[Talk-GB] CycleStreets routing: now supports surface quality, barriers, traffic calming, lighting

[Martin - CycleStreets]

We're pleased to announce that we've extended the range of OSM tags that 
the CycleStreets routing engine uses to find cycle routes. This has helped 
us improve the quality of the suggested bike routes in two main ways: by 
handling the surface descriptions of the ways and accounting for the time 
delay caused by various obstacles along a route, as well as some other 
enhancements.

The routing engine now newly takes notice, or takes more notice, of these 
aspects (where the data exists in OpenStreetMap) when planning journeys:

- Surface quality (e.g. avoiding muddy bridleways)
- All manner of hurdles (gates, bollards, barriers, kerbs) that can impede a cyclist's journey
- The presence of traffic calming
- Presence on a greater range of established route (e.g. mtb)
- Streets with a cycle lane only on one side
- Whether a path is lit

A full list of tags added is at:
http://www.cyclestreets.net/blog/2012/05/20/more-osm-tags-supported/

Based on the feedback we've seen recently these changes are already 
improving the quality of routes served to users, and so addition of more of 
this kind of data to OSM would be very welcome.


Martin,                     **  CycleStreets - For Cyclists, By Cyclists
Developer, CycleStreets     **  http://www.cyclestreets.net/