Google Maps users deserve red light cameras and speed cameras as a layer for navigation. We have a database of 7,000 cameras we have been accumulating for the last 10 years. We have tried numerous times to reach out to Google and provide this data to them for use on Google Maps without any success. When we first started collecting the data 10 years ago there were only a few hundred cameras in use across the US. Now there are about 7,000 intersections and locations that are under photo enforcement surveillance. Contrast that to Europe has 50,000 cameras and most of them are speed cameras. The majority of the cameras in the US are red-light cameras and not speed cameras like in Europe.
Every time we talk to large companies who want to use the data in the US they seem worried about the legality of using the data. They ask questions like: Is it legal to use this information? What happens if a driver gets into an accident after using the information while driving? I am not sure I understand their concerns considering people are not trying to evade the law by using the data. Drivers simply want to know where these locations are to avoid fender bender collisions. People drive erratically around photo-enforced locations and the residual effect are typically small accidents instead of t-bones.
Anyhow, a new user interface for Google Maps layers is being tested. The new UI enlarges the buttons that let you switch views between content layers. Now you can quickly switch between custom maps, driving directions, local search results, and Google Maps layers. Google Maps also shows the weather for the current location. It's very useful and it's about time they start putting some content on the map that helps people drive safely.
