route finding

[zebee]

what do you use to find a route to a new place?

I start with google directions to get a feel but it has a bad habit of deciding you are really a car and putting you on nasty main roads. Open streetmap can have useful things although I dislike the interface.

I'm not a fast rider and 2 out of 3 bikes are not traffic carvers. So I prefer the back roads and quiet streets. Which is probably the same for most utility riders.

So you have to go somewhere out of your normal run. How do you decide how to do it?

[Pax]

what do you use to find a route to a new place?

So you have to go somewhere out of your normal run. How do you decide how to do it?

I’ll be interested to see what gets said in reply to this.

In my experience, route finding is a challenge if you want to find the most cycle friendly route...or even just avoid really unfriendly routes. This is definitely a challenge for cargo cycling or if you are pulling a trailer, especially in if you want to use bike paths or avoid busy roads. I have not found any app or website that really gives useful information about routes. Like you I have tried to use Google Maps, with some value but also monumental failures.

Google Maps is poor at identifying bike paths IMO...and if you try to just look at the satellite to “spot them” its hard if they are in a treed area (because all you can see is the canopy of the trees), sometimes its impossible to be sure its even a bike path as opposed to a ped path...and it certainly doesn’t show you bollards and other obstacles that might be impossible to navigate with a long bike or a trailer. Its also hard to tell the width of the path or how busy it is (impossible) and again its an issue if you have a wide trailer, on a narrow or busy path.

I admit to fits of swearing at times when an insurmountable obstacle turns up in what “looked” like a navigable path. Luckily for me I am confident on busy roads and in the end if that is what I have to use I use them...but when I’m wanting the peace of a back street or bike path ride, being forced onto main roads leaves me pretty frustrated.

In the end for me its about trial and error...often the first attempt on a new route is far from ideal....second time I find some better alternatives, third or forth its getting closer to as good as the circumstances allow...the lack of cycling infrastructure and signage of routes etc IS NOT an ideal way to encourage cycling, especially for new or less confident riders.

Frustrating.

[zebee]

Seeing as I often have trike and trailer I hear you about narrow/busy paths! And bollards.

The trike also has a vision issue: cars parked close to the corner or else a road that curves away can make seeing oncoming traffic a bit interesting. I tend to take the 2 wheeler first if possible so I can work out if it is trike-suitable. Luckily I seldom have a need for the pulling power of the trike immediately.

The one time I did was taking a table from Surrey Hills to Campsie. I just decided I was a car for the duration. Covered the trike and trailer in flashing lights and took the whole lane till I could get to Wilson St in Erskineville and from there to the Cook's River Path. I designed a route that was 2 lanes or more if at all possible so I was easy to pass. I didn't get one yell or horn blowing! I think people were too boggled at the sight to get upset.

I used to use bikely.com and put up a few routes there myself. Then it got taken over by someone or other and became very slow and hard to use. But for a while it had some good routes.

Hmm... can't see any of mine now, but there still seem to be routes there. What I like about it is that they are tagged with things like commuting and backstreets. All fairly old though... (and google maps is upset about them too)

[Pax]

.

I used to use bikely.com and put up a few routes there myself. Then it got taken over by someone or other and became very slow and hard to use. But for a while it had some good routes.

Hmm... can't see any of mine now, but there still seem to be routes there. What I like about it is that they are tagged with things like commuting and backstreets. All fairly old though... (and google maps is upset about them too)

Hmmm, I’ve played around with “Map my ride” a bit but there are almost no one else’s routes mapped in my area so its of little use in that sense.

Good effort with the table!

[opik_bidin]

trian n error

Look at google map, map the routes, try and find your way, hear from a friend, etc.

It gets more challenging depending on the cycling type:

wheelchsirs, recumbent trikes, velomobiles, etc

it's also good to put up your map somewhere. I put up my maps on strava

[terryc]

Bascally +1 on optik's comment.

TL;DR; it is all about local knowledge and getting it if you don't have it. You get it by riding your bicycle every where and when you are forced to use other methods of transport, consider how a bicycle rider might approach various locations.

I've always preferred carto/topological maps for general ideas of possible routes. It also helps to be a bicycle explorer and poke your nose along tacks, trails, roads, streets, etc just to see where they go. It is a bit harder these days as all the railway lines are fenced, schools security fenced and a plethora od progress impeding devices.

Only you know exactly what your requirements are and even though I've dragged a single wheel trailer and loads around town, I can easiy overlook critical points pertaining to e.g a trike, etc.

[Warin]

OSM is itself a data base. People then take that data and make maps to suit what they want... for bicycles there are various different maps avalible on line ...

https://www.opencyclemap.org/ ok, shows basic infrastructure, water, cafes, pubs, bicycle shops.. topo lines are there but faint.

https://cycling.waymarkedtrails.org/ shows marked routes not cycle lanes etc...