No more back-seat navigators with GPS

I am one of many American males too proud and stubborn to ask for driving directions. But I was forced to put my ego aside when faced with the prospect of losing something more important than my pride: the ability to enjoy an auto tour of Europe without wasting time getting lost or being frustrated deciphering maps in languages I did not understand.

The source of my salvation was a global positioning satellite, or GPS, device, which made it difficult, though not impossible, to get lost. This technology, first developed by the U.S. military four decades ago, has become widely available to drivers in the last five years, and the Consumer Electronics Assn., a trade group, predicts that more than a million navigation units will be sold this year, a 300% increase from 2002.

Drivers can now choose from three basic GPS styles: hand-helds, which run on batteries; portables, which plug into a car’s power outlet; or in-dash devices installed in automobile dashboards.

The in-dash device I had in a rental car not only plotted scores of routes for my 1,500-mile journey through Switzerland, Austria and Germany but also warned me when I strayed off course and told me how to get back on track.

The screen I consulted during our 10-day trip was only the tip of the GPS iceberg. Flying thousands of miles above were two dozen satellites that circle the planet twice a day at 7,000 mph. They, in turn, were in constant communication with my GPS receiver, which was programmed with coordinates for latitude and longitude. When combined with software that converted information about my location, the result was an easy-to-read map that showed where I was and where I was going.

A car trip, never mind satellite technology, wasn’t part of the plan when my wife, Pamela, and I flew into Zurich, Switzerland, in May after a pleasant four-day interlude in London. The rest of our loosely planned itinerary was in the hands of Europe’s reliable railroad system.

But fate intervened, as it often does. In Murten, a Swiss lake resort town between Bern and Lausanne, Pamela suffered a nasty fall, twisting her right ankle and smacking her left knee on a marble floor. Doctors put her right foot in a heavy cast, placed a flexible brace on her entire left leg, and sentenced her to crutches for the next two months.

Cutting our vacation short was not an option Pamela would consider, she of hardy pioneer stock. But getting around Europe on trains wasn’t an option, either, because they require a certain agility to board, navigate and disembark.

So we decided to rent a car and take leisurely scenic excursions in the Swiss countryside, drive through the quaint towns and villages along Germany’s Romantic Road and experience the famous autobahns.

Making the most of our changed circumstances, I rented the most comfortable Mercedes-Benz I could find so she could stretch out in the back seat and I could enjoy driving a late-model gadget-laden luxury automobile on some of Europe’s finest and fastest roads.

Leaving Pamela at the hotel to rest, I took a short train trip to Bern to pick up the rental car and was joined by our niece Nancy, who would accompany us for a week of our vacation.

Until then, my experience with GPS devices was limited. So when I learned that the car we were about to rent had a GPS system, I decided to take the plunge and settled on a map-free driving tour. This meant I’d always know where I was, even if we didn’t always know where we were going. That’s when my male pride kicked in again. If we did get lost, I rationalized, at least it wouldn’t be my fault.

My first serious and prolonged encounter with GPS technology began as I drove the car off the agency lot and Nancy programmed the unit to take us back to Murten.

As soon as the destination was entered, we heard the no-nonsense voice of a woman speaking German-accented English. “Prepare to turn left,” she said. A second, more urgent command followed moments later: “Turn left now!” We nicknamed the disembodied voice “Eva.”

I quickly came to regard Eva as an invisible passenger whose presence -- and commands -- could not be ignored. If we failed to follow her directions, her voice became insistent. If we missed a turn or strayed from a predetermined route to explore a local attraction, Eva spouted urgent instructions to get us back on course.

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Near-gridlock

SOMETIMES, though, she seemed to have trouble keeping up with us. If I turned too quickly on too many surface roads, she almost seemed to be sputtering as she issued a rapid string of directions.

Besides helping us find our way around three European countries, our GPS system made our brief visits or overnight stopovers in several Swiss and German towns much more enjoyable. Its scrolling menus and accompanying step-by-step directions to hotels, restaurants, museums, theaters, casinos and castles gave us more time to enjoy the sights and eliminated arguments that can erupt among traveling companions.

Take, for instance, our visit to Rothenburg ob der Tauber, a 1,100-year-old city in Germany’s Tauber Valley on the Romantic Road and just a few minutes’ drive from the autobahn.

As we approached the city, Pamela randomly chose one of the hotels Eva suggested, and we followed the instructions to the address. Alas, Eva did not provide any information to help us decide which hotel to select, such as price, description or reviews. The most we could coax out of her were the names of several hotels and how far they were from our current location.

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Pretty good picks

THE hotel was pleasant, quiet and had ample parking. The room rates were reasonable and the food and service in the breakfast room were good.

That evening, when we entered the name of a restaurant that was on the GPS’ restaurant list and also came highly recommended by the hotel staff -- Eva again showed us the way. After a long and enjoyable dinner, she guided us back through the dimly illuminated and unfamiliar narrow streets to our hotel in a matter of minutes.

Despite the wonders of GPS technology, our invisible driving companion was responsible for a handful of unsettling surprises during our European journey.

Twice we were told to turn the wrong way onto one-way streets.

Once, in Baden-Baden, Germany, I was led two miles in the opposite direction of my intended destination.

And in Austria, Eva sent us around in circles for about 10 minutes as we tried to navigate through a confusing array of detour and construction signs and blocked-off streets.

Mercedes-Benz told me later that these problems were likely caused by outdated or insufficient road information on the CD-based GPS device and built-in routing preferences.

My last experience with Eva was the most instructive.

When I returned the car to the rental agency at the Zurich airport, it took me three tries before I could find the drop-off point inside a labyrinthine concrete parking structure adjacent to the main terminal. The GPS unit was no help whatsoever, and there were no listings for “car rental return” on any of Eva’s menu options.

It seems that Eva was sending me an important parting message: There are some destinations in life that you must find on your own.

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(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX)

No need to stop and ask directions

If you are going to rely on a GPS device on a driving trip, it’s important to know about the abilities and limitations of the technology and the device.

In interviews, Rich Owings, author of “GPS Mapping: Make Your Own Maps” and operator of GPSTracklog.com, and other GPS experts offered these insights:

Explore before you go. Become comfortable with the unit before leaving for your destination. Discover all the features you might want to use on the road and explore all on-screen menus. Many GPS devices are intuitive, so you may never need to break out the owner’s manual. But if you do, just don’t do it when you’re driving at 70 mph.

Know and obey the law. It may not be a good idea to use a GPS device while driving, but it’s not illegal in California. State law, however, does prohibit attaching the receiver to your windshield with a suction or other mount.

Trust but verify. Based on his experience using GPS devices in many areas of the U.S., Owings thinks the systems are accurate more than 95% of the time, but says a little skepticism can be healthy. If your route doesn’t look or feel right, it may not be. If you have any questions about the route your GPS has selected for you, zoom out so you can see the entire route or preview the turn sequence. Information about points of interest may be outdated; call ahead to make sure restaurants or other attractions are open or in business.

They may not work everywhere. Urban canyons can play havoc with GPS reception, causing you to lose your signal. Newer units have greatly improved reception, so this may not be the problem it once was.

If you use a portable GPS device, make sure it is fully charged. Take extra batteries and a recharger to plug into the car’s power outlet.

Download maps if you can. Ask the manufacturer when the maps in your unit were most recently updated. If the model you are using allows, download current maps before you leave.

Enter your destination before you turn on the car. And resist the temptation to read the map while driving. A study by Virginia Tech, in Blacksburg, found that drivers who take long glances away from the road at the wrong moment are twice as likely to get into a crash or to nearly crash. Use GPS devices that provide turn-by-turn voice prompts that alert you far enough in advance so you can prepare.

Don’t panic if you miss a turn. Most GPS units will automatically recalculate a new route so you can get back on course.

Take a paper map of the area you plan to cover, just in case. Depending on the features of your GPS unit, a traditional map can give you a “big picture” overview of your route and alert you to possible side trips or detours you may not have considered.

-- Edward Segal