Posted by Rachel

Just in time for warmer weather and iceless roads (hopefully), Google Maps now includes a bike route feature along with its walking, driving and public transportation directions.

Unveiled last week during the National Bike Summit in Washington, D.C., the beta version now includes more than 12,000 U.S. bike trails as a new option inside Google Maps.

According to Google’s press release, “this new feature includes: step-by-step bicycling directions; bike trails outlined directly on the map; and a new ‘Bicycling’ layer that indicates bike trails, bike lanes, and bike-friendly roads.”

As a cycler myself, I gave Google’s new feature a little test, and I can see why it’s still in beta version. I wasn’t all that impressed with some of the routes because the feature did not always consider busy and narrow streets. Google did do a good job of directing me to designated bike paths like the Cherry Creek Trail here in Denver, but the bike route layer feature was also missing some information on streets with bike lanes.

One cyclist had some great insight on how Google could improve this function.

I think the new feature has potential and Google just needs some time to work out the kinks. For the time being, if you are really serious about biking, you might want to stick with Map My Ride, just to be on the safe side.

Want to try out Google’s bike routes?

See the video and points to learn how to use the bike route function on Google Maps.