TomTom makes commuting easier with free map updates

TomTom users share about 250,000 map changes with it each month

Diversions, road closures and speed limit changes will never be a problem for TomTom users again as the company has now enabled all of its 60 million portable navigation devices to receive free daily map changes via the TomTom Map Share community.

The service, which was previously only available on a small number of devices, allows drivers to personalise the map on their own device and also to share and receive map changes with the Map Share community around the world.

Dynamic road changes such as changed speed limits, new street names, blocked roads and new traffic directions can be updated directly on the device for free.

Structural, long-term changes such as new roads or roundabouts, are validated and updated within TomTom’s maps and made available quarterly.

Drivers have control over which daily map changes they load onto their device. They can choose to accept changes submitted by other Map Share users, or only those verified by TomTom.

TomTom’s maps are updated using a combination of field collection, government data or satellite imagery, with community input to ensure its maps accurately reflect reality.

TomTom managing director, Corinne Vigreux said: ‘Roads change all the time. Overnight, roads can close or traffic can be diverted, having a big impact on people’s journey times.

‘With Map Share, drivers can update their own map themselves straightaway. Plus, we have an active community of drivers who share around 250,000 road changes with TomTom and each other every month.’

Watch the video to see how TomTom collates map information: