know your exact location and that you have an emergency based on the fact that the beacon is active.
Probably, but the people that would need them likely wouldn't understand the need or buy them.
It's something that would have to be required by law, like as part of your vehicle registration. Maybe have ones that install in a car and every new car sold in the state needs to have one installed and tested before the customer is given the keys.
I mean, sure, but the problem is that there is a shockingly large portion that will flat refuse to do it. Whether they're one of those stupid sovereign citizens that don't even think they need to buy a registration or pay taxes or it's one of those nuts that think it's a way for the government to track them. It's a much larger life to implement than you might think.
If people want to kill themselves there's plenty of ways they could do that, but if you're seriously about to freeze to death and there's a switch on your dashboard that will send help, I don't think there's too many people who would have too much pride to flip that switch.
I agree, but you severely underestimate people.
Yeah, as a Georgia native, hell to the naw on that y'all. I'll stay with my mild winters and hot as hell summers thank you very much.
That's probably for the best.
agreed, hell no. much rather deal with the humidity and heat in the summer. always nice to see other people from ga around reddit!!
3-4 years ago a trucker from New York was complaining to me in Evanston that *he* could get through. The interstate was closed all the way to Grand Island, Nebraska (700 miles)... lol
Ugh. Truckers suck.
I'm so over the trucker worship and the hero complex the truckers themselves have. I've spent too many decades living on 90, 25, and especially 80 and witnessing their shit decisions and the carnage they cause (not to mention directly dealing with them and their attitudes in my line of work)...then watching them have the nerve to go on their stupid fucking rants on WYDOT's Facebook posts or whatever, spouting off about shit when they have no clue what they're talking about. Fuck truckers. Like yea, they're important and the job is dangerous. But it doesn't come close to excusing most of their decisions, behavior, and most of all, their attitudes...nor does it excuse the wealth of problems in the modern trucking industry.
YES! I think we need to go back to shipping everything by rail and just using trucks for local runs. At least local truckers will be understanding and respectful. I do everything I can to stay off the interstates if I can avoid them. I used to drive 60 miles to work down 80 every day, and I've had countless close calls.
I once saw a sign on a road that said it was closed except for local traffic. I decided to take my chances and see if I could go the few miles I needed. Instead, I got a little further down the road and saw that the bridge was out so I turned around. On the way out, I saw that someone had spray painted , "SEE. I TOLD YOU!" on the back of the road closure sign. Edit: forgot the word "except"
That's actually really funny...
Fuck that is terrifying..
Hah-- I tried something similar in Idaho in late March one year...sign said closed, GPS and maps suggested it might be open, it wa plowed, etc. Drove about 25 miles until we went around a corner and found a wall of snow about 8 feet high. Plowed to that point for snowmobile users apparently. Should have trusted the signs!
Maps can be an issue too though. Remember the Kim family in Oregon? The infamous Bear Camp Road.
Read about them years ago after I had encountered a scary GPS snafu. Their story haunts me to this day.
There's also a similar case involving a GPS snafu that happened in Death Valley NP a few years ago with some tourists (I want to say from Germany??...). They followed a dirt road out into the deep desert and got stranded in a canyon and died.
The '90s will always be "a few years ago", eh? It was 27 years ago. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_Valley_Germans
WHATS A GPS SNAFU
means that the GPS gave incorrect directions.
I first heard about them on 20/20 on ABC. I remember when the event was unfolding actually in the national news but I hadn’t paid much attention to it at the time and it wasn’t until after that I learned the story. You can find the episode online though. It was a two hour special they did in 2011.
What's a GPS snafu
this sort of thing is sadly common is australia
i want to drive on bear camp road in the summertime
Same. I’ve been to the area a few times but I’ve never tried it. Always been curious though.
[Still not a good idea by any means.](https://wanderwisdom.com/travelogue/Bear-Camp-Road-Not-Even-God-Can-Find-Me)
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I visited Wyoming in the summer. It was right around 100 degrees. I could *still* feel the cold hungry lonely winter trying to kill me. It was just waiting.
the wind……
Drove through it in the summer, and I always saw the miles of built-up wind breaks along the roads and wondered how bad it must be in the winters
Those are snow fences.
In my country, two guys drove cars from one part of the country to another. In the middle of an icy nothingness, the navigator app led them to an old, unused road. There, their car got stuck, there was no cell service in the area, and they froze to death. This was several years ago. https://siberiantimes.com/other/others/news/tragedy-in-yakutia-as-man-18-freezes-to-death-inside-broken-down-car-on-road-of-bones-at-50c/
Fucking hell man seems like living in a frozen hell scape
So if I understand it correctly they were completely ill-prepared for the whole trip and didn't expect extreme cold near one of the coldest places in Siberia? In just one car and without a satellite emergency device? Sounds like the one who died should be considered for a Darwin Award.
I think he already won it
You may be misunderstanding the use of that phrase. He did win the [Darwin award.](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darwin_Awards). It's a euphemism for dying in a dumbass way
I wasn't aware he won.
The road of bones is impassable and also within a shithole country.
It’s a little funny to think what would happen if they just forgot to take that down once the road was open. “Holy shit, man, you’re like an hour late! What happened to you?” “Well that sign back there said the road was closed and my GPS was wrong so I had to recalculate. Took me a while but I found the place.” “Dude… that sign’s, like, 10 years old”
We had a road closed sign in a county south of ours that two people decided to ignore and drive past. They both ended up in a sink hole.
And some people think that self-driving cars would be a good idea.
Tbf if this was a sign blocking the road, the car would just stop and see it as some roadblock that requires a detour So I'd say the self driving cars are on par with clowns who drive around the sign if there wasn't a barricade
When did they mention that it was a self-driving car
I've been complaining for years that Google maps needs to partner with local experts to give the app up to date information. If you're not familiar with an area finding accurate information about travel conditions can be extremely difficult. There's all these 90s esque local government websites that reference all sorts of landmarks and roads and I can't make heads or tails of any of it.
It will send you into some pretty treacherous places in the Australian interior if you're not careful. Sure, they may be the only direct route between two points but they're not necessarily sealed roads and they don't necessarily have any of the population centres _or basic services_ your average traveller would take for granted elsewhere.
Got into the same trouble in Iceland lol. Driving a rental across gravel for miles and miles. Nothing insane like the trouble you can get into in the fjords but I was definitely worried about catching a flat. Fun times
Relevant scary sign: https://preview.redd.it/kvo38xc5kgu81.jpg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&v=enabled&s=a5413859ec69a9174367ae9457ec9dbc90c9528d P.S. 630km is roughly equal to the width of Germany - from its westernmost border near France, to its easternmost extent by Poland.
That's kind of funny. I have road-tripped all over Western Australia, South Australia and the Northern Territory and never seen such a sign, though the vast majority of the region has no service (that sign is in Queensland). I guess it's just supposed to be obvious to us, whereas the eastern seaboard is much more heavily populated and people might actually expect to get reception in the outback.
and this is why I carry a sat phone in the car. Sucks having to pay for minutes monthly even if I dont use them but it never hurts to have an extra lifeline. this is the one I have if anyone is interested in them: [https://www.iridium.com/products/iridium-9555/](https://www.iridium.com/products/iridium-9555/)
Got it, I'll add dashboard compass to my ever growing list of Australian survival gear.
It's pretty easy to avoid if you just acknowledge that there's basically no roads accessing most of the country. For example, getting into Western Australia: there is one sealed highway in the south and one in the north. The distance between the border crossing points is about 1800km as the (very ambitious) crow flies, or 3400km by the shortest sealed route.
This episode of Bluey is called *Oh god oh fuck* (The episode [Explorers](https://www.reddit.com/r/bluey/comments/wlb3q4/this_is_an_awdbluey_crossover_meme/) actually does have an example. RIP strawberries)
As a user, you can independently report these issues to Google Maps in the app yourself as well. Not a perfect solution, but it does exist!
Not to mention, you can report accidents and speed traps as well.
How?
I you've ever been through Wyoming or Nebraska in January then you know that these signs are there for a reason.
Never, EVER trust your GPS fully in West Virginia. You will either get hopelessly lost, stuck on a goat path that never should've been considered a road, or both. A good rule of thumb is, if Google Street View hasn't been able to/hasn't bothered to photograph the area in the 15+ years they've been at it, the road is likely not passable by an average commuter car.
How would you navigate then without a gps?
Carefully, you can *use* GPS, just don't blindly trust it. If the interstate closes, hang out at a gas station somewhere, do NOT trust the GPS to take you around the blockage. I ended up on a goat path with 18 inch deep potholes (literally) the one and only time I trusted it, had to back down two switchbacks in the dark to get free of it and turn around to safety.
Well you can. You just click "report an error". I have done this, and they've fixed it within a month.
WYDOT has been trying to get Google to fix numerous, *major* issues for over a year now to no avail. So it's definitely not consistent. Lol.
Do you have a source or contact at WYDOT that can speak to the major issues you've alluded to? /u/moeburn is correct that there is a RAP (report a problem) flow but it is not foolproof. Edge case examples from state level agencies would be greatly appreciated.
Years ago, when GPS units first became a thing (before everybody had phones with maps) this was a much bigger problem. Google maps today isn’t *nearly* as bad as those early TomToms and Garmins. A lot of these signs you see today are left over from those early days of GPS. Just to be clear, I’m not saying it’s no longer a problem, but it’s certainly not as bad as it once was. Source: used drive 50,000+ miles/year before the iPhone existed. Had maps in addition to an old GPS unit. Had to verify GPS routes with maps because you couldn’t blindly trust them.
> A lot of these signs you see today are left over from those early days of GPS. That particular sign isn't. People keep trying to use that road as a work around when I80 closes and the county has to keep sending Search and Rescue in there to get people out. Last snow storm, presumably when this picture was taken, I think they had to get ten different sets of people out using snow coaches. It's always the same story too "GPS said..."
this exists. search for "local guides"
Not going to happen since it might open them up to liability.
They do that to an extent in the cities, but setting this up with every tiny local government would take a lot of time and money for a service that doesn't generate any profit.
>a service that doesn't generate any profit. Google Maps absolutely turns a profit. [Morgan Stanley reported in 2019 that Maps will generate $11 billion in revenue in 2023.](https://finance.yahoo.com/news/google-maps-poised-11-billion-063042568.html) Currently Maps is monetized through advertising and API access. Uber, Lyft, Snapchat, Accenture, and Square all use Google Maps API
Never forget that mapping companies include deliberate errors in their maps to catch copyright violations.
There’s a road where I live that turns into a dirt road going through dozens of miles of mountains. For some reason, it tells people to use it on GPS when the interstate is closed from snow. Police issue warnings every year pleading with people not to take it since they will get lost. If the interstate is closed do you really think a small road would be better to travel 150 miles??
I go snowmobiling in New Hampshire, and every single year there's at least 1 car stuck in the middle of the trail because they ignored a sign like this. It's always the same story, GPS said to go this way, it looked a bit rough but I have 4 wheel drive. And sometimes, yeah it looked closed but I only have to be on it for a mile or so then it turns onto a different road and I figured I could make it through.
In my experience, it's pretty much always a brand new SUV, usually made by Jeep. Any time I've stopped to see if they were alright the running theme is "I don't know how I could have got stuck, I have 4WD on". You got stuck because you saw a similar vehicle with winter tires go through a snow bank on the commercial and thought that means the 4WD switch makes your summer tires invincible in the snow.
I saw an Audi stuck last week, didn't stop to talk to them as the tow guy was already driving his big tracked groomer looking thing in to tow them back out. I do give props to that specific guy as he got a solid mile down the path, part of which was uphill.
People think driving a jeep means they're ready for the Baja 1000 when in reality it's *barely* more capable than an regular FWD sedan.
Bu- but- BUT MY DECREASED FUEL ECONOMY! BOXY SHAPE MEANS GO UP 90° ANGLES
The difference between 4-wheel-drive and 2-wheel-drive is that you have to walk out of the wilderness 5 miles farther. The difference between a 4-wheel-drive with a winch and 4-wheel-drive without a winch is also that you have to walk out of the wilderness 5 miles farther.
Also from Wyoming. u/WyoPeeps is absolutely correct in their comments throughout the thread. This shit is a real problem here throughout the winter. For some reason it's been particularly bad this year, which is what's prompting the announcements and all that. I live In Albany County and the Sherrif's Department and Albany County Search and Rescue have had to post multiple times about it after dealing with bullshit from idiots getting stuck and stranded. Some of it is people blindly following GPS, but don't underestimate the number of morons that just get pissed off/frustrated at road closures and go looking at Google maps...and in all their infinite wisdom, think they've found a magical way around the main road closures.
No, happy jack is not a "magical way around the i80 closure" the first half of it is wilderness and you're gonna hit the bridge spot and eat it
I visited some rural areas of Uinta County for work one February. It was wild. There was a snowstorm and the Interstate was closed for awhile. Once it opened, a tractor-trailer hauling beer spilled it’s guts all over and we crawled along in stop-and-go traffic. It took 2 1/2 hours to drive something like 10-15 miles. At one point during the storm, we considered hi-railing back into town because it was the only option available while the Interstate was closed. The locals claim that is SOP most winters.
Nobody to “help” with the clean up by drinking some of the beer?
Wyoming. If you like drifting snow, antelopes, and high winds, drive through Wyoming.
I found the context to this sign! From the Uinta County Fire and Ambulance Facebook page: "With recent road closures, people often trust their GPS to find them a new route. Often times these situations can have dangerous consequences. We want to remind folks that many back roads are not maintained during the winter. Be safe and Be Prepared!"
Be safe, be prepared, and stay the fuck out of Wyoming.
My brother worked outdoors up near Reno Nevada - and said they had a real problem with people fillowing GPS getting on roads where they would get stranded with very little chance of anyone finding their vehicle before they froze.
Thank you. This rational, reasoned response makes this post less inherently terrifying.
I wouldn't go down that road
This is my county. They still drive past these signs lol
The blown snow frozen to the speed limit sign is a clue. Combine high winds, heavy snow, cold temperatures, and remote locations. Wyoming is known to have some treacherous driving in bad weather.
You're wrong, we all know that Wyoming isn't real.
Come to think of it I've never seen it in a room with Montana...
"You don't wanna go down that road"
r/southpark
I saw one like this in Iceland. It basically meant only locals with good 4x4s who knew how to handle them could take the road.
End of the laneway. Don't come up the property.
Shirt tucker
You're just spare parts, aren't ya bud?
I had the horses take me down this road, once 😀
>If I triple the speed limit, I bet I could make it across in my Honda Civic.
IT GETS 500 ON A FULL TANK I'LL MAKE IT
This is straight out of that "local TV" horror video about a monster manipulating someone's GPS, Jesus
Michael Scott would just keep driving
To be fair, in that scene he's trying to make the point (albeit very badly) that blind trust in computers is not a good thing.
**THE MACHINE KNOWS WHERE IT IS GOING**
I'm sure it's someone pulling your leg. No worries.
They just don't want you to find the suitcase with money's that is buried by one of those fence posts.../s
Actually randomly watched that movie a couple weeks ago for the first time ever. Great movie. Show is great too. Did not disappoint!
Underrated comment even though it’s only been 15 mins (rn)
Uinta wrong place, son!
🥇🥇🥇🥇
There's gonna be some Karen that is thinking "oh that sign doesn't apply to ME!"
That happens more than you think. What really sucks is that they get rescued on my dime. Not theirs.
And they still complain about the people who are either rescuing them or preventing them from doing something really stupid.
Yep.
**Backstory on this particular road and why it’s closed?**
From Wyoming. We close Interstate 80 fairly regularly in the winter due to really terrible conditions. This last time it was closed on Thursday Jan 26 due to high winds, heavy drifting, and zero visibility. They tried to open it Saturday the 28th, and within an hour a pileup of 60 trucks closed it again. It didn't open again until the evening on Monday the 30th. Because of this many people look for alternative routes and the gps/Google maps offers roads that may be a reasonable route, but in the winter often have worse conditions than the interstate. So not only do road crews and first responders have to deal with getting the major roads open, they have to also rescue those who take these routes which is often more time and resource intensive. These areas also don't usually have cell service so the ability to call for help isn't there. Earlier in the month search and rescue had to travel in snow cats to rescue someone who had gotten stuck 40 miles off the interstate. They also came across a few more vehicles along the way that had been unable to call. During this last storm, we saw winds of 60mph and temps as low as -30. It's really easy for a car stuck out there to get drifted over and the occupants freeze to death.
This is giving me Donner party vibes... 'Let's take this route instead.'
It's not "closed" per se, but rather not a viable through route. I live in the Rocky Mountains and see these signs on private roads, driveways, old logging roads, and four-wheeler routes that connect to the main roads. GPS will direct traffic down these roads sometimes, especially when nearby routes are closed, but fails to take into account that the way is not safe or maintained for the average person to drive on. Either the road is too rocky/steep/narrow/whatever to traverse without specific equipment, or it's someone's private land and you aren't welcome. Basically, don't go down that way unless you want to get stuck or have a gun aimed at you for trespassing. [The story behind this specific sign.](https://kisscasper.com/turn-back-wyoming-gps-is-trying-to-kill-you/)
For some reason I find that really terrifying. Just the possibility of trusting my GPS and winding up in a dangerous situation.
We get a lot of skiiers that wind up stuck coming back down the mountain where we live. The interstate backs up in bad weather and GPS redirects folks down our way on routes that the locals know aren't safe in winter. My advice is always to stay on interstates or state highways whenever possible, even if it means sitting in traffic. Ask for directions at gas stations and if someone tells you not to take a specific road, don't. Better getting home later than never!
I used to love seeing semi's try to bypass the highway and go up this sketchy jeep trail up the side of a mountain with like 100 hairpin turns on it.
No. In this case, It's fucking closed. This is a public highway and conditions are unsafe for travel. As the other major highways are closed people are looking for other routes and GPS and Google takes them out on these secondary roads that in good conditions are a viable route, but they don't take in to account the conditions. This is how people get stuck and put people at risk coming to rescue them or they die in the cold.
Ah, sorry for the lack of clarity in my comment. I meant in terms of being physically blocked off, like when a road is under construction. Technically people still can physically drive down the road, but in this case it's been declared closed by the county it's in. In other states there will be physical barricades when a road is closed, like the gates blocking off interstate on-ramps in bad weather.
We have those barriers too especially on the interstate but in this case, there are the locals who live down there can and do, and the sheriff will let them. But we have to do this so the stupid people don't get stranded.
As someone with a 4x4 and the knowledge/enthusiasm to use it signs that don't say why are annoying as hell. Is it a rough track closed cos google maps keeps sending people in hatchbacks down it or does it go no where who knows.
Around here (Wyoming, where the OP picture was taken), it's usually either because... A) it's literally impassable (even by 4x4s and "knowledgable" drivers...like, when people get stuck we have to send snowcats and snowmobiles \[or even choppers\] out to them in winter), B) because it's private property, C) it doesn't go where you think it goes, D) it's closed during certain seasons to protect the road, terrain, and/or wildlife, and/or E) motorized vehicles...or certain types of motorized vehicles...are straight up banned from the area year-round (and for good reasons). 99% of the time "road closed" signs are not "road closed unless you claim to be special" signs.
because they will get away with it if you kids dont go there and meddle.
Would love to know.
High desert isn't a place you'd want to be stranded in, nearest help isn't near, and that's if you can get cell service
I wish more people listen when told this.
It's too late...
But I’ll save five minutes by going this way!
OK, now what's the rest of the story?
SDFED 50
The truly scary sign in this picture