No one needs to stop and ask for directions these days right? After all, that is why we have Google Maps. Unfortunately, as one Toronto man found out, Google Maps cannot always be trusted.
Toronto native Mark Shardar was recently in Newfoundland for business when Google maps took him down a “treacherous back road” near Gander, N.L. Shardar says he was using Google Maps to get to the airport when it directed him down a side road. “It seems like that wasn’t really a good idea,” the Toronto driver told CBC News. “By the time I realized, I was 10-11 kilometres in. It was snow covered and the car got completely stuck.”
“I had to dig with bare hands because [there was] no cell phone reception, so I tried to push forward trying to get a signal,” he said. “Eventually I had to call for help from the police and it took them about two hours to get to me because the roads are not accessible.”
Local police were finally able to get a tow truck out to Shardar and though he missed his flight, he was safe.
According to Shardar, he checked two different apps and both showed the road in question as a legitimate road that should have taken him to the airport. The tow truck driver also noted that he has helped two other vehicles on the same route.
In the Google Maps terms of use agreement, the company forewarns that it does not guarantee "accuracy of completeness" of any content in the Maps or Earth features. By agreeing to the terms of use, you agree the company is not liable for any damages or losses resulting from use of Google Maps.
Shardar told local police he thinks it is a good idea to put a sign up warning drivers to take another route.
