Google Maps and other sat nav services are displaying the wrong speed limits in national parks, leading to drivers speeding, campaigners have claimed.
Road safety campaigners in Hampshire’s New Forest say that flaws in the technology are resulting in unnecessary livestock deaths.
The app, which is used by millions of drivers in Britain, wrongly states that 40mph roads have a 60mph limit, the campaigners say.
A 40mph speed limit was introduced on the majority of New Forest roads in 1990, with the exception of fenced major A-roads, a measure that drastically cut livestock deaths.
But collisions with animals including ponies, cattle and donkeys are on the rise in the New Forest, and campaigners have said apps showing the incorrect speed limit are partly to blame.
Gilly Jones, who heads New Forest Roads Awareness, said drivers are too reliant on their phones and “blindly” follow what it says on their screen – even if there are “massive” 40mph signs.
In one 10-day period in September last year, four ponies – including a mare and her foal – were killed along a one-mile stretch of road. A total of 92 accidents were recorded in 2023, up 10 on the previous year, with 42 animals killed.
‘Most people blindly following sat navs’
Ms Jones said that she has had arguments with speeding drivers who defend their speeding by pointing to the figure shown on their sat nav device.
She took her concerns to the Verderers’ Court in the New Forest, a historical body that “regulates and protects the New Forest’s unique agricultural commoning practices”.
Ms Jones said that anecdotal evidence suggested more speeding incidents occurred when there were significant delays on the nearby A31.
“I would say most people were blindly following their sat navs or going the route that Google Maps send them.
“Since we do not have 40mph repeater signs, a lot of sat navs and Google Maps think that on some roads the speed limit is 60.
“For some drivers, the big yellow 40s on the roads are just street art and mean nothing.
“The computer algorithms do not allow for livestock being on the roads.”
She added that similar problems had been reported in Exmoor and Dartmoor national parks.
Google has been approached for comment.
Dr. Thomas Hughes is a UK-based scientist and science communicator who makes complex topics accessible to readers. His articles explore breakthroughs in various scientific disciplines, from space exploration to cutting-edge research.
