Good news. Google Maps now has bicycling directions available. They’ve been cooperating with our friends at the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy to add their info, too:
“We’re thrilled to be working with Rails-to-Trails Conservancy to make RTC’s extensive bike trail data available through Google Maps and Google Earth,” says Shannon Guymon, Product Manager for Google Maps. “Bikers all over the country now will be able to explore new trails or find specific directions in their local community with just a few clicks of their mouse.”
The inclusion of RTC’s trail information in Google Maps comes at a time when people are clamoring for biking opportunities. In the last year, RTC has seen an unprecedented surge in its TrailLink.com users. TrailLink.com is the most robust, national resource for rail-trail maps, pictures, descriptions, listings and directions to more than 30,000 miles of trails.
“The demand for trail maps and information has never been higher, especially as more people recognize biking as a viable, inexpensive and healthy alternative to driving,” says Rails-to-Trails President Keith Laughlin. “Sharing our trail data is an exceptional way to introduce the world to what 150,000 RTC members and supporters already know—biking is the ideal way to get where you’re going. The addition of biking directions to Google Maps makes life easier for bikers, whether they are commuting to work or biking for fun, and it can introduce our network of trails to a whole new audience of cyclists-to-be.”
I think its a great idea and can’t wait until it becomes widely available (only in beta now).
UPDATE: I was so inspired by this, the CartoonGoddess and I rode the Greenway the next day — fromPierson Avenue all the way to the Garden State Parkway. The railroad bridge over the Parkway remains…
The rail, to trail…
I can wait for completion — I like the mud. Paved, ADA-compliant paths are OK, but it doesn’t make you feel like you’re in the wilds of pre-historic New Jersey.
