The big man in red has been and dropped off gifts, the dreidels are spinning & Albert has eaten far too pork pies.
So now that the festivities have started to wind down, let’s look ahead to 2025.
What are your Wayfarer wishes?
Or do you have a Wayfarer related New Year’s Resolution such as hitting a certain amount of Wayspots approved or Portals/PokéStops created?
Yeah, I hope this isn’t who Niantic has trying to fix ML…
I want a clarification on neighborhood signs.
Edited to illustrate what I mean: the builder’s markers that exist at pretty much every intersection here and have no other value than to mark the real estate available for sale.
This is the kind I believe should not be acceptable: Canterbury Entrance 35.776927,-78.842458
I at least gave it a better photo, but if you check the map, there is another one just like this on the other side of this street, two more at the other end of this road and two more at the next intersection north on the main road. And across the main road from these are two more on each corner with a different name.
There is nothing interesting about these signs. There is no reason to visit them. They are essentially the same as street signs.
Is there a preference you have for which way it goes? Would you rather have a yay or a nay?
I was editing to add this but will list separately since I wasn’t fast enough.
I want confirmation on how to reject something that just doesn’t meet criteria. I have been using not “Distinct” to mean that something just isn’t significant. And would like to know if that is right or wrong.
Either way will make me happy. If it is Nay, then I have been voting correctly. If it is Yay, I have at least a hundred of these I can walk to to submit.
More nominations.
I’m at a point in life that would allow me to go absolutely bonkers with submitting - locally with dozens, if not hundreds of possible candidates available ; and also by travelling a lot. My next year’s plans include travelling through like, half of Europe basically, and that doesn’t even fill up the year.
But to do nominations on all those trips I have to hold back so my slots fill up in time already TODAY.
I don’t think increasing from 40 would be good, but refreshing 2 per day per game instead of only 1 nomination would be cool.
This is absolutely a luxury problem but hey we’re putting shiny things on a map 
Ah and as you may have seen from what I already said, my Wayfarer New Year Resolution is to get some screamers approved on every trip I do 
A challenge that goes throughout the whole year and doesn’t stop which shows you the list of the top 500 people who are in the challenge. The challenge could be like most nominations accepted (your own ones you submitted) and the top 500 list could reset every month or two and give you some rewards at the end of the reset.
or a reviewing challenge every 3 months
2nd this! A memorial bench is not a generic business, so why are people using that to reject them?
Also, would love another AMA!
more nominations and a more robust policy around “repurposing”
I would love to have a conversation about repurposing all together.
I’d prefer yes, they are significant. Because when I visit a new city, I use a specific game (pokemon go) like a travel guide, while I’m walking around to learn about places. If there are any little tidbits of into associated with a neighborhood (like when it was built). That can be cool. The complexes over here are brand new (or in the last 5 years) so this part of town is growing/gentrifying. These neighborhoods have been here many decades. Etc.
These builder’s signs I am talking about mark the neighborhood for real estate sales purposes. They do not give any interesting information like you are talking about. Here, there is one at every street intersection.
Will edit my original request to indicate what I mean.
Normally I’m all for more POIs. I love when I’m out hiking and trail markers are spots. It actually has been useful to look at PoGo on a hike I don’t know (that might not be well maintained) with a hard to see next marker, but I can tell which way the trail is supposed to go because there is a spot up ahead or Right/Left from where I am.
I also know there used to be a footbridge craze & they are spots all over & current nominations.
But, do those stops add anything? You aren’t meeting on top of a small footbridge to hang out, it doesn’t really aid you in exploration like a trail marker does (beyond being a landmark?) and a footbridge isn’t usually artistic, cool to look at, or significant to the local community.
imho they aren’t worthy of being POIs and I LOVE having more spots than not.
So a clarification on footbridges would be useful in the next AMA or clarification post.
A footbridge makes exploration possible. That’s how it aids. If there was no footbridge, you would have to wade across the stream, jump rocks, etc. Think of people with poor mobility. They would have to turn around and stop their exploring without that footbridge.
In 2025 I want for Niantic to proactively remove and outright ban all the mundane looking “fire/police callbox” wayspots. They are boring, not interesting, identical, and where I live, they are literally on every other street corner.
As an example, all the yellow marked locations are callboxes
True, that makes sense & if they are eligible, I’m happy to start “approving” versus skipping. I guess I start to view footbridges as generic like a sidewalk. It makes exercise around your community possible but every sidewalk isn’t eligible. A ramp makes wheelchair exploration possible.
Maybe I’m thinking too hard & footbridges are eligible & I should forgetaboutit 
heck, I’ll get more agreements!
Thank you for your response @seaprincesshnb
Anytime! I just reviewed a rather boring looking boardwalk yesterday. It was not more than four boards wide but it very clearly ran for a looooooong way. Looking at satellite, it was a nature area that was meant to explore. The conservators had clearly installed this boardwalk to force people to walk one route and to protect the precious nature underneath. That’s very eligible to me because it embodies the Niantic spirit of explore and even exercise.
I don’t think all callboxes should be removed outright, as some do have historical value. Many of the ones that I have reviewed in larger cities that have them have been around for over 100 years, before everyone had phones in their homes and businesses.
I think clarification would be a better way to go with these, such as how the UK community discusses the historical value and eligibility of post boxes there.
