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New and improved bike routing, with low stress options

mapzen.com

41–50 of 112 posts

Re: New and improved bike routing, with low stress options

#41
post #3

If use_roads is set to zero, will this optimize for roads that include sidewalks?

Hi! I'm with Mapzen. Setting `use_roads` to zero means a preference for using roads tagged in OpenStreetMap that have bike infrastructure, as opposed to roads without bike lanes. We don't route on sidewalks, and will avoid paths that are tagged `bicycle=no`. You can get a sense of these on our bike map. https://mapzen.com/bikes/

Where is your bike lane data from? For example, the chicago loop detail on the linked page is incredibly (years now) out of date, and would send people down routes that have replaced bike lanes with dedicated high speed bus lanes.

Re: New and improved bike routing, with low stress options

#42

Riding an ebike has dramatically changed the routes I take when commuting because I now prioritize safety and enjoyment over pure efficiency or avoiding inclines. My commute is 25 minutes on an ebike vs 70 on a regular bike, or 30 in a car in traffic.

Can I ask what ebike you use?

Not the OP but I've heard good reviews of Karmic bikes: http://www.karmicbikes.com/shop/koben-s which are expensive but do "everything" and Propella bikes: http://www.propellabikes.com/ which are much less expensive but still supposed to be good.

Re: New and improved bike routing, with low stress options

#43
post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Barely related but EV drivers also change their path. I don't have an EV (car or bike) don't really like driving in traffic (too chaotic for my brain) I often take smaller, slower roads where I just coast along smoothly. That said I wish I could try an ebike or even an EV.

Reminds me of how I had to take feeder roads and turn off the freeway during bad traffic when my shitty old toyota would overheat if I couldn't get good airflow into the radiator :P

"mechanical sympathy"

Re: New and improved bike routing, with low stress options

#44
post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm guessing it will optimize for dedicated bike paths since you shouldn't be riding your bike on the sidewalk.

If we added bike lanes to sidewalks rather than roads I think it would solve a lot of the complaints motorists have.

It might solve the complaints motorists have, but then you'd have the complaints of pedestrians to deal with. In two major cities in my country, bike lanes have been added to the pavements as a bright red stripe on the side of the pavement closest to the road. Local pedestrians shouldn't walk on that portion of the pavement, but they still do, and if you ring your bell or shout for them to give way, they either ignore you or yell at you. It’s actually much faster to simply cycle on the road with the cars.

Re: New and improved bike routing, with low stress options

#45
It's an interesting problem because there are so many factors and even the goal isn't constant from day to day.

Goals

- get from A to B as quickly as possible

- get from A to B as safely as possible

- get from A to B as enjoyably as possible

Factors

- fitness of rider

- type of bike (Riding a fixed gear bike up a steep hill is bad for enjoyment, but riding a mountain bike up a steep hill is not)

- weather (headwinds, tailwinds affect time, affects safety of certain routes as well - don't tell me to ride down a steep windy hill when there is a possibility of ice)

- time of day (affects safety due to light levels)

- traffic volume

- number of lights/stop signs (this affects fast riders more than slow ones because of the effort wasted accelerating and braking is greater)

- number of turns (turns make the rider slow down and wait for traffic and also increase the complexity of following a route)

- scenery/environmental factors (eg. ride through an industrial area or through a waterfront park)

Re: New and improved bike routing, with low stress options

#46
So I decided to see how to get to that nice Pho place across town .. 600 Washington Ave Philadelphia, PA 19147 or the one next door at 610 Washington Ave Philadelphia, PA 19147 .. in both cases it truncates off the street number and drops me at a wrong location. Does that mean OpenStreetMap needs some assistance in that area? Even stranger if I put one of those addresses in both source and destination it does a strange 5 block loop to get back to the same wrong start point.

Re: New and improved bike routing, with low stress options

#47
post #2

Wonderful. I'd really like these same features in Waze and Google Maps - if it means I can avoid having to cross a busy intersection that's not a 4-way stop, and reduce stress and increase safety, I'd gladly accept a route that's a few minutes slower. Anyone from Waze or Google Maps team here?

(Oh, and I mean for journeys by car, not even by bike)

Re: New and improved bike routing, with low stress options

#48
post #45

It's an interesting problem because there are so many factors and even the goal isn't constant from day to day. Goals - get from A to B as quickly as possible - get from A to B as safely as possible - get from A to B as enjoyably as possible Factors - fitness of rider - type of bike (Riding a fixed gear bike up a steep hill is bad for enjoyment, but riding a mountain bike up a steep hill is not) - weather (headwinds,…

And it's also not said that all these factors have a linear impact on the Figure of Merit. I guess that this might be a nice application for a machine learning classifier, to rate a route's ride quality depending on all of these inputs (and more.)

Re: New and improved bike routing, with low stress options

#49
post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hi! I'm with Mapzen. Setting `use_roads` to zero means a preference for using roads tagged in OpenStreetMap that have bike infrastructure, as opposed to roads without bike lanes. We don't route on sidewalks, and will avoid paths that are tagged `bicycle=no`. You can get a sense of these on our bike map. https://mapzen.com/bikes/

Where is your bike lane data from? For example, the chicago loop detail on the linked page is incredibly (years now) out of date, and would send people down routes that have replaced bike lanes with dedicated high speed bus lanes.

We use data from OpenStreetMap, meaning you can edit and update information wherever you are, and changes will appear on the map in a matter of days.

Re: New and improved bike routing, with low stress options

#50
post #45

It's an interesting problem because there are so many factors and even the goal isn't constant from day to day. Goals - get from A to B as quickly as possible - get from A to B as safely as possible - get from A to B as enjoyably as possible Factors - fitness of rider - type of bike (Riding a fixed gear bike up a steep hill is bad for enjoyment, but riding a mountain bike up a steep hill is not) - weather (headwinds,…

"b" didn't exist 200 years ago, so why does "a" feel the need to get there? Progress for the sake of progress!
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