Google Maps received a redesign in August last year that allows physical maps to add more color to make varied geography more noticeable. At the time, the company revealed that it was working to add similar details to street maps as well, which would clearly show things like sidewalks, crosswalks and pedestrian islands in cities. Last month, Google introduced these changes to a few users, adding ongoing indicators and building numbers in some cities. Now the feature is finally being expanded to a larger audience in 4 major cities.
According to a recent report by Android Police, the detailed street maps are now available to a majority of Google Maps users in the following cities:
- London, United Kingdom (Central London)
- New York City, USA
- San Francisco, USA
- Tokyo, Japan (Central Tokyo)
As you can see from the attached screenshots, Google Maps now accurately displays details such as road width, rounded corners, and vegetation along the road. It also indicates crossings, median, pedestrian islands and more at the above places. The additional details are expected to help pedestrians and the disabled plan their route more efficiently.
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Old view with no footpaths
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Updated view with walkways
Furthermore, parks show the actual width of roads in dark green, as well as stairs in gray. If you have already received the update, you should be able to see these details by zooming in on one of these cities at street level.
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Old view with inaccurate park path
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Updated view with accurate parkway
The detailed street view starts as an update to the server, and it will need to reach most users in the coming days. Google may add more locations in the coming months, but the company has not released any information at this time. We’ll update this post when the detailed street map view on Google Maps is available in more places.