Las Vegas Bicycling Community Website

Kudos to Google for including bicycling in their Google Maps technology!

Now, if bicyclists are looking for directions to travel safely on bikes, all they have to do is go to maps.google.com/biking.

The objective of Google’s new bicycling routing is “to include as much bike trail data as possible, provide efficient routes, allow riders to customize their trip, make use of bike lanes, calculate rider-friendly routes that avoid big hills and customize the look of the map for cycling to encourage folks to hop on their bikes.”

Does it meet this objective? I’d say yes and no.  Just a couple quick checks for me to ride my bike from my house to certain addresses in town and Google did lead me down some pretty sketchy roads.  This means that, as great as their technology is, they still need real human beings who know the roads or who are willing to ‘test’ out their directions to give them feedback.  That being said, they do have a feedback system that allows you to tell them if they routed you wrong, if a road is closed or other possibilities….so a human being is still better than a computer.  But I still can’t help but think it’s cool, right?  And I know with time, this will only get better.

Try it out.  Give it a spin.  Go to maps.google.com/biking and throw in some test addresses from your house.  See if you think it gives you the best directions.   Then, come back here and tell me what you think.

A few more facts about Google’s Biking Directions feature:

• You can have the route avoid hills! (I’m a hill glutton, so not sure I will use this feature.)

• The time estimate for the route is based on a complex set of variables accounting for the type of road, terrain and turns over the course of your ride.

• Google has also added information about bike trails, lanes and recommended roads directly onto the map. This can help you get a better sense of your route, or let you find trails nearby for a recreational ride.

• Thanks primarily to Google’s partnership with the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, they now have more than 12,000 miles of trails included in biking directions and outlined directly on the map.

I would like to say in closing, that this is a HUGE step forward for bicycling…and I commend Google for encouraging people to get onto their bikes.  We all love cycling and want to see it move forward, and this is a BIG step forward.  Thanks Google!

To learn more about Google’s Biking Directions, visit the Google’s Official Blog at:
http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2010/03/biking-directions-added-to-google-maps.html

Or read the Google Maps Blog post here:
http://google-latlong.blogspot.com/

I attended the Fee increase meeting yesterday at the Red Rock Visitors Center and thought I would pass along what was said, and the recommendations that will be considered by the BLM today.

There was a sub-committee of 15 members who sat in on a presentation by BLM Officers stating the case that they need just under $1 million per year for the next 10 years to efficiently manage and operate the Red Rock National Conservation Area.  They presented their draft business plan to the sub-committee and answered questions as they went along.

After the presentation, the public were allowed to comment and address their concerns (or support) for the increases.   The ‘public’ consisted of 30 people.  About 8 of us were cyclists, a few hikers and the rest volunteers and outdoor enthusiasts.  About 10 people addressed the sub-committee.  Some were in favor of the increase in fees, some were against it.  No matter what their stance was, what we did hear from everyone was how much we cared for the park and how we all wanted to work together to come up with a solution that was best for all involved so we can continue to enjoy it for generations to come.

One of the main issues I had as a road cyclist was how we were being targeted to pay an entry fee, whereas other groups were not.  For example, mountain bikers, equestrians and hikers/runners/walkers were not going to be charged fees UNLESS they came through the main entry gate for the 13 mile scenic loop.  All the road cyclists thought this was unfair and tried to explain to the sub-committee that our impact on their operations was much less than any of those groups combined, and most certainly less than any automobile and motorcycle.

We also felt the $3 entry fee was steep, but the BLM’s plans were to move forward with this fee regardless.  They want locals to buy an annual pass for $30 a year (currently $20, but increasing to $30 under the new budget proposal) and equated that to 13 cents a day to support our local park.

No one can argue that 13 cents a day is inexpensive.  And for the most part, we will buy the annual pass because we want to support the park.  What we did make sure of, was the annual pass would allow one bicyclist and up to 3 more bicyclists to enter on one annual pass.  The sub-committee agreed to this revision, and recommended the final committee implement this verbage into the budget, mirroring the America the Beautiful pass language. (Covers the pass holder and three (3) accompanying adults age 16 and older at sites where per person entrance fees are charged.).

Another interesting note that was communicated by one of the volunteers was that anyone who volunteered just 3.5 hours a month (40 hours a year) of their time at Red Rock was eligible to receive a free annual pass.  For those of you who don’t want to pay or cannot afford one, this option makes an annual pass readily available to you if you donate your time.

Overall, I can say that cyclists won some and lost some yesterday.  The $3 entry fee into the park was a loss, but the annual pass allowing 1 cyclists to bring in 3 other cyclists was a win.  Now we wait to see if the final BLM committee adopts this budget as recommended by the sub-committee.

One final note worth stating.  The sub-committee’s plan to charge the $3 entry fee to bicyclists was not waived due to the fact that they had 2 public hearings prior to yesterday’s meeting.  They stated only 15 people showed up for BOTH meetings combined.  Due to this fact, they felt there wasn’t any opposition to the $3 increase and planned to include this fee into the budget no matter what.  This demonstrated one thing to me that I will remember from this point forward.  If you are not happy about something, you need to show up at these public hearings to voice your concerns.  If you don’t, then nothing will change.  Just keep that in mind going forward.

IN THE LOCAL NEWS:  This topic was reported on by the Review-Journal.  Read the article online at:
http://www.lvrj.com/news/red-rock-fee-hikes-discussed-84682587.html

DISCUSS THIS IN THE BLV FORUM:  A group of people are already discussing their feelings on the meeting and fee increases.  Join in on the discussion here:
http://www.bikinglasvegas.com/cycling-forum/fee-increase-for-red-rock-canyon-t881.html

As I write this, I am getting ready to attend the BLM Fee Increase Meeting for Bicyclists to enter the Red Rock Scenic Loop.  (For more on this issue, read my original blog post on BLM’s Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area Budget Plan.)

Now, an email comes thru my inbox with a link to Las Vegas Now (Channel 8’s News Website) that is discussing the possible closure of another one of my favorite parks to ride my bike in, the Valley of Fire State Park.

If you would like to attend a meeting to discuss the possible closure of Valley of Fire State Park, the meeting will happen Thursday at 9 a.m. at the Grant Sawyer Building in Downtown Las Vegas.