Albany

For a less-experienced bicyclist, deciding how to get from one part of the city to another can be a discouraging task.

The Albany Bicycle Coalition is working to change that by creating an online map that would allow users to insert their starting point and destination and be directed to the most bike-friendly route.

"Our bicycle participation is low," said Lorenz Worden, president of the coalition. "It's low for women. It's low for family groups, and it's low for people afraid to ride in traffic."

To address people's fears of where they could safely ride, he said, the coalition decided to come up with a Bike Albany map. It devised four east-west and four north-south ways to get across the city.

"We worked on developing these routes: We rode a lot of them, we walked a lot of them and we drove a lot of them," he said.

The group then asked more than 700 people on its mailing lists to do the same, and changes were made based on their input.

Those favored routes are used as a basis for the online map. Like Mapquest or Google Maps, the bicycle coalition's mapping service will enable people to either type in or click on locations and get a mapped route between the two places. They could also turn on a GPS that would use their location to guide them. It does not show a step-by-step list of where to turn.

Though it uses Google Maps as a base, the results will be different. Riders will not be directed to travel down Central Avenue, for instance.

Glenn Sandberg, the coalition's IT director, has spent hours working on the project to help riders navigate the city.

"It is not always going to be the shortest route from A to B," he said.

Worden said the quickest route isn't necessarily the one a bike rider would want to take: "If you were to use Google Maps to do it, it would put you on routes that would make you say 'I'm never doing that again.'"

The coalition also wanted to keep the map simple to make it easier to use.

"If you look at the bike maps in Syracuse or New York City, it looks like a plate of spaghetti," Sandberg said. "We tried to make it manageable. We didn't want them to feel lost. There are other side streets that are just as good but we didn't want to overwhelm."

Assemblywoman Patricia Fahy, D-Albany, an avid bicyclist, provided an $8,000 state grant for the project to create the online map. The coalition has worked with Parks and Trails New York, and it is still seeking to raise another $1,500. Mohawk Valley Geographic Information Systems has worked with the group to create the mapping service, which will be available on the coalition's website next month.

The site also has keys showing light- and heavy-traffic roads and icons for bike shops and bicycle repair stations. It has caution icons that, when clicked, explain potential issues for a rider.

The mapping service is not designed for veteran riders who may feel comfortable riding alongside cars on heavily trafficked roads, Worden said. It is designed for less fearless riders or those new to the city.

"We have thousands of new college students coming in every year," he said. "Many of them don't have cars and don't know how to get around here."

tobrien@timesunion.com • 518-454-5092 • @timobrientu