I was wondering how to map some particular addresses; a common address is Foo Road, 23, Foo City.
How should I map the cases where the 23 has a/b/c or 1/2/3 internal or sub-numbers (in Genoa they even have red and black numbering…!)? I used to set them as Foo Road, 23b, Foo City, cause the Auto Completer reset the Foo Road, 23/b, Foo City to Foo Road, 23, Foo City. Now, some strange behavior make me think that Maps reads Foo Road, 2b, Foo City as close to Foo Road, 21, Foo City, treating the b as a number. Today I tried to set Via Po, 2f on Turin and it suggested me the Zip code of the other side of the road, where the 21 is.
So, what is the best way to write those numbers?
More; how should I call the segments of road where just a bunch of internal numbers are? I mean, Foo road would be enough, but how to “tell Google” that the internal numbers are just there?
Don’t forget to first select your platform tab at the top: Computer, Android, or IOS.
And let me know if you already are familiar with adding addresses (house numbers).
Generally Google will only be as specific with sub numbers as what can de found in official address databases and what can be seen on signage outside on buildings.
Hi @MortenCopenhagen , thanks for your answer.
What’s the matter with the architecture? It’s a, horizontal problem, from web to the mobile apps.
Yes, I used to add addresses, though I often re-find them in the previous place.
In particular, I’m not talking about “spare” numbers, but instead places addresses.
Yes, I can believe the hogwash about “official address databases”, but we have billions of places with billions of addresses, where a not-trivial percentage of them is wrong… and Google also relies on them in order to locate an actual address (and Waze depends on it).
So, back to my question: how should a place address be set?
If what you want done is beyond what can be done by Maps users, then you will need to ask for help in the Maps support forum.
Hit the Community tab at the top and make a post. You need to attach or link to official documentation supporting the change you are proposing.
Without proper documentation you will not be successful.
In some countries they have official postcodes for each and every building. Ireland is a prominent example of this.
Alternatively, you should encourage your local authorities to become a partner with Google Maps.
Google Maps has a program enabling local and regional partners to upload their data directly and automatically. Please learn more here: Google Maps Content Providers
Examples include municipalities and public transport providers.
I’m not sure what you mean by place addresses. Places away from existing roads? Then plus codes might be what you need. It is possible to add places far from roads and where street numbers are not used.
If you mean that a building can have a name and this should be used rather than street names, again I will refer you to the Maps Support Forum for this.
Parece um código “extraterrestre”, mas tem toda uma lógica. Por ser algo que foge do habitual, não era, e ainda não é possível para usuários comuns sendo Local Guide ou não fazer qualquer alteração no esquema de “numeração” e endereços do mapa, devido a sua “complexidade”.Ou seja, não é algo que podemos editar, inserir etc.
Quando algo é diferente, foge do habitual e não pode ser “resolvido” pelos usuários com as ferramentas de edições do Google Mapas, sendo uma questão de “dados do mapa”, o mesmo deve ser reportado a equipe do Google Mapas no link já indicado pelo @MortenCopenhagen , não é algo que tenha solução por aqui.
Em Brasília o problema só foi resolvido quando uma equipe do Google Mapas criou uma solução específica para a capital federal. A solução para o “problema” demorou sete anos. Somente em 2012 o Google Mapas construiu uma solução para a numeração de Brasília. Somente a partir desta data que a ferramenta conseguiu endereçar rotas corretas etc sem se perder, pois o sistema simplesmente não entendia os endereços. Ou seja, algo quando é muito específico, que parece ser o caso de sua cidade, deve passar por uma solução de dados robusta que somente a equipe de suporte do Mapas pode fornecer.
Thanks for sharing your experiences from Brasil, @gmapas . Learning every day.
@massic80 Let me just add that the address text field in the place sheets does allow free text that does not adhere to the standard address format. But next time someone moves the pin or edits the address field this might be lost.
It sounds like you are referring to the numbers that separate apartments, stores, rooms, etc. within a building. We generally refer to these as unit number.
Unit numbers are not supported in Google Maps unless they will improve navigation. What is specifically meant by that is when a unit is in a separate building, such as a house number 456 Main Street and a separate suite in a building in the backyard that is numbered 456A Main Street or 1 456 Main Street. Adding such an address cannot be done by users, but rather you would need to make a post in the Google Maps Help Community asking for it to be added manually by a Googler.
Places that qualify for their own POI on Maps, such as businesses, can include the unit number in the address on their place.
Thanks for all of that feedback! I didn’t expect it
I’d take a look to Maps Community Forum as @MortenCopenhagen suggested, but I’m also concerned about the addresses if, as @Flash says, they are not supported in Maps.
I don’t know how it is abroad, but in Italy there are plenty (lots, really, really many of them) of unit numbers.
Just take a glance to Via Po in Turin: there are several 2/b 2/f, 16/bis (random numbers) and whatever. How do I expect Maps to interpret them? And what would happen if I mapped them like I used to in past, with 2b, 2f, etc?
Maybe @ErmesT with Italian insights can elaborate on the need for changes in the house numbering system and whether is is worth to try to improve individual addresses without a system update as described by @gmapas .
@massic80 , for every rule that exists on Maps, you’re going to be able to find people breaking it; thus examples on the map don’t really let you know if something is or isn’t allowed.
But you’ve hit on the important thing here… how will Maps interpret them? It won’t.
The rules of Maps are there to accomodate how Maps works. The no unit number rule is in place because Google cannot understand them.Unit numbers come it too many formats for Google to reliably be able to understand them.When Google does agree one is necessary and adds it, they do more than just create the address on the map; they also do hidden things so that instance will be understood by the system.
Can I ask why you would need unit numbers to be mapped if there is an address marker for the building itself?
I completely agree with your logic, but sometimes unit numbers are NOT in a single building. For instance, in many case some unit numbers can be separate addresses in a separate segments of road (this is one of hundreds examples).
In the general approach, a naming convention like Via Po, 8/bis would be easily reparsed as Via Po, 8 (just like the Autocompleter seems to do).
The numbering logic of the city of Turin is to use numbers, of which the even ones are on one side of the road, and the odd ones are on the opposite side. This is the basic logic applied in almost all of Italy.
In the screenshot below I wanted to highlight the building numbers.
As you can see from the Street View, each building contains numerous shops, each of which has street access. in this case the public administration defines sub-numbers, generally alphanumeric (a, b, c and so on) as each shop has an independent entrance.
It seems that this logic has been recognized by Maps, as this shop has the number 2/f, and this one has the number 2/a. If I search for Via Po, 2/f, this is what maps show: https://goo.gl/maps/eDh1fb2c1tsuVBpy9
So yes, I think that sometimes they do hidden things to address Maps to recognize an address that is not following the rules. In fact, we were able to see number 2/a and 2/f, but you can’t find 2/c
Personally, I don’t see an issue in using only the number, e.g. Via Po 2.
There is an interesting case in Venice, where the mapping systems is based in numbers instead of streets name, and Maps works perfectly in there, but it is not related to this post
The subnumbering by adding a letter (here normally capital letters are used) is quite common here too. But such addresses originates from the official addresses which are maintained by the municipalities via Geo upload.
Google Maps has a program enabling local and regional partners to upload their data directly and automatically. Please learn more here: Google Maps Content Providers
Examples include municipalities and public transport providers.
Loong story.
We should also consider red/black numbers in Genoa
I know that it is able to somehow understand where 2/f is, but how does it work with 2f? And why does the autocompleter suggest (entered address) Torino, Torino TO Italia? Why does it return Via Po 21 shifted 100m to the west to Waze internal searches (app only, non the livemap)? Should I write 2c or 2/c (I just rewrote all Via Po numbers with the slash)? What happens with 25/Bis/16? https://goo.gl/maps/k3FPgivt8ZUiPo5Y7
Finally: why the heck doesn’t it allow me to enter Via Po, Via Po 8 or Via Po 8/bis here?
As mentioned before the address line is free text so you can break/adjust the addresses Google Maps knows and suggests (while also breaking the notation).
And yes, often there are some odd replication in the addresses suggested.
The reason why 2F appears valid is because there is a POI that uses that address, see https://goo.gl/maps/6apDPXPVyWuNYtn27. This is what I meant in my first post when I said businesses can use unit numbers in their POIs. Google then knows where that unit number is located due to the POI. Adding an address marker for 2F, though, still remains against the rules of the map.
This is why I asked the OP why he wanted to add unit numbers. If it is to designate precisely where in a building a shop is located, adding an address is the wrong approach; instead the business itself should be added/corrected.
As an added note, the example of 2F and it’s neighbours are all wrongly placed; POI markers are to be placed in the middle of the space occupied by the POI, not at the entrance. Similarly, address markers are to be placed in the middle of the main building at that address, or the middle of the property if it is vacant. If placing either POI or address makers in the middle causes bad directions then an edit to the directions should be made rather than moving the marker.
forgive me for the delay and for still not having time for reading and replying your answers, but you say it supports sub-numbers: OK, let’s say you look for Via Servais 5, Turin.
It’s several hundreds meters too western, probably due to the wrong parsing of Via Servais 200/3, which can be easily found if you look for Via Servais 3. How could one solve the trouble, since the is no means to remove a wrong address?
