Walkable Communities

Google engineer's have developed a bike route feature to accompany the pedestrian, public transit, and yes automobile route maps previously available. The bike mapping not only shows you how to get there, but also recommends preferred routes that are less hilly and or avoids heavily congested streets making your commute, weekend adventure or a simple trip to the store as enjoyable as possible.

To use, simply visit http://www.google.com/ and click on the maps page. In the upper left hand corner of the page, click on the “bicycling directions” link. Input your to and from addresses and voila, a map is created for just for you. Once your map is created you can click and drag the actual route shown on the map screen if you think you know better than Google. Information such as estimated time, distance and alternative routes are also shown. In addition to bicycling maps, the top of the page has a drop down menu in which you can choose “walking”, “by public transit” or “by car” and the map will change accordinfly giving you Google’s recommendations for the best route. With great riding weather upon us, plan a couple bike trips, print them out and hit the road.

Happy Safe Cycling