Almost six years after Google’s purchase of the Waze navigation app, one of the features previously exclusive to the latter now appears to be a staple of Google Maps in more than 40 countries around the world.
Google has confirmed to various tech outlets that its own Maps application is now showing a speed limit overlay, as well as speed cameras and mobile speed cameras, on maps for more than 40 countries as an expansion of what had previously been limited to only certain markets.
One user on Reddit, for example, noted within the past week that speed cameras are now showing up in Google Maps for the Netherlands. Likewise, a commenter on that post chimed in to say Spain is now showing the same.
Much of the new functionality we’ve seen Google bring to Maps lately seems like it’s been focused on everything that’s not, well, navigating from one point to the next. It’s now a virtual Swiss Army knife of a mobile application, offering everything from the ability to share ETAs with friends and loved ones to the ability to follow updates from a business a la subscribing to a Facebook page — and to message that same business. The user reviews, photos and business details like addresses and hours of operation also make the app function as a kind of alternative to Yelp.
Nevertheless, maps are still the core of the app, and Google confirmed to TechCrunch that these are now all the countries where Maps will show speed cameras. The list includes Australia, Brazil, U.S., Canada, U.K., India, Mexico, Russia, Japan, Andorra, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Israel, Italy, Jordan, Kuwait, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Morocco, Namibia, Netherlands, Norway, Oman, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Slovakia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Tunisia, and Zimbabwe.
Per that report, Google started expanding where speed cameras can be seen about two weeks ago in a rollout on both iOS and Android. If you have the app open, the speed traps will be visible as icons on the road, while the speed limit will be a visible icon in the bottom corner of the screen.
