> Maybe it was this cascading effect of too many people conditioned into being told what to do by their phones while their phones couldn't tell them to take the other route

There is a lot of people who couldn't navigate to a neighboring street without a direct directions even if their life depended on it.

Add to that what the most people doesn't have a slightest idea where are they, where are the cardinal directions and what they need to get from point A to point B.