Google Announces Google Biking Directions at the League of American Bicyclists' 2010 National Bike Summit

Google is announcing today that they are adding biking directions in the U.S. to Google Maps. This new feature includes: step-by-step bicycling directions; bike trails outlined directly on the map; and a new "Bicycling" layer that indicates bike trails, bike lanes, and bike-friendly roads. The directions feature provides step-by-step, bike-specific routing suggestions - similar to the directions provided by our driving, walking, or public transit modes. Simply enter a start point and destination and select "Bicycling" from the drop-down menu. You will receive a route that is optimized for cycling, taking advantage of bike trails, bike lanes, and bike-friendly streets and avoiding hilly terrain whenever possible.

Visit Google to try out this new feature. Biking directions for Google Maps is currently in Beta.

News Press Editorial: Make roads safer for bikes, pedestrians

I urge you to write individually to the members of the Lee County Legislative Delegation urging their action & telling them why it’s important to you. Click here for BikeWalkLee's complete request on 2/22 to the Legislative Delegation: Thanks!
Darla



Make roads safer for bikes, pedestrians: Editorial
The News-Press Editorial • news-press.com • March 6, 2010
It’s past time for Florida — the most dangerous state in the union for pedestrians and bicyclists — to exit the dark ages of road design.
The useful BikeWalkLee organization, which recently persuaded Lee County commissioners to embrace a “complete streets” philosophy, is part of a worthy effort to get the state Legislature to do the same.

Complete streets (and highways) accommodate pedestrians, cyclists and public transit in their design from the beginning, which avoids expensive retrofitting. This makes roads and streets safer for everybody, including motorists. There are also health and tourism benefits from making biking and walking easier, and alternatives to individual vehicles reduce pollution and save resources.
Among other things, the complete streets people want the Legislature to require the state Department of Transportation to actually allocate all its federal safety funds for safety improvements (duh!), and then ensure that pedestrian/bicycle safety improvements receive a share of that money commensurate with the percentage of traffic fatalities made up of cyclists and pedestrians — a whopping 21 percent.
Let lawmakers know you want to make our roads safer, healthier and more inviting for all their many users.


CONTACT THEM
• Sen. Garrett Richter, District 37, 338-2777, richter.garrett.web@flsenate.gov
• Sen. Dave Aronberg, District 27, 338-2646, aronberg.dave.web@flsenate.gov
• Sen. Mike Bennett, District 21, 225-3697, bennett.mike.web@flsenate.gov
• Rep. Ken Roberson, House District 71, 941-613-0914, ken.roberson@myfloridahouse.gov
• Rep. Paige Kreegel, House District 72, 941-575-5820, paige.kreegel@myfloridahouse.gov
• Rep. Nick Thompson, House District 73, 533-2411, nick.thompson@myfloridahouse.gov
• Rep. Gary Aubuchon, House District 74, 344-4900, gary.aubuchon@myfloridahouse.gov
• Rep. Trudi Williams, District 75, 433-6775, trudi.williams@myfloridahouse.gov
On the Web
• BikeWalkLee Official Blog
Related Stories
• Study: Florida deadliest state for walkers, cyclists

USA Today: Fla. deadliest state for walkers, cyclists

By Larry Copeland, USA TODAY
MIAMI, Florida — Florida is the deadliest state in the U.S. for pedestrians — and bicyclists don't fare any better.

In 2008, the most recent year for which federal statistics are available, 11.1% of pedestrians and 17.4% of bicyclists killed in the U.S. died in the Sunshine State, which has 6% of the nation's population.

The top four of the 10 most dangerous metropolitan areas for walking are in Florida, according to a study last fall by two Washington, D.C.-based non-profit groups. The state has been in the top three in bicycle and pedestrian fatalities every year since 2001, federal data show.

The statistics perplex state officials. "There are so many factors involved and most of them are random," says Marianne Trussell, chief safety officer for Florida's Department of Transportation. "We're trying to figure out root causes and how we can fix it."

There's a debate over those causes: Is Florida so deadly for walkers and cyclists because of the behavior of drivers, pedestrians and bicyclists? Or because of inherent flaws in the way roads are designed and built?

....................Underlying these factors, transportation safety officials say, is behavior: "Somebody is doing something they shouldn't be doing," Trussell explains. "Drivers are making a right turn and not yielding to pedestrians, or making a right turn on red. Pedestrians are not paying attention to traffic, or they're crossing the street midblock instead of going to the intersection."

She takes issue with the November study by Transportation for America and the Surface Transportation Policy Partnership that spotlighted dangers to pedestrians in Florida. The study found pedestrians in Florida — and around the U.S. — are endangered by the nation's shift from development clustered around traditional streets to wide, high-speed roads designed to move thousands of vehicles.

"The roadways aren't as dangerous as the (study) would have made it seem," she says. "It's not the roads. The roads are just sitting there by themselves.".....

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