Google Maps renamed Bedford Ave. to Maple, for some reason

Google was unable to offer an explanation as to why the street name had temporarily changed Tuesday

Bedford Avenue apparently went through an identity crisis yesterday. Or maybe gentrification has gotten truly out of hand. Whatever the explanation, the Williamsburg portion of the street was briefly renamed as Maple Avenue on Google Maps for no clear reason.

Brooklyn 11211 first noticed the mistake on Twitter, perfectly commenting what we’re all thinking “WTF is Maple Ave?”

WTF is Maple Ave?@googlemaps has renamed Bedford Avenue. The entire length of the Avenue (the longest street in Brooklyn) has been appearing on maps as Maple Avenue for 3 or 4 days now. Is this a promotion or something? The AI getting sassy? pic.twitter.com/6JXaJWYu51

— Brooklyn 11211 (@brooklyn11211) June 14, 2022

The mistake apparently proliferated through Google Maps, with businesses, like the Apple store, also having its address switched from Bedford to Maple. Conspiracy theories, some more serious than others, abounded. One person wrote “we gotta start keeping a closer eye on the Canadians man. they’re getting bolder.”

Another person joked that they “absolutely love the idea that Bedford has become an influencer and is doing some kind of paid partnership.” It does make us wonder if this has anything to do with Maple, the failed David Chang-backed food delivery service.

Google did not explain the cause of the switch-up the switch up, saying only: “We’ve fixed the underlying issue that resulted in Bedford Ave. displaying incorrectly,” the company said, according to Curbed. It had been fixed as of Wednesday morning.