google maps

But, how well do these directions work? Well, I’ve now spent some time mapping out various bicycle directions, and the answer is “not perfect but pretty darned well.” They have a blog post about their methodology, which explains how an algorithm tries to help you avoid heavily-trafficked streets and steep hills and such. (Some of us like steep hills, of course.) And it does a decent job of it. But it’s in beta so there are a few things which need minor fixing.

For instance, let’s say I want to go from our office to Uptown.