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"As people become more health-conscious and eco-friendly, cycling has become increasingly popular over the past few years. With the introduction of Citi Bike in New York City in May, and the bike superhighways that are popping up internationally, cycling has never been more accessible. \nSee also: For Bike Lanes, Design Makes All The Difference\nIn addition to bike share services and improved paths for riding, there are a multitude of apps to help you plan your biking routes and navigate with ease. We've rounded up five of the best route mapping apps below \u2014 with features that calculate your duration, distance, pace and calories burned, you won't need any other apps to track your cycling fitness.\nDid we leave out one of your favorites? Let us know in the comments.\n1. MapMyRide\n\n\nMapMyRide has every feature you could really need when mapping out your bike route. You can choose from more than 120 million bike routes all over the globe, or you can create a route of your own. In addition to mapping tools, the site also provides online training tools for competitive bikers, nutrition tracking calculators and the ability to share your routes with friends. The app has a clean and easy-to-use design, and you can even add your own personal motivation statement and goals to to keep track of your progress easily. The app is available as a free download for iOS, Android and BlackBerry. \n2. BikeMap.net\n\n\nBikeMap features 900,000 worldwide biking routes, letting you search for routes near you or near the places you plan to visit, then updates in real time to show your location and share it with friends. Available on iOS, Android and Windows Phone, the app is free and easy to set up, thanks to Facebook Connect.\nThe BikeMap app got off to a rocky start, with frequent downtimes, problems with translation (the team is Germany-based), difficult to read text and a slew of other poor usability issues that users were quick to point out. The app has a three-star rating, but these reviews were for the previous version that has since been fully updated. The app is up and running much more smoothly since the first go-around, and version 1.2 is receiving five stars all around. \n3. BikeBrain\n\n\nPossibly the most all-encompassing biking app out there, BikeBrain is a big win for habitual bikers looking for anything from GPS mapping and in-app picture uploads to sport cyclers looking for heart rate monitoring and training mode features. Plus, the app doesn't need a reminder that you'll want to keep your previous biking routes on hand: it automatically archives details of your rides and optimizes battery life so pulling up those routes won't deplete your battery. This free app, available only on iOS, gets four stars for its consistency, credibility and the fact that it thinks of everything before you do.\n4. Bike Hub\n\n\nA biking app for the modern world where efficiency is key, Bike Hub finds your quickest possible biking route from point A to B using both road and cycle paths. Plus, to make sure that your safety comes first, the app uses voice directions to alert you to upcoming turns or a sudden shortcut. Some users claim that using the app shaved two minutes from their typical biking commute, but the app can be a little buggy.\n5. Cyclemeter\n\n\nCyclemeter, currently available for iPhone and iPad, is a comprehensive workout-tracking app designed for cyclists and fitness enthusiasts. The GPS-based app enables users to track fitness activities such as cycling, running/walking, skiing, skating and more. During workouts, Cyclemeter tracks users' activity and progress, measuring a wealth of data including time, distance, location, elevation and speed. Users may also opt to enable audio cues via the app's 70 configurable announcement settings regarding time, distance traveled, speed and elevation.\nIn addition, Cyclemeter features a number of customizable training programs for users to determine the optimal interval, target, or training schedule. The app also organizes workout data into a variety of maps, graphs and statistics, enabling users to visualize and analyze their progress.\nImage: Bloomberg/Getty Images"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://mashable.com/2013/09/11/bike-route-apps/>