A new online route planner allows cyclists to map their journeys via off-road routes and cycle paths for the first time.
The online system, commissioned by Transport Direct and Cycling England, has been created by CycleCity Guides following months of detailed surveys conducted by a 15-strong team of cycle-mounted mappers.
Martin Whitfield, director of CycleCity Guides, said the new system allows cyclists to plan their route incorporating the Sustrans National Cycle Network, bridleways, canal towpaths and other off-road cycle paths.
The route planner is part of Transport Direct – a multi-modal transport planner incorporating information for journeys by train, car, bus, plane and now bike.
Speaking to road.cc from Bexhill-on-Sea, where he is busy conducting surveys for future versions of the system, Whitfield said: “To get off-road information Transport Direct and Cycle England have been commissioning us to survey the areas and get the non-road areas into the journey planner.
“It’s aimed at two levels - quickest or quietest.”
So far Manchester and Merseyside are up and running on the test site, and all the Cycling England Cycle Cities and Towns, such as Bristol, Brighton and York, have been surveyed and are due to go online at a later date.
After typing in their journey details users of hte site are given turn-by-turn written directions and a map, which can be broken down into detailed sections. This can also be downloaded as a GPX file to be used with a GPS system.

Turn-by-turn GPS instructions are not yet available but Whitfield hopes once the system is more established, this will be an option.
He says: “Hopefully when we have a large dataset of the country one of the big phone manufacturers will design turn-by-turn navigation software because they’ll have to adapt the software they already use for in-car navigation.
“At the moment they have a bike option but it just directs you down a road, nothing specific.”
Get a first look at the test version of the website here. The final version is due to go online later this year.
🤣🤣 been using cyclo cross bikes for my commute for years !...
I was going to marry my cornflakes this morning but the dish had run away with the spoon. Anyway my wife wouldn't let me.
Are you sure?...
Saw Di2 105 for around that price during Black Friday.
Motorists mystified after being fined £100 for 'parking' in retail park at times their cars weren't even there...
I fancied a wheelset at 50% off, but when they realised I was in Spain the discount was only 18% and so no longer attractive or even competetive....
Rubbish. Roads can be design or modified in a way that creates blindspots or uneccessary conflicts.
Picture shows aftermath of crash which saw car go through Spalding pub wall...
When we are on patrol in the area we will keep an eye out ...so that we can look the other way/ turn a blind eye more efficiently
Vittoria can top the win list with my "dumbest cycling product of the year" award.