Ride with GPS launches surface type feature
View, plan, and navigate routes with confidence that you are prepared for the road —or trail— ahead
Ride with GPS helps you find, and plan, the routes you want to ride. Now there’s a new tool in the arsenal with the official launch of surface types. It’s a feature that’s been in development and limited release for a long time but this announcement marks the official rollout. Now when you leave the house you will know if you have the right gear for the ride ahead.
Route planning with mapping tools, like what Ride with GPS provides, has always involved a certain amount of guesswork. You do your best to choose the route that makes sense based on the clues you have. That might be the heatmap feature or it might be things like elevation profiles and distance. Depending on where that route takes you there’s a very real possibility that the surface will change between paved and unpaved.
Ride With GPS tools are a great companion to the Wahoo Bolt
Some people will be looking to stay off of paved surfaces and others will be looking to stay on them. Whatever you are looking for, Ride with GPS web and mobile users will now be able to distinguish paved roads from unpaved roads or trails while planning or viewing routes. This takes the guesswork out of route planning and ensures that you’re leaving the house prepared for what’s ahead and with the appropriate equipment.
If you are using the mobile app for navigation the new information shows there as well. Suprise detours will have less surprises with the ability to stay on the surface that you are expecting. When navigating, surface type transitions show in sections. Toggle ahead between changing surface sections to explore what’s ahead.
The update introduces three surface types.
- Paved – Displayed as a solid line and include asphalt, concrete, and chip seal.
- Unpaved – Displayed as a dashed line and include gravel, dirt, and natural/unimproved trails.
- Unknown – When there is insufficient data available about a surface it will show up as unknown with an outlined white line.
As you can see, the unknown still exists. Ride with GPS relies on surface type data from OpenStreetMap (OSM), an open-source mapping service of the entire world. While comprehensive, this data is incomplete. With that in mind, it’s possible for users to visually adjust the surface types of their personal routes using the Ride with GPS Route Planner. If you’d like to go beyond visually adjusting your own routes Ride with GPS encourages, and offers the ability, for users to contribute up-to-date surface types information to OSM.
Ride with GPS facilitates route planning and navigation for cyclists. They offer tools designed to inspire people to go on better rides, more often. This new tool is another way to conceptualize routes and set expectations before heading out the door. Visit www.ridewithgps.com for more information.