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Santa Barbara County and UCSB to develop AI-powered bike route map

Cyclists wait in Santa Maria traffic lane during 2024 CycleMAYnia National Bike Month.
Len Wood
Cyclists wait in Santa Maria traffic lane during 2024 CycleMAYnia National Bike Month.

Santa Barbara County is set to create an AI-powered map to help cyclists find safe routes. Caltrans awarded the county $480,000 to develop the map with UC Santa Barbara.

UCSB Professor Trisalyn Nelson said artificial intelligence will categorize bike routes based on their comfort, safety and difficulty-level.

“This is going to generate data that will allow new bicyclists and people visiting to easily pick out the routes that they feel comfortable riding on, so it's really going to help people make informed decisions,” Nelson said.

The project aims to reduce vehicle emissions by making biking more accessible.

“I'm hoping that it encourages people to start to imagine what some of the trips they take driving could look like if they wanted to do it safely using a bike,” Nelson said.

The first step of the project will involve asking local bikers to share what makes them feel safe on roadways.

Nelson said she hopes this project will eventually expand beyond Santa Barbara County to the rest of California.

KCBX Reporter Amanda Wernik graduated from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo with a BS in Journalism. Amanda is currently a fellow with the USC Center for Health Journalism, completing a data fellowship that will result in a news feature series to air on KCBX in the winter of 2024.
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