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Google has just launched a new feature on their maps website: Bicycling. According to Google this has been the most requested addition to Google Maps.
Archive for the ‘Routes’ Category
Have tips for safely biking to destinations in South Bend and surrounding areas? Please post them here and feel free to ask for advice as well.
Google Maps now includes Bike Routes
Posted by Paul Taylor on March 10, 2010
Posted in News, Routes | Leave a Comment »
They’re known for pizzas, and they refill your water bottle for free.
Posted by Paul Taylor on September 27, 2009
Joe Dits, the popular South Bend Tribune columnist, has unearthed another cyclist’s and walker’s gem: the Nickle Plate Trail. This 13-mile rail-trail extends from Peru (about 65 miles south of South Bend, Ind. and 68 miles north of Indianapolis) to Cassville, a dot on the map just north of Kokomo. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Facilities, Routes | Tagged: bike paths | 1 Comment »
Bike Michiana for Hospice organizers breath sigh of relief
Posted by Paul Taylor on September 4, 2009
Collapsed Riverside Trail Wall
The wall at the intersection of Riverside and Oakwood has been jinxed since it was built. A motorist ran off the road and damaged it earlier this summer; when repairs were made, they were done incorrectly and it collapsed a second time in late July.
The trail will be the centerpiece for the ‘family ride’, and Bill Lee, who was lead planner on the Hospice family route has been concerned that children would need to be diverted onto the street due to the wall collapse. Pictured, is the wall and trail before repairs were started.
Read more details in The South Bend Tribune.
Posted in Infrastructure, News, Routes | Tagged: bike paths, path, South Bend, Trails | 3 Comments »
New Michiana Bike Route Map Published
Posted by Jeff Nixa on May 30, 2009
Update: an 11 MB PDF of the map is now available for download.
The first-ever comprehensive St. Joseph/Elkhart Counties bike map is now available. A joint effort of the Bike Michiana Coalition, local government, business and university, the folding map will first be distributed to cyclists who attend the South Bend Bike to Work Week events, June 1-5. Afterwards, the map will be available throughout Michiana in local bike shops and other locations yet to be determined. A free copy of the map ($5 value) will also be provided every person signing up for an annual membership in the Bike Michiana Coalition.
Posted in Advocacy, Facilities, Infrastructure, News, Routes | 3 Comments »
Ride from ND to Goshen Ride of Silence
Posted by Adam Bee on May 20, 2009
Since there is a Ride of Silence in Goshen but not South Bend tonight, I plan to ride from ND to Lincoln Avenue Cycle. The route is 30 miles, so I plan to leave at 4:45 sharp to make it there by 6:45. If you’d like to ride along, show up at the Main Circle of Notre Dame before 4:45. Make sure your bike has lights; I plan to return by 9:15 or 9:30, so we might be racing the sunset a bit on the way back.
Here is the route I plan to take (LINK). I’ve never ridden most of those easterly roads, so I can’t guarantee their safety or comfort. Let me know if you have suggestions on a better route!
Posted in Group Rides: Special, Routes | 3 Comments »
Passed: Underpass Project Approved
Posted by Phil G-E on May 6, 2009
Many, many thanks to everyone who showed up and spoke in support of the Maple City Greenway trail underpass at Plymouth Rd in Goshen. A close call, the Council was split evenly 3 for and 3 against (1 supporting member absent) until Mayor Kauffman voted for the proposal. Read more about it at in this eTruth article. Many thanks, too, to all who helped organize the response by spreading the word and communicating with their city council members. This will be an excellent addition to the path and make it all the more accessible and useful to pedestrian and bicycle traffic.
See below for a Google Map of the trail:
Posted in Advocacy, Infrastructure, News, Routes | 1 Comment »
Zigs vs. Zags
Posted by Adam Bee on April 22, 2009
Have you ever noticed that right-to-left turns are much more difficult than left-to-rights?
That is, if you’re crossing some large ugly six-lane traffic sewer to get from one lovely back road to another, it seems much easier to me if you have to go LTR instead of RTL.
Posted in Commentary, Facilities, Routes | 2 Comments »
Best Connections: In Praise of the Cul-de-Sac Killers Among Us
Posted by Adam Bee on April 20, 2009
A few days ago I wrote about my least favorite non-links, or “missed connections” in Michiana. Now I would be remiss if I didn’t applaud the “best connections”, where some kind soul went out of her way to link neighborhoods rather than force traffic onto congested arterial “traffic sewers”.
Here are my top five:
1. Wembley to Brighton: Perfect example. You can even see the old curb on Brighton. Without this connection it would be impossible to get from Darden to Darden. Now it only requires an ugly little right-to-left along Ironwood.
Posted in Commentary, Facilities, Routes | 1 Comment »
Missed Connections: The Worst Non-Links in Michiana
Posted by Adam Bee on April 18, 2009
A few days ago I wrote about Virginia’s law outlawing cul-de-sacs, and how they’re one of the biggest challenges to route planning in Michiana and especially Granger.
Here are my top five most infuriating non-links in Michiana:
1. Park to Catalpa: This is the worst in my book. Just a few more yards of pavement and Catalpa would connect all the way to Edison Lakes Pkway, Meijer, and Walmart. As it is, I take a short zag on Main to cut through the parking lot of a nice orthodontist.
Posted in Commentary, Facilities, Routes | 2 Comments »
North Mishiwaka Parking Lots
Posted by Adam Bee on August 8, 2009
It’s less difficult than you might expect to get around the most auto-dependent sections of Michiana, as long as you’re willing to cut through a few parking lots.
I’d imagine that the practice is officially illegal, potentially dangerous, and probably not LAB-approved, but those are true of a lot of well-established, practical cycling techniques. The hard fact is that currently if you want to ride to Wal-Mart and you’re not prepared to take arterial traffic sewers, parking lot skipping is the only way to go.
When you start looking at infrastructure that way, you really start to notice details about the landscape, like the lack of any bridge over Juday Creek under 4 lanes. Or which parking lots link together, which require off-road curb hopping, and which are unfortunately impassible. Or which parking lot entrances are directly opposite each other and which require the dreaded right-to-left. (I myself cut through two lots every commute to round off an ugly right-to-left!)
This all ties into a greater facet of bike infrastructure that I think is perhaps obscured from recreational cyclists and other would-be advocates: Often the greatest benefits to utility cyclists come from careful planning and tiny changes to stuff that will be built anyway.
What do you think? Do you ride through parking lots? Which ones are your favorites? Which are the most heartbreaking non-connecting lots?
Posted in Advocacy, Commentary, Facilities, Infrastructure, Routes | 2 Comments »