Have you ever wondered when Google Maps will get around to including bike directions? Wonder no more dear readers, Google Maps have just done exactly that! While the feature is currently only available in America, it can’t be too long until it rolls out to Australia.

As you would expect from Google, the functionality is intuitive and seamless, and it looks as though the team have spent quite a bit of time and thought developing this new system.

Users can simply select ‘bicycle route’ from the drop down menu and the appearance of the map will change to show which streets are recommended for biking, with different coloured lines illustrating trails with no motor vehicles and streets with bike lanes.

As per the walking and car directions, users can choose from several suggested routes, or drag and drop to create a custom route. The clever system suggests routes that avoid steep hills and gives a time estimate of each route based on a complex set of variables that account for the type of road, the terrain and the amount of turns over the course of the ride.