View incident reports that work with Android Auto

Incident reporting is one of Google Maps' more handy features. However, the ability to create new reports was sorely missing from the Android Auto version of the app. A revamped version of the incident reporting system is expected to be available for Android Auto at some point, but full rollout is still pending. While we wait for the broad release, the feature has reportedly made it into the app for at least one Android Auto user.

Just to illustrate, the incident reporting feature is a tool based on crowdsourced data. The Google Maps community can report anything that stands in the way between them and their destination, such as accidents, hazards, speed traps, etc. This is helpful because it gives other drivers a warning to avoid or prepare for these obstacles.

Although Google has announced that the revamped incident reporting system is rolling out to Android Auto in the US, almost no one is seeing the feature live. However, it appears that the feature has been rolled out to at least one person on Reddit, giving us some insight into how it works.

The Redditor shared an image of the feature live from his vehicle. According to the image, the incident notification appears to appear as a yellow triangle with a plus sign in the middle. This icon is located below the settings, audio guidance, and compass icons.

Tapping the icon will bring up an “Add Report” menu with options to report accidents, traffic jams, construction, lane closures, and more. The other options aren't visible in the image, but it's likely that the rest of the list includes broken-down vehicles, objects on the road, and speed traps, as these options are available in the mobile app.

It's still unclear when the feature will be generally available, but when it is, there's a good chance more people will start reporting incidents, which would improve the usefulness of incident reports.