Last night, IndyCog released version 1 of their Indy Ride Guide, a comprehensive map which features the best (and worst) places for a person to ride a bicycle.  A sneak preview is shown below, but the full pdfs can be found in all their glory here and here.
These maps can be found for free around the city at IndyCog sponsors. I picked mine up at the Indy Bike Hub.
Special thanks goes out to the map developers: Brian Staresnick, Jennifer Higginbotham, Kevin Whited, and Aaron Kowalski. They were able to take this map from a concept to a reality.
I’m proud to have helped in this project in my own small way. IndyCog is now seeking feedback for any corrections or additions that the public can make, which can be sent by e-mail to map@theindycog.com. However, I think it can be safely said that this guide is a great start.
One very nitpicking thing. I am guessing GIS was used in making this map and noticed on the side of the map that showed Marion County that there is an interchange at the intersection of Ameriplex Parkway and Kentucky Avenue. There is no such interchange there, it’s just a stoplight. I know, this is not a highway map and I’m happy that it is more about the bicycle infrastructure, but it is something that isn’t there.
My bigger question is where is Carmel, Fishers, Greenwood and Plainfield on this map. Again, I know it says “Indy” Ride Guide, but bicycle connectivity does not stop at the county lines. I guess I was hoping for a more regional view of the bicycle infrastructure and not just Indianapolis proper itself. Maybe something to think about for Verison 2. Beyond that though, this is a fabulous map and the attention it shows to the difficultly of biking on various roadways is much appreciated. A very good first step indeed.
My east-side, as very nice ride. 🙂 I love how I can easily access the Monon at east 10th st as well.
Thanks for including this, Kevin. In response to TJ Deck’s question regarding the files, I know that GIS was used for the initial content of the roads. My guess from looking at them as that they were TIGER files. TIGER files often show proposed or former roads in addition to the existing ones. However, for all edits/enhancements related to biking, I’m pretty certain they overlaid Adobe Illustrator vector content.
.
Interesting suggestion regarding a regional map, which I’m sure opens a small can of worms regarding regionalism as a whole. IndyCOG advocates bicycling in the city limits, in terms of its events calendar and policymaking. It took a great deal of time and volunteered labor to extract variables assessing the quality of city streets. Obviously it would take even more to include the burbs, and I don’t know the level of member support in the suburbs, so it is easy to see why it might be hard to justify expanding the scope when resources are already thin. Since the some of the suburbs generally their own bicycle plans, perhaps future versions will engage with the stewards of those plans in the suburbs so their could be more collaboration. Regardless, I’ll ask about suburban involvement.
Thank you for explaining it, I didn’t know that IndyCOG just stopped at the city limits, but whatever works best for your group is fine by me. It must have taken a lot of effort to compile what you have and from what I’ve seen off of this page the map for me is a must-have. Thanks again to IndyCOG for creating this map, which I hope to pick up a copy over the weekend.
Having been part of the committee that worked on the 1987 Indy Bicycle User Map I am aware of the tremendous amount of time and effort that goes into such an endeavor. I congratulate INDYCOG on this splendid map. It’s very legible with good use of color to distinguish between various bicycle typologies though it does appear to be oriented toward bicycle commuting – which I think is a good thing. I look forward to seeing this map evolve over time to display an ever increasing number of bikeable streets, bike lanes and greenways throughout the metro area.