We just expanded our lane guidance coverage by 300% using AI mapping to extract metadata from over 50k kilometers of roads on our Mapbox Satellite imagery layer. This new lane guidance is available immediately to all users of apps built with the Navigation SDK—including Dash and Straightaway. Lane guidance provides drivers with a visual indication of the specific lane to use for a particular maneuver, improving driver safety and the overall navigation experience.

Providing clarity on which lane to use for a complex set of maneuvers saves precious time for drivers and improves safety by minimizing the need for last minute lane changes. With this new launch, drivers are getting this extra help on more maneuvers.
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We fed high resolution aerial imagery from Mapbox Satellite into our AI pipeline to identify road attributes like lane markings, street parking lanes, precise lane counts, bicycle lanes and more. We then run detection and segmentation processes to normalize the road network into areas that share similar attributes. Finally, we apply a sequence of filters to extract specific features like turn lanes and lane groups that enable the creation of lane guidance indicators that help drivers safely and easily navigate upcoming maneuvers.

These segmentation techniques also allow us to identify areas where the road characteristics change, which are key to advanced navigation. Understanding where a solid line becomes a dashed line or where a travelling lane gives way to a turn lane enables Mapbox to provide visual and verbal cues for drivers as they approach an upcoming maneuver for a simpler and safer navigation experience.

AI mapping from aerial imagery is just one source of lane guidance information. We are able to synthesize data from multiple sources thanks to the Mapbox conflation engine, which combines multiple data layers to enable up-to-date road information for advanced guidance that no single data set can match.

These new lane guidance attributes represent one of many investments Mapbox is making to automatically generate richer road data to provide superior experiences and outcomes for our customers. Enhanced guidance is available in the Mapbox Navigation SDK and Mapbox Dash. Start building on Android and iOS or contact us to learn more.