Waze to beat traffic, together

By now, many of us have found ways of improving the  traffic situation, or at least get the better of it. Through numerous smartphone apps and social media sites, we can find out where the current traffic hotspots are and avoid them, thus getting to our destination on time, all the time.

A popular, if not the most, mobile app download is Waze. You can download it on your mobile device for free  via Google Play Store or iTunes. So what is Waze exactly?

Waze is, in essence, a community of people bonding together to give benefit to others. Technically, it is a step-by-step navigation system with real-time updates on traffic. Waze is also a globally utilized app: You can use it all over the world. Currently, it has mapped completely 13 countries, with the rest (such as the Philippines) close to being so, thanks to the very active editors who constantly update the local maps and road networks.

WAZE officials from Israel meet with local counterparts.

To give a brief background: Waze was founded in 2008 by Uri Levine, Ehud Shabtai and Amir Shinar in Israel. The story goes that these guys were constantly getting lost in and around Israel, and wanted real-time updates on traffic as well as road closures and construction. They had approached a number of mobile/map-making companies to present their idea, but they only showed them the door.

Not disenfranchised about their idea, the guys started their own company, which was originally called LinQmap. Due to its uniqueness, popularity and acceptance, Waze was eventually bought by Google for $1.1 billion in June 2013.

Today, it has an estimated 50 million users worldwide, with the Philippines having 120,000 active users, and these numbers are still growing rapidly. Waze doesn’t want to release specific figures because these guys prefer to keep their cards (valuable information  such as the exact algorithm and revenue stream) close to their chests. No matter; so long as Waze remains beneficial to its users, these secrets remain secondary to Wazers (the term called for Waze users).

‘Friendly ghost’

Waze differs from other navigation apps because of its social media and gaming functions, as well as the interactivity between the users and the software itself. Turn on your smartphone, enable the GPS and mobile data functions, and its icon (which, curiously, looks a bit like a friendly ghost) will display your location. The screen will display traffic/road directions, average speed and police locations as well as traffic hotspots along your route. You can enter an address and Waze will navigate for you, taking into consideration information on traffic uploaded by other Waze users.

Waze also links with your social media sites, like  Facebook, so it can automatically locate  friends who also happen to be Waze users.

By using Waze more often and getting past particular icons on the road (such as cupcake-shaped icons), you accumulate points, which improve your ranking. This is the gaming side of Waze: Should you achieve a certain ranking or points level, you can become an editor, authorized to make edits or corrections on the Waze map.

Pretty penny

In the future, Waze plans to work with the local fuel stations to help map out their locations and, crucially, provide real-time fuel prices, helping motorists not only beat traffic but also save a pretty penny on their daily motoring sojourn. Waze also plans to partner with the Department of Public Works and Highways to give real-time announcements on road works which greatly affect traffic.

WAZERS discuss future plans for the Philippines and the world at the F1 Hotel

Local Wazers regularly meet three to four times a year. They also have a private Facebook page for editors and other senior members  to  connect with each other and to log on to global Waze forums, giving us a voice in the international Waze community.

Last June 14, however, Waze HQ sent three guys from Israel to meet with the local Waze community and give some seminars on etiquette and editing, as well as to present Waze’s future plans for the country, specifically, and worldwide, in general. It was an all-day affair, held at the F1 Hotel in Bonifacio Global City, Taguig, in a very casual and relaxed environment. Aside from the Israeli guests, two gentlemen from Indonesia and Malaysia, respectively, came for this historic event.

While most of the topics and issues discussed were, quite frankly, beyond me (my friends still kid that I live in the Stone Age because I am not that tech-savvy), it is always great to meet people on the other end of the screen, and exchange some thoughts and ideas. Being a newbie user (I joined only last February), I was given the finer points of making the most out of Waze.

There’s so many things I’d like to say about Waze, but I’m still  learning how to make the most of it and to enjoy in the process. Download it, join the community and help beat traffic, together!