Waze now works in underground parking lots in Tel Aviv
The new devices started to operate in the parking lots under Sarona and the Tel Aviv Government complex.
By JERUSALEM POST STAFFA site where Waze Beacons started to operate.(photo credit: ROBI ASAR/AHUZOT HOF)
Most drivers experience the frustration of trying to set up directions on a navigation app while underground, and ultimately fail to do so because of lack of reception. A piece of good news came Monday for these frustrated drivers when the Israeli navigation app Waze announced that it has started operating underground in two major parking lots in Tel Aviv. The company, which was acquired by Google in 2013, said in a statement that the new technology had been implemented in the parking lots under Sarona and the Tel Aviv Government complex, as well as in the Arie Lova Eliav tunnel, in a project done in cooperation with Ahuzot Hof, which operates public parking lots in the city. According to the statement, this marks the first time that a navigation system works in underground parking lots. The devices that allow underground reception - called Waze Beacons – have already been operating in several tunnels around the world, including in Boston, Paris and Rio de Janeiro. They transmit a wireless signal that can be received on any smartphone or tablet with a Bluetooth-enabled connection.Advertisement
“The system allows Waze users to get accurate navigation instructions, such as from where to leave, and advances our mission to make navigation convenient, accessible and uninterrupted anywhere – even underground,” said Gil Distnik from Waze. “Driving underground is intrinsically less convenient,” said the head of Ahuzot Charlie Ben Simon, adding that Waze Beacons will help drivers to reach their destination in the shortest possible time.
