2006apr17. New Yorker: Getting There: The Science of Directions.
After lunch, Arcari and Singh were due back at the central office, in Syosset, to download their findings. They offered to drive me back into Manhattan, but we agreed that it would make more sense for me to take the subway. None of us knew where to find it, though. Subway stations are not attributes; Navteq honors the primacy of the automobile [ ... ] We pulled into a gas station, and I ran inside to ask for directions.
Yes. About that. Adding subway stops to a local map would add ... what ... twenty or so dots? I walk, a lot, and I use Google Maps to get around sometimes, and they also don’t have subway stops. And here, the author of the piece has to ask directions even though he’s in the company of two digital mapping employees. It’s like a big flashing sign: “you could probably invest a little time and do much better.”