Google is adding support for bike-sharing stations to Maps as it will help inform users about docked bike-sharing services near them. Google was testing this feature in New York City and now it is expanding to 23 more cities. The latter include Barcelona, Berlin, Brussels, Budapest, Chicago, London, and Los Angeles among others, The Verge reports.
The new integration is made possible from data provided by Ito World, which provides information on where to find a bike-sharing station. It also shed light on how many bikes are available and whether or not there’s a space waiting for you to dock your bike when you arrive at your destination. Google is reportedly rolling out the feature to Android as well as iOS devices.
On a similar issue, in December 2018, Google Maps gained a feature to direct users towards shared Lime scooters and bikes, the report said. Since the beginning of 2019, Google has been testing and introducing several new features on Maps. After running tests in the US and elsewhere, earlier in May, Google rolled out speed limits and mobile radar locations in over 40 countries, including India.
In July 2019, Maps also added more than 45,000 community and public toilets as part of the Central government’s “Loo Review” campaign that covers 1,700 cities in India. Besides, last month, Google has added three features to Google Maps in India. Google Maps now lets you check Bus travel times from live traffic. This feature is currently available in 10 of the largest cities in the country, which includes Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Pune, Lucknow, Chennai, Mysore, Coimbatore, and Surat.
The company has also added a feature for train journeys, which shows real-time train running status. One can also check whether any of them are delayed using Google Maps. The company said that this feature “was developed in partnership with the Where is My Train app that Google acquired last year.”
Google also announced is Mixed-mode directions results that include auto-rickshaws. One will notice a public transport tab on Google Maps for Android. This feature will tell users when they should take an auto-rickshaw and what station or stop will be a better option to take one after switching from other means of transport like metro, local train and more.
– With inputs from IANS
