The Transit app now features the ability to show bike routes that are safe to ride. The company designed its bike routing algorithm around four safety principals:
- Seek protected bike infrastructure first — The routing algorithm prioritizes roads that are clear of traffic, even if the route ends up being a bit longer.
- Paint is not infrastructure — When all road conditions are equal, the routing algorithm has a negligible preference for roads with painted bike lanes or shared lane markings.
- When there’s no protected bikeway? Take a low-traffic street — A low speed, one-way residential street takes priority over a fast six-lane boulevard.
- When there’s no way to avoid a busy street, make it obvious — When riders plan a bike trip, the routing algorithm will show riders up to the three best options. The algorithm will tell riders exactly what percentage is safe along the routes, flag busy sections and show them the elevation profile.
Turn-by-turn navigation
The app features turn-by-turn navigation that is activated when riders mount their phone on their handlebars. If riders need to put their phone in their pocket during the trip, the app will send riders a notification on the riders’ lock screen on their phone. Once the trip is over, the app will prompt riders for a trip rating. With that data, Transit app will make improvements to its bike routing in future updates. Eventually, Transit app says it will work with cities to help make improvements to their bike networks as well, something the app already does for public transit.
Just like with transit trip planning, riders can plan bike trips when they’re offline. The app will autosave riders’ city’s biking network to their phone in tiny files and calculate the best route without data.
Custom-fitted to your riding style
The app allows riders to customize their bike (and walking) speeds based on their fitness, the bulkiness of their bike and whether or not the bike is electric. Riders can also customize their commuting preferences for biking versus transit.
If riders bike everywhere, they can move the slider in the app all the way to the right and the app will always show bike directions before transit.
