Navigating Atlanta’s Traffic

Originally posted on May 7, 2017 @ 8:42 AM

In my opinion, the very BEST app to help with avoiding and navigating traffic in Atlanta is Waze. I first heard about Waze on Thanksgiving Day, 2015 in Orlando.

My son had traveled to Jacksonville so we could spend the day before having our Thanksgiving in Daytona Beach. Thanksgiving Day, I drove him to his Marketing Promotion Event for Honda in Orlando. A security guard told me about this app that warns of accidents, police, construction, etc.

But I never used Waze until about a month after I started driving for Uber.




“When a rider uses Uber’s app to hail a ride, the fare the app immediately shows to the passenger is based on a slower and longer route compared to the one displayed to the driver. The software displays a quicker, shorter route for the driver. But the rider pays the higher fee, and the driver’s commission is paid from the cheaper, faster route, according to the lawsuit.”

Source: Uber Software Defrauding Drivers and Passengers

Reasons I Use Waze Instead of Google Maps

When I first started driving for Uber, I knew Waze was part of the app, but Google Maps was the default at that time. I didn’t think to change to Waze until about a month later (and one too many times stuck on a highway).  Uber introduced its own GPS about a year after I started driving and now it is the default.  However, I don’t use it primarily because the map is upside down and it doesn’t indicate the destination arrival time.

I tell everyone that rides with me, I use Waze because it immediately shows three (3) routes with travel time and distance in miles at a glance, as well as the destination arrival time. I do not recall Google Maps easily showing other routes, but they are there.

Google acquired Waze for $1.3 billion in June 2013. Is it better than Google Maps? I prefer it, but you decide for yourself.



Waze Helps with Scheduling a Trip and Being ON TIME

  • You can find out how far way and how long it will take to get anywhere.
  • Waze will tell you what time you need to start driving in order to arrive at any particular location by a certain time.

If drivers and riders use Waze to plan their trips, I believe there would be less stress for both.  Besides, Waze is necessary if you are going to come along for what I IMAGINE being possible for Atlanta.

Anita Johnson

An unlikely "full-time" rideshare driver who has safely completed over 11,670 Uber trips in Metro Atlanta since August 2016, and over 2,828 Lyft trips since 2021. My interest in rideshare driver earnings began due to Uber's 2017 decision to change driver payout from 80%, then 75%, to mileage and minutes rates when riders were given Upfront Pricing. In 2022, Uber came up with Upfront Fares for drivers, which is significantly less than what drivers were earning in 2016. Driving for HERide since September 2022 has been exciting, and a refreshing breath of fresh air that Atlanta needs to know about! UPDATE: I've been wanting to get off the road (stop rideshare driving almost since I started) for various reasons, all documented here. My wish has finally come to pass as I am no longer a rideshare driver and was medically "retired" at the end of September 2024. See https://driversearnmore.com/seniors-veterans/ for my NEW passions and developing topics.