Google Maps Goes Cycling
March 10th, 2010 | Published in Cycling | 7 Comments
THIS is an interesting thing done by Google today. They have finally added cycling routes to their maps. This is a really nice feature if you are just a casual rider. I know there are a few of us in the Ubuntu community who are not casual riders and we live for speed, we live for flying past pack fodder, and we aren’t afraid of hills. Well, Google maps new cycling route feature is afraid of hills, and when you use it, Google maps will route you around any hills. BOO!
I am sorry, but if Google was serious about the cycling stuff, they could have learned a lesson or two from Map My Ride. Map My Ride is amazing, as it will map, allow you to design a ride, and track your rides with a great level of detail.
March 10th, 2010 at 11:47:07 (#)
Wow, you would think that Chicago would have great mapping, but it is by far the worst I have yet to see. Chicago has an amazing map and data, as I know a lot of it has been transferred over to openstreetmaps. Pretty sad that Google seems to have rushed this.
March 10th, 2010 at 15:19:34 (#)
Speaking about bicycles, there is also http://www.opencyclemap.org/
Based on Openstreetmap data.
March 10th, 2010 at 15:46:27 (#)
@Simone – thanks for that, I forgot about them. They are by far the best map for bike trails. I have even committed some trail info for them in the past.
March 10th, 2010 at 17:33:50 (#)
This is an interesting topic. You BOO that it leads you around hills. That is because you are a non-casual rider. I also take it that you bike for sports, mainly. I don’t. I ride my bike to get from point A to point B – it’s my only option for FTW (Faster-than-walking) transport. So Google’s mode is a boon for me.
The good thing is that they have added terrain as a parameter for route optimization. So they _could_ modify the weighting to make a hilly route for you and a sensible flat-if-it-saves-you-energy-and-time route for me, and a totally flat route for grandma.
March 10th, 2010 at 18:17:05 (#)
@kjoller – I also an a casual rider as well, and even then I don’t always like to avoid hills. Yeah, it would be great if they had an “Avoid Hills” option, therefor allowing me to uncheck it so I didn’t have to avoid them.
March 10th, 2010 at 18:18:35 (#)
Oooh, another thing that would be nice is an “Avoid Trails” option. If I am on my road bike, I definitely don’t want to hit the trails, as I typically cruise at anywhere between 18mph and 30mph, and that is a huge no-no on the trails here in the Chicagoland area.
March 11th, 2010 at 02:55:49 (#)
[...] Google Maps Goes Cycling :: Richard A. Johnson [...]