Michigan Drivers Beware: Outdated Apps Could Cost You

As Michigan heads into another construction season motorists are dealing with not only varying speed limits in those construction zones, but speed limits that have not been updated on common travel apps.

Years ago, my wife and I were using a Garmin GPS system which had no idea about a recently completed freeway that we were on. According to the GPS, we were driving through a field.

In today's world we have several apps to help us get from point A to point B. But what happens when you rely on your app's assumed speed limit versus the actual speed limit being enforced by local authorities.

Outdated Speed Data on Travel Apps

In many cases, when you drive through a school zone your travel app won't adjust for the school-specific regulations. The same thing happens in construction zones. While the clearly marked signs may display a speed limit of 45 miles per hour, these travel apps generally don't take construction into account.

READ MORE: Your Next Speeding Ticket might be from a Michigan Speed Camera

But what about roads that have had a speed adjustment for one reason or another. Well in Mundy Township, you can easily get a speeding ticket and try to blame your phone—but it won’t matter. But just because your phone tells you a certain speed limit, you need to pay attention to the actual speed limit signs.

Case Study: Mundy Township’s Cook Road

In the last few years a stretch of Cook Road in Mundy Township underwent construction and converted the previously dirt road into a two-lane paved road. Upon this change, a vote was held to reduce the speed on the stretch of road between Linden and Jennings to 45 miles per hour.

Even though the law was changed and signage put up around two years ago, travel apps like Waze still think the limit for speed on that stretch of Cook Road is still 55, when in fact it's only 45.

What Michigan Drivers Should Do Instead

Whether you use Apple Maps, Google Maps or even MapQuest, simply trust the posted speed limit signs while driving throughout Michigan. Not the often-outdated, internet-powered travel apps. It could save you hundreds, if not, thousands in speeding fines.