---
[ ARCHIVE ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/archive)
# LA City Councilmember Wants to Make Waze App Useless
April 30 2015
Written by Bianca Barragan.
[](https://www.addtoany.com/share)
GUEST COMMENTARY-Just last week, Mayor Eric Garcetti announced that he'd launched a partnership with **Waze** that would let the navigation app and the city [swap real-time data](http://la.curbed.com/archives/2015/04/waze_app_and_la_partnering_to_bring_drivers_a_smoother_commute.php) about street conditions, road closures, and traffic.
That's all well and good, but it was not clear from the deal what Waze might do for the city—[especially, perhaps, for Westsiders](http://la.curbed.com/archives/2014/12/westsiders_freaking_out_that_people_are_driving_by_their_houses.php), who are mad about Waze sending cars through their neighborhoods (the app responds to real-time traffic and sends users on less congested paths).
Councilmember **Paul Krekorian** wants to make sure that the issue doesn't get overlooked, and, according to a release from his office today, has introduced a motion that would make the app take steps to "**reduce the impact of cut-through traffic** that results from use of Waze and similar traffic apps." That kind of sounds like he wants the app to stop doing what it does.
The motion, like many Westsiders who complain about the app, seems to argue that residential streets are somehow unable to handle cars driving on them. "Many blame Waze and other mobile apps because they divert drivers from major avenues onto small residential streets that **aren't designed to accommodate** them, resulting in far greater congestion and traffic for residential neighborhoods."
The motion suggests one possible way that Waze might control the level of traffic on residential streets would be to "\[regulate\] the number of added daily trips" for certain streets.
But if the app discourages taking anything but larger, arterial streets and major avenues, or doesn't show shortcuts that pass through residential areas, then what good is it at all for traffic workarounds?
Also, why should drivers have limits on the streets that they can take when the motion itself notes that Google Maps and Waze are all just different ways to "maximize the efficiency of **public** street infrastructure by utilizing unused streets during periods of high traffic congestion."
These public streets were never "secret"—they're on *maps*—and people should be able to use them if they like.
*(Bianca Barragan posts at [LA Curbed](http://la.curbed.com) … where this commentary was first posted. Check out LA Curbed for excellent and detailed neighborhood and real estate coverage.)*
-cw
CityWatch
Vol 13 Issue 35
Pub: May 1, 2015
[  ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/component/banners/click/107 "LA DWP | Save $4K, Green | Priority Ad")
[  ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/component/banners/click/98 "Donna Tryfman - HS1-1")
[  ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/component/banners/click/82 "LA DWP #2 (Power Savers)")
[  ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/component/banners/click/111 "David DeJute Campaign")
[  ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/component/banners/click/97 "Home - LA DWP #2 (Pay Water Bill Help)")
[  ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/component/banners/click/112 "Anna Reitano Vertical R. Col")
## Get The News In Your Email Inbox Mondays & Thursdays
Name
[  ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/component/banners/click/113 "Rhonda Haymon campaign")
---
## Featured CityWatch Stories
[  ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/housing/33413-with-national-implications-corporate-landlords-take-aim-at-three-pro-rent-control-campaigns-in-california)
### [With National Implications, Corporate Landlords Take Aim at Three Pro-Rent Control Campaigns in California](https://mail.citywatchla.com/housing/33413-with-national-implications-corporate-landlords-take-aim-at-three-pro-rent-control-campaigns-in-california)
HOUSING IS A HUMAN RIGHT - Corporate landlords and their high-powered lobbying group, the California Apartment Associat…
[  ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/los-angeles/33386-massacre-on-city-streets-mayor-bass-must-issue-an-emergency-declaration-now)
### [Massacre on City Streets: Mayor Bass Must Issue an Emergency Declaration Now](https://mail.citywatchla.com/los-angeles/33386-massacre-on-city-streets-mayor-bass-must-issue-an-emergency-declaration-now)
NICK'S VIEW - I have previously written about Los Angeles’s grim paradox: a city that promises safer streets while bein…
[  ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/la-watchdog/33395-should-dwp-ratepayers-pay-for-the-citys-streetlights)
### [Should DWP Ratepayers Pay for the City’s Streetlights? ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/la-watchdog/33395-should-dwp-ratepayers-pay-for-the-citys-streetlights)
LA WATCHDOG - In June, 80% of Los Angeles voters rejected the Bureau of Street Lighting’s ballot measure to increase th…
[  ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/neighborhood-politics/33398-why-are-la-officials-ignoring-illegal-rv-parking-on-washington-blvd)
### [Why Are LA Officials Ignoring Illegal RV Parking on Washington Blvd?](https://mail.citywatchla.com/neighborhood-politics/33398-why-are-la-officials-ignoring-illegal-rv-parking-on-washington-blvd)
WESTSIDE - Washington Blvd here in Venice is a main artery and corridor to the beach and pier. It is in fact a gateway…
[  ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/guest-words/33419-they-tried-to-break-the-jewish-people-we-kept-building)
### [They Tried to Break the Jewish People. We Kept Building](https://mail.citywatchla.com/guest-words/33419-they-tried-to-break-the-jewish-people-we-kept-building)
A STUDENT’S VIEW - My generation of Jews has learned something I wish we did not have to learn so young: antisemitism i…
---
## [ ARCHIVE ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/archive)
[  ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/archive/15339-early-intervention-and-jobs-are-key-to-stemming-chronic-homelessness-in-los-angeles)### [Early Intervention and Jobs are Key to Stemming Chronic Homelessness in Los Angeles](https://mail.citywatchla.com/archive/15339-early-intervention-and-jobs-are-key-to-stemming-chronic-homelessness-in-los-angeles)
### [Tucker Carlson and Gay Rightwinger Blame California Wildfires On Hiring LGBTQ People](https://mail.citywatchla.com/archive/18755-tucker-carlson-and-gay-rightwinger-blame-california-wildfires-on-hiring-lgbtq-people)
### [Anti-LGBTQ Veep Just Can’t Stop Talking about Mayor Pete](https://mail.citywatchla.com/archive/17690-anti-lgbtq-veep-just-can-t-stop-talking-about-mayor-pete)
[  ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/archive/15316-news-pulse-corrupt-system-reason-for-not-voting-in-2018-majority-wants-more-than-two-parties)### [NEWS PULSE: ‘Corrupt System’ Reason for Not Voting in 2018 … Majority Wants More Than Two Parties](https://mail.citywatchla.com/archive/15316-news-pulse-corrupt-system-reason-for-not-voting-in-2018-majority-wants-more-than-two-parties)
[  ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/archive/10245-dead-dog-set-on-fire-sparks-fears-for-strays-in-los-angeles)### [Dead Dog Set on Fire … Sparks Fears for Strays in Los Angeles](https://mail.citywatchla.com/archive/10245-dead-dog-set-on-fire-sparks-fears-for-strays-in-los-angeles)