Apple Maps adds Waze-like features to iOS 14.5 for accident, speed camera and hazard crowdsourcing

IOS 14.5 beta, available to developers and public beta testers, adds a new Apple Maps feature that allows you to report accidents, hazards and speed checks along your route when getting directions.

When you enter an address, select a route and then choose “Go”, Siri informs you that you can report accidents or hazards you encounter along the way.

If you swipe upwards on the ‌Apple Maps‌ interface, where map details are available, you can tap the “Report” button that allows you to signal an accident, danger or speed check, similar to other mapping apps like Waze. Touching automatically signals your location without a confirmation window, so it should not be used, except in a valid situation.

You can also say “Hey ‌Siri‌, there is an accident” and ‌Siri‌ will send a report to ‌Apple Maps‌ and, presumably, if enough people submit reports, a crash site will appear in the map application through crowdsourcing. It is currently available in the United States in a testing capacity and it is not yet clear whether it is also appearing in other countries.

This also works for CarPlay, as noted in MacRumors MozMan68 forums, with reporting interface available on the ‌CarPlay‌ screen.

Note that ‌Siri‌ will inform you of the new accident reporting functionality the first time you look for instructions after upgrading to iOS 14.5, but the feature is not mentioned after that. There is no similar crash reporting functionality available on iOS 14.4, and it also doesn’t appear to be appearing for all iOS 14.5 users at the moment based on Reddit reports, so there is probably a server side element.