For many years Sat Nav has had it’s fair share of criticism when HGVs and other large road going vehicles rely on them for directions.

Low bridges, narrow lanes, weight restrictions and housing estates have stranded many a HGV or resulted in fines for drivers.

You may or may not know that a solution has existed in the sat nav world for over five years in the guise of dedicated HGV specific Sat Nav systems – but how are they different?

Firstly, HGV Sat Nav systems allow you to enter your exact vehicle dimensions into the memory of the device, including height, weight, width, weight and even weight per axle and load type on some.

Then, using unique algorithms, your vehicle dimensions are taken into account when calculating your route. Low bridges, weight restrictions and other hazards are avoided to leave you with a trouble free, efficient route.

This saves drivers time and stress in the planning of safe routes combining the convenience of sat nav with the detailed knowledge of the road network and restrictions.

Drivers can search for industrial estates, truck stops, HGV fuel stations and other points of interest that regular sat navs simply wouldn’t offer.

There are a number of options currently on the market, which offer free lifetime map updates. View the entire range here.

According to sources, Apple may be about to make a bid to buy navigation company TomTom in an attempt to improve their iOS 6 Maps. TomTom have already provided some map data to Apple, but buying the company would allow faster improvements to the mapping, which are hugely needed in our opinion.

According to Hans Slob, a Rabobank International analyst.

“TomTom needs the cash from Apple, and Apple needs the know-how of TomTom,” he said.

Apple could pay around €10 (about £8.10) a share for TomTom, which is currently trading around €4.12 (about £3.33)

Since Apple released their own mapping on the iOS 6 update, it has not gone exactly to plan. We were so used to google maps and their endless list of pubs restaurants, Streetview and successful road navigation. Apple maps lacked prominent locations, no street view and frankly terrible driving instructions.

Earlier this week police in Australia had to warn motorist to avoid using their iPhone for navigation after motorists were left stranded almost 50 miles away from their original destination. Lost in the Australian outback is the last place you’d want to be stranded, especially with all those creepy crawlies!

No official statement has come from TomTom or Apple, but it would seem like a logical move for both companies.

Remember the one about the drink driver who blamed her sat nav for directing her onto a golf course in America? Well, all the evidence has been heard and Patricia Maione has been sentenced to 2 years in Framingham State Prison.

Northbridge police were called to Whitinsville Golf Club last month following reports that a car had crashed onto the golf course. At the time, Ms Maione blamed the GPS for the incident however, officers smelling booze on her breath thought that there could be other factors at play. An open alcohol container in the car also didn’t help her case.

With no other option other than to plead guilty, Ms Maione was charged with negligent driving, possession of an open alcohol container in her vehicle and driving with a suspended license. This was her fourth drink driving incident.

All Ms. Maione had to say on the matter was that she “did not even like golf.”.

The Sat Nav was released without charge, we assume.

Only in America as they say – a female driver failed a police sobriety test after crashing into a golf course bunker at 45mph. What was her excuse? Poor sat nav directions!

Patricia Maione had been reported to police for dangerous driving the very same day. Very honestly, Maione admitted having drank a half litre of vodka on the morning of the incident yet maintained that had absolutely nothing to do with the accident. Instead, the blame went to her sat nav, maintaining that the GPS told her to turn left, directing her onto the golf course.

First, Maione had thought that she’d driven into a cornfield and so continued in a straight line, coming to a halt in the sand trap more used to catching stray golf balls than drunk drivers.

According to police at the scene, Maione stated she “did not even like golf”.

Fortunately, most drivers operate their GPS in a sober state and with common sense, as there is no accounting for stupidity and drink driving! Maione is pleading not-guilty to charges of drunk driving and driving with a suspended license.

Source: BBC.co.uk
Date: Wednesday 16th May

A speeding motorist told Dorset Police he failed to read a speed limit sign as he was on his way to an eyesight test. This was one of the excuses given to police this year, as revealed in a list compiled by Dorset Road Safe.

A woman caught speeding argued she was keeping up with the flow of traffic, despite being the only car on the road.

When a motorist stopped for not wearing his seatbelt, said “new laws take a while to sink in”, officers reminded him the law came into effect in 1982.

More than 24,000 offences have been recorded by police since the “No excuse” campaign began in January 2010.

It was launched in an attempt to reduce the number of casualties on Dorset’s roads.

Prawn cracker: Another motorist caught using her mobile phone told officers they were mistaken and that she was in fact eating a prawn cracker. She claimed not have her mobile phone on her. When an officer rang the mobile number she gave him, the phone sounded in the vehicle.

She apologised and offered the officer a prawn cracker before being issued with a ticket.

Brian Austin, “No excuse” project manager, said: “We are continually amazed at the thought process of some of the bad and inconsiderate drivers on Dorset’s roads.”

He said mobile phone, speed and seatbelt offences are being detected with the covert use of safety camera vans, cars and bikes and technology such as Concept Lasers.

Another woman, caught speeding having just completed a six-month driving ban, told officers: “The use of the laser in an unmarked car to catch people is criminal.”

A motorcyclist caught speeding told officers he thought it was unfair police positioned themselves at the bottom of a hill as his bike “goes faster downhill”.

So far this year, the No excuse team has processed 4,067 offences, from 1 January to 31 March 2012.

The Dorset Road Safe scheme is run by agencies including Dorset Police, Dorset Fire Service and Dorset County Council.

Sat Nav Warehouse comment: All is fair in the world of road safety but there are ways to make sure your concentration doesn’t disappear. Why not look at some of our speed camera detectors or how about a sat nav that features Bluetooth to ensure that your hands stay on the wheel should you need to stay in contact on your travels.