Google Maps Bike Routes Coming to the 'Peg

Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION

City bike routes going on Google next week

By: Adam Wazny

Posted: 23/11/2010 1:00 AM | Comments: 9

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KEN GIGLIOTTI / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Enlarge Image

Google Maps will soon let the city's hardy bicycle riders find bike routes buried under the snow. / NOV. 22 2010 ���v����v?���v� Stdup Winter has arrived and cycling season will be over for most bike riders . In pic several bicycles were still locked in place on Sherbrook St at Wolseley Ave on Monday morning with more snow coming

The snow and ice suggest otherwise, but life for the Winnipeg cyclist just became a little easier.

In an announcement at the Sustainable Mobility Conference in Ottawa Monday, Internet search engine giant Google has added Winnipeg to its list of Canadian cities that will have bike routes available online for those looking for the best path to take on two wheels.

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With Google Bike Directions, scheduled to be added to Google Maps during the next week, users can pore over city-fed bike maps using the popular web atlas to chart a course for their daily commute.

Comprehensive maps of various bike routes and paths are already available on the city's website, but Winnipeg Trails Association director Janice Lukes was thrilled to find out Google has added the city to its new mapping feature.

"We have all this new infrastructure and many people don't know where it is," she said. "This will encourage those who are looking to get out on the weekends or do a little riding after work."

What has the cycling community excited about the Google Maps addition is the reach it will have to those contemplating ditching their vehicle for a bike.

Jeff Martin, owner of Alter Ego Sports, feels the undecided might finally decide to switch to a two-wheeler permanently, thanks to Google Maps. Not every trail or dedicated bike lane is visible from behind the wheel, he notes, so not everyone is up to speed with the layout of the city's active transportation framework.

"For the serious cyclist, they're going to ride their bikes regardless," he said. "But for the inexperienced rider, this will show them they can get from point A to point B in a safe way, especially for winter riding."

Google Bike Directions works like this: A click on the bicycle icon shows a dark green line indicating a bike-only path. A lighter green line signals a dedicated bike lane and a dotted line shows a city street that doesn't have a dedicated bike lane, but could still be suitable for riding.

The city planned to spend $20.4 million dollars on 36 bike-and-pedestrian projects under a federal stimulus program this year. Cold weather cut six of those projects short, with completion scheduled for 2011.

Ottawa, Toronto, Edmonton, Vancouver, Calgary, Gatineau and Waterloo are the other Canadian cities involved in Google's announcement. Bike-trail data for U.S. markets was added to Google Maps earlier this year.

adam.wazny@freepress.mb.ca

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition November 23, 2010 A5

Happy Canada Day

We were in town for Canada Day this year and we did the rounds of Winnipeg's three main Canada events this afternoon.
Eselin and the Geek's bikes sport Canadian flags to keep the spirit.
I have never seen so many bikes at The Forks. I guess if you have to pay $5 for 'parking' to even enter the area from any street encouraged people to arrive by bicycle.
Osborne Street was also closed to traffic and here bike parking was at a premium. People space was also at a premium, so we didn't stay long.
As we continued on toward Assiniboine Park, Wellington Crescent, the most direct route, was also closed to vehicle traffic, as it is on Sundays and all statutory holidays that fall in the summer months.
And because we are such a melting pot of nationalities, we stopped for sushi on the way home.
Happy Birthday Canada!

Have You Lost A Bike in Winnpeg?

I found this article in today's Winnipeg Free Press. It is nice to see people get involved. It is even better to see people get involved and not get hurt.
His shop is not too far from where I work. If I ever buy any jewellery, I should buy it from him.

Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
He rescued bike, seeks owner
Man chased down brazen thief, wants Peugeot to go home
By: Gabrielle Giroday 8/06/2010 1:00 AM |


Marty Halprin holds the post, from which the bike was stolen, showing it’s still easily removed. (PHIL.HOSSACK@FREEPRESS.MB.CA)

IT'S a Cinderella story complete with a knight in a pickup truck, except Marty Halprin isn't looking for the owner of a lost shoe.
Instead, the jewelry store owner is looking for the Winnipeg woman with the key that fits the lock on a turquoise Peugeot bike he rescued from a thief Friday morning.
The Celia's Jewellery owner was in his truck at the corner of Smith Street and York Avenue about 11 a.m. when he saw a man about 30 years old knock over a steel pole on the north side of York. The thief then dragged away a 10-speed bike that had been chained to the pole.
That's when Halprin pulled up alongside.
"I couldn't believe what I was seeing," said Halprin, 59, an avid biker who's cycled for over four decades and isn't shy about calling himself a rabble-rouser.
The man dropped the bike and took off on foot after Halprin gestured he was going to get out his truck.
"I guess he didn't want to get involved with me and he was having trouble with the bike, so he just left," he said.
Halprin then put the bike in the back of his truck and took it home for safekeeping.
"Whoever (the bike owner) is obviously had to walk home from wherever she worked. I'd sure like to meet her, find her, and give her her bike back."
The Peugeot's about 20 to 25 years old and still has a cable locking its front wheel and frame together. Its fender was twisted like "spaghetti" after the attempted theft.
"He just figured that (he had) every right to take this bike," he said.
He's confident he'll know he has the rightful owner when he finds the woman whose key fits into the lock.
A sign Halprin put near the intersection with his name and number -- as well as information about the theft -- has so far gone unanswered.
Halprin said he's shocked the thief tried such a brazen theft in the middle of busy downtown, and that people nearby didn't intervene.
"I know how sick it feels to go to where your bike was and it's gone," he said. "It's a sick feeling."
gabriellegiroday@freepress.mb.ca

Well Read Cyclists

I love bookstores. I love small, independent bookstores even more.There are two such stores in Winnipeg where I try to make all of my book purchases. Luckily for me, they are both minutes from where I work and I often pop in to browse on my lunch hour.

Whodunit deals only in mysteries. They are located in a little shop on Lilac Street, a mere five minute walk away. McNallyRobinson is in the Grant Park Mall, a five minute ride on my bike. Good thing books aren't crack-my addiction would be entirely too easy to fuel.McNally's has quite a few of these really cute bike racks, and often many of them are in use.
The inside of the store is furnished in a way that encourages lingering; big comfy chairs hidden between the bookshelves. There is a wonderful children's section as well. (I always get so distracted I forget to take pictures.)
Judging by the crowds, I am not the only one who still enjoys a good book.