This Just In: googlemaps for bikes!

[Biciclista]

6 cyclists from Seattle designed this thing in 5 months.

Fantastic I've just tried it. It even has a place for us to report routes that are inappropriate for bikes.


http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/htm...5_brier10.html
Google engineers who built the company's new bicycle-route mapping service didn't need to look far for inspiration.

The team is based at the Fremont office right alongside the Burke-Gilman Trail.

Bike commuters at Google offices around the country helped the Seattle-based team build and refine the new feature for Google Maps, which is launching Wednesday. That coincides with the National Bike Summit cycling advocacy event this week in Washington, D.C.

The small team built the feature in just five months, adding a new map layer that provides suggested routes for bicyclists in 150 cities across the U.S. It joins the walking and transit directions already provided by Google.

It also comes as maps move to the forefront of the battle between Google and Microsoft. Mapping underpins new locally targeted advertising efforts that may provide the next wave of growth for the search giants, especially as more computing is done on mobile devices that transmit users' location.
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