I submitted the Wayspot “Itinéraire cyclable n°04 – Genève-Salève” on October 9. It was accepted on October 15 and appeared in Pokémon GO on October 16, but I noticed today that it has disappeared from the game.
I’m not sure what happened. Was it reported by someone, removed by mistake, or was there an issue with the original submission that wasn’t identified during the review process?
I’d appreciate some clarification on the reason for its removal. If the Wayspot meets the eligibility criteria and was removed in error, I would also ask for it to be restored in Pokémon GO.
It exists, is safely accessible (imho) and is a confirmed trail marker.
I’m dubious on the accessibility being used to get this removed, because it’s not just a tiny little traffic island. Probably the best explanation though.
If I understand correctly, a Wayspot can be removed by the Wayfarer team based on their own assessment of pedestrian safety, even if nobody has reported it?
The marker is indeed located on a traffic island, but there are sidewalks nearby and a pedestrian crossing with traffic lights. This is why I find the possible safety reason surprising.
Wouldn’t this reasoning put a huge number of existing Wayspots into question, unless they are located in places like parks or other pedestrian-only areas? I’m genuinely curious to understand how this is assessed in this case.
It depends on how it was reviewed. If this was internally reviewed and accepted, Scopely Explore might easily have rechecked it and decided it was not safely accessible. We do see internal review decisions getting automatically overturned.
If it was community reviewed, I would expect it would need reporting to get Scopely Explore to look at it. I cannot imagine that Scopely Explore have time to double-check every acceptance (and if they were doing this, some of the junk we see would be getting removed without having to be reported).
Wayspots on pavements etc are fine. There just has to be a protected pedestrian space. I still feel this has that, even though it got removed.+
If, during the reviewing process, one reviewer reported it as unsafe, but all the others said “yes”, then you can get the situation where it is accepted due to the average response, only to then be removed when staff manage to get to the report.
It’s annoying, but short of putting every sub on hold as soon as there is a single report (or hiring far more staff!), I don’t see what else they can do.
Thanks for the explanations! I understand the possible scenarios following an acceptance much better now. I guess all I can do at this point is wait for a staff member to review the case. Thanks again!
I could see “1 Reject” could be an error but lets say it originally goes to 20 reviewers and 2 reports state Reject including 1 reviewer at “Expert” or “Champion” level then resend to 10 more Reviewers at “Expert” or “Champion” level for final decision?
Thank you for your response and for the clarification.
I will take note that, despite being an official sign with a route marker and number, and despite the presence of sidewalks, pedestrian crossings and pedestrian traffic lights nearby, its location on a traffic island is considered a potential safety risk.
Although, from my perspective, reaching this sign does not pose any particular danger, I respect the staff’s decision. This will also give me a useful reference point for future reports requesting the modification or removal of Wayspots whose locations may present similar, or even greater, safety concerns.
