RVTW Check Routing

[Ram Montana High Country]

RVTW routed me going East on TX 63 to LA 8 thru a 12' 3" bridge - the new route tool they are using does not take into account RV settings. So much for "Safe routing" advertised

[DQDick]

11 years of full timing and over 150,000 miles using both a Rand McNally and latter a Garmin RV GPS and never had that problem. Of course both wanted input as to our height so as to avoid that.

[Carl n Susan]

I know little about RVTW but I do see the "Low Bridge " shown on the route. Is RVTW supposed to route you around the obstacle or just alert you. I do know if your height is less than 12' there is no alert shown.

[Daryles]

How far did you have to back up to turn around?

[mlh]

Perfect way to remove your air conditioner and do it quickly.
Lynwood

[CADman_KS]

Originally Posted by mlh

Perfect way to remove your air conditioner and do it quickly.
Lynwood

That would remove EVERYTHING on the top of our unit. We are right at 13'4"...

YIKES!!!

[Janet H]

Originally Posted by Ram Montana High Country

Attachment 8347

RVTW routed me going East on TX 63 to LA 8 thru a 12' 3" bridge - the new route tool they are using does not take into account RV settings. So much for "Safe routing" advertised

Thanks for posting up about this. There is a function in Trip Wizard to report a problem like this but I've gone ahead and done this for you so the map can be updated.

The low clearances come from a number of places including detailed Truckers map suppliers. Interestingly this bridge is not listed. Trust but verify

[432bartman]

Originally Posted by mlh

Perfect way to remove your air conditioner and do it quickly.
Lynwood

It's Montana's new convertible top model.

[BB_TX]

Did you get all the way to the bridge? And have to back out? Looks like turn around options are pretty limited.

[Ram Montana High Country]

I've been trying to get RV Trip Wizard (RVTW) - step up and get with the program. I think they do not full fill as advertised (SAFE RV ROUTING). Their store is they change routing companies some time back and the new provider does not have the data base. In addition it has been providing routing that takes you MANY miles out of the way ... for no reason. The DW and I needed to get out for the day so we took a drive in the TV with fur babies, visited two campgrounds and took the bridge picture. Sandy Creek COE and Martin Dyes State Park near Jasper TX. Sandy Creek space #74 in north campground, Dyes is older style park - limited space for bigger rigs. Kayaking would be GREAT in many bayous. Wood is $1 per stick and has canoe rental.

As for RVTW - it is no longer on my recommended list for others to use! And renewing is way up in the air ... The Old RVTW was great but I think it got Value Engineered to the point of near useless/dangerous. They are good at excuses with no sign of quick fixes. All IMHO

[R.S.O'Donnell]

We have a Garmin RV 770 that we use for everything. We even use it when we know where we're going to keep us from missing a turn when we're talking. It's been fantastic! Has lifetime updates over wi-fi too.

[jsb5717]

I use RVTW and really enjoy the interface. I've got emails into them about such hazards. Apparently their system doesn't reroute around those hazards, but they should show them. This one in particular isn't in their database but they are now aware of it and have submitted it for inclusion.

However, more confusing is how their system works. They apparently subscribe to a routing service that includes far more hazards, such as low clearances, than RVTW shows in their tool. I've asked them why they aren't included and how it's supposed to work but haven't received a response to that one. Generally they have been very responsive to my questions so we'll see about this one.

[jsb5717]

I heard back from RVTW support. The online tool itself does not contain any algorithms to navigate around hazards. Once the trip is saved you can access a read only version of it in the RV Life phone app. RV Life then uses a different algorithm to provide "Safe" navigation and should alert or route round hazards. As always, they use the disclaimer "Trust but Verify". Multiple tools is the best way to check.

[Carl n Susan]

The RVLife App does provide two RV safe routes plus the Car/Auto route which passes through the low bridge. Unfortunately the Car/Auto does not alert for the low bridge and someone could pick it not knowing about the impediment.

[jsb5717]

Originally Posted by Carl n Susan

The RVLife App does provide two RV safe routes plus the Car/Auto route which passes through the low bridge. Unfortunately the Car/Auto does not alert for the low bridge and someone could pick it not knowing about the impediment.

Great point. I also confirmed that the RV Friendly view does route around a hazard without explanation. I guess if a person were going to use that app for routing then he would have to just assume that the RV Friendly view is managing all hazards based on the parameters of the RV stats that were input. I've got the question into support about the missing hazard information