When they first became commonplace in the 2010s, the world was awash with stories of drivers religiously focusing on their GPS or navigation system as they make their way off the road into fields, forests and local rivers. Now, an incident in Lucerne has seen one tourist follow his navigation system down the Kornmarkt steps near the old town hall.
According to Pilatus Today, at 9pm on May 1, residents of the old town noticed a black Audi A6 perched precariously at the top of the stairs near the town hall. After contacting the local police, a spokesperson at the time said that they didn't "know why the driver ended up there” but no one was injured in what was first assumed to be a road accident.
Now, it has been revealed by police spokesperson Urs Wigger that the driver - a tourist from Israel - had been following the instructions on his GPS, which eventually led him to drive down the stairs. Luckily, he only made it down the first few steps before realising his mistake, but the vehicle still had to be lifted out by a crane provided by the emergency services.
Whether the man had incorrectly set his navigation to walking mode or had simply lost connection to the internet, remains to be seen. Luckily for him, as there were no injuries, police are likely to let the man off with a warning, a bill for the crane, a dent in his pride and quite possibly a higher premium on his car insurance.
Interestingly, this isn't the first time the steps of Kornmarkt have been the victim of misled drivers. In 2014, a French car got stuck on the steps, while in 2013 an American tourist was caught driving on the steps after following his GPS, he said at the time, to the letter.
Thumb image credit: Shutterstock.com / KYTan