Using Gothere.sg for directions

I tried using Gothere.sg to provide directions to participants and it is much better than using Google Maps. In the upcoming Sungei Buloh Anniversary Walk, I included this link for directions: http://gothere.sg/directions#:718925 – using Sungei Buloh Wetlands Reserve’s postcode.

This is what people will see:

If they key in their postal code in the “Get there from” box, or even a description, the site calculates how to get there or drive there. I tried simply typing in “National University of Singapore” and it produced this route below, which began from Central LIbrary, even calculating the price.

You have to be alert though – for example in this map it indicates the last leg is by TIBS bus no. 925C, which extends to the park only on Sundays. But its not so bad, for otherwise it ends at Kranji Reservoir Park and you can walk in through Kranji Nature Trail which is worth the quiet walk.

The good news is it means Gothere.sg solves my “getting there” issues and I will feel comfortable just providing a link. Google Maps did incorporate Singapore postal codes as well recently and has had driving directions for some time now, but not public transport directions. Gothere.sg also provides a simple URL for any location – gothere.sg/directions#:POSTCODE which is pretty neat and nice icons that keep things clear for users.

So the next page to update will be the Pedal Ubin webpage – I’ll add a Gothere.sg link to the directions to participants once I figure out the postcode to use there.

Why I have not been using Google Maps for bike routes

There is a reason why I have not been using Google Maps directions for bike routes, heh-heh. Sure got into a mess with this!

Update – this came about because I was editing the reccomended route that Google Maps had provided. It is actually excellent to use with car routes but trying to adjust it for the intricasies of a cycling oute is silly. I got into more and more trouble and became all tangled up! For cycling routes, just use bikely.

Singeo’s Singapore Bus Stops and Twittering and Skitching too

I caught Singeo’s announcement via Twitter that he had updated the Singapore Bus Stops and Bus Services Map to include SMRT bus services amongst other things.

I hopped over for a look and realised Singeo now also provides the means to grab a unique URL to link to the specific part of the map you are viewing.

So this morning, for example, while reviewing the Pedal Ubin FAQ, I added a link to a map at Changi Village close to the Changi Ferry Terminal – they can click on the bus icons to see which services reach there, and then there are links to bus route information – snipurl.com/pedalubinfaq. Must edit the webpage next.

There is also an IRIS search integrated into the bus stop information, and I am all the more likely to check IRIS when leaving campus since catching 95 is often a tricky business. When I examined Lower Kent Ridge Road’s bus stops though, I was surprised to find my bus stop missing! So I dropped a comment with Singeo and he twittered me for more information – amidst some meetings, I Skitch-ed an annotation of the corrections back at him:

Later that evening, during a Coastal Cleanup meeting which had me on Google Docs, Gtalk and Skype (partly because of Hua Qin), I saw a Singeo tweet that said to check the corrected map!

He had fixed it already!

It needs a little but more adjustment so I’ve skitch-ed those and twittered him from within my skitch web account. Sweet!