Google Maps goes green with biking routes, but use with caution!

Biking is a great way to stay in shape, go green, and avoid traffic. With its latest beta feature, Google Maps wants to help you find the best way to your destination while pedaling two wheels. It’s a great idea and Google Maps has a basic model working. The routes it chooses are another matter though as they often direct users through parks, off-limits areas and unpaved roads busy with other traffic.

To try it out out head to Google Maps and enter in a couple of destinations as normal, then choose “Bicycling” from the drop-down below the final address. The engine will jump to work and in a few informal tests brought back some solid new ideas for routes between home and work.

There are three types of paths, according to Google’s blog post, trails intended for bikes only, dedicated bike lanes and regular roads that bikers might prefer. Initial reaction to the service seems to be a bit cynical because Google is missing lots of good paths and is directing people through a lot of incompatible terrain.

Google acknowledges that it’s not perfect yet, and that will likely require gathering input from people living in local areas who have inherent expertise. Right now most of the data is based on a partnership with the Rails to Trails Conservancy. Finding routes that aren’t currently well documented probably is the eventual fix, and gathering feedback through some sort of online community would quickly aggregate that information.

This brings another question to light, which is to think about how green riding a bike is versus other modes of transportation. The human body utilizes energy just like any other moving entity so how does that efficiency compare to something like driving a car? There are plenty of other analyses out on the web, and here’s one from Mr. Green.

. . . propelling the average car 48 miles requires at least two gallons of gas . . . the amount of fossil-fuel energy needed to grow enough corn for the 48-mile [bike] ride is a meager .025 gallons.

So by that logic it seems that Google is supporting yet another movement toward green.