Did you know that there is a Bike to Work Week? Can a national holiday be far behind? This year, Bike to Work Week is May 17 – 21. But have no fear! Bike Pittsburgh is declaring Car Free Fridays! and today is the first one.

Google has released a new map feature, just in time for this auspicious occasion. From the New York Times article —

The good news is Google has also added bicycle directions to its online maps. That means you can go old-school, and print out a super high-definition, never-runs-out-of-batteries, turn-by-turn … cue sheet. – Read the article

Staffski was curious about the route that Google would choose for a cyclist traveling from downtown to her aerie in Polish Hill. The above map is the result. Smallman was recently designated a bike route and would be much more manageable than biking along Liberty Avenue.

The option works just like the one for getting direction for driving. Open a Google map, select get directions. In the pull down menu, select Bicycling and ta-da! Google gives you a map as well as written directions.

For those of you that are habitual pedestrians, Google also has an option to get walking directions between destinations. Guess what? the directions actually include utilizing public staircases!