Waze maze craze —

LA councilman asks city attorney to “review possible legal action” against Waze

"They say the crises of congestion they cause is the price for innovation."

LA councilman asks city attorney to “review possible legal action” against Waze

Yet another Los Angeles city councilman has taken Waze to task for creating "dangerous conditions" in his district, and the politician is now "asking the City to review possible legal action."

"Waze has upended our City’s traffic plans, residential neighborhoods, and public safety for far too long," LA City Councilman David Ryu said in a statement released Wednesday. "Their responses have been inadequate and their solutions, non-existent. They say the crises of congestion they cause is the price for innovation—I say that’s a false choice."

In a new letter sent to the City Attorney’s Office, Ryu formally asked Los Angeles’ top attorney to examine Waze’s behavior.

While Ryu said he supported "advances in technology," he decried Waze and its parent company, Google, for refusing "any responsibility for the traffic problems their app creates or the concerns of residents and City officials."

Councilman Ryu’s letter comes just days after a fellow councilman, Paul Krekorian, filed a formal motion with the city’s Department of Transportation over similar concerns.

According to Krekorian, no one from Waze or its parent company Google has been willing to meet with his office in the two years since he first raised the issue of congestion on local residential streets. Among the notable issues, the mapping and direction-giving app has been routing drivers through a local 32 percent grade road: Baxter Street in Los Angeles’ Echo Park neighborhood. It's reportedly one of the steepest streets in America (comprising two major hills), and residents told The LA Times they've seen several accidents due to the increased traffic.

"[Google has] not demonstrated any willingness to engage," he told Ars last week. "It goes to the heart of problems—that’s not [the] good corporate citizenship I expect."

Google did not respond to Ars’ request for comment on Wednesday evening.

Channel Ars Technica