Understanding the needs of cyclists

CycleTracks uses your smartphone's GPS support to record your bicycle trips, display maps of your rides, and help transportation planners make San Francisco a better place to bike. At the end of each trip, data representing your trip purpose, route, and the date and time are sent to the San Francisco County Transportation Authority (all personally identifiable data will be kept confidential*). By using CycleTracks, you'll be helping San Francisco's transportation planners better understand the needs of cyclists—and you'll get to see maps and statistics of your rides.

We'll use the real-time data we collect to improve the bicycle-use component of our computer model SF-CHAMP to better predict where cyclists will ride and how land developments and transportation infrastructure will affect cycling in our community.

SF-CHAMP (San Francisco Chained Activity Modeling Process), is the official travel-forecasting tool for transportation planning in San Francisco, a state-of-the-art model that predicts future travel patterns within the Bay Area.

The CycleTracks smartphone application

CycleTracks uses the iPhone and Android's GPS support to track users’ bicycle trip routes. Specify a purpose for each trip (commuting, shopping, exercise, etc.), tell the app when to start and stop recording the ride and, at the end, data representing the purpose, route, date and time are sent to the Transportation Authority’s servers. (All personally identifiable data will be kept confidential.* Users can cancel a trip at any time for any reason and no data will be sent unless explicitly directed by the user.)

Think of it as a travel survey that asks you why and where you are riding, but automatically maps your route rather than asking you to write it down from memory.

Download CycleTracks from the App Store℠ or from the Android Market app on your phone. (If you're browsing this page from your Android phone, you can go directly to the app download page.)

Questions about the application? Please see the FAQ. Post your comments or suggestions to our Facebook page. 

For more information on the project, e-mail Billy Charlton at the SFCTA, or call him at 415.522.4800.

The iPhone version of CycleTracks is a mopimp production. Both versions of the app are funded in part by a Caltrans planning grant.

*—We will know your iPhone’s Unique Device Identifier (UDID) or your Android phone's Device ID in order to group trip data by users. No other identifying information is collected except with your opt-in permission. Anonymous data may be shared with other public agencies for planning purposes.

HOW TO USE CYCLETRACKS FOR: iPhone | Android

How to use CycleTracks for iPhone

1. Selecting a Trip Purpose:

• Tap “Trip Purpose” on the Record New Trip screen.

We’re interested in the MAIN purpose for each trip you make. Think about why you are out and about on your bike to begin with. If you’re unsure how to categorize a trip, select “Other” from the Trip Purpose chooser.  You can always attach an explanatory note to your data before transmitting.

• After making your selection, tap “Save.” You’ll be returned to the Record New Trip screen.

2. Personal Info:

This is completely optional, and, if you choose to participate, only has to be done once. It involves a few basic questions useful to our study, but they’re optional and confidential. If you wish to give us your email address (which will not be shared with any third parties), we can keep you updated on the progress of the study.

• Tap “Personal Info,” fill out the form, and tap “Save.”

3. Recording a bike trip:

• After selecting a trip purpose, tap “Start.”
• The screen will lock and dim, to conserve battery life.
• At the end of your trip, unlock the phone and tap “Save” to upload your data to the Transportation Authority’s server. Add a comment if you like.
• You can choose not to save or transmit any trip for any reason. Simply quit the app rather than tapping “Save.” No data will be transmitted.

In order to remind you that the app is running and to save your battery, your iPhone will ring like a bicycle bell and vibrate after 15 minutes, and every 5 minutes thereafter. If CyclesTracks is running when your iPhone battery reaches less than 20% of its charge, the app will automatically stop collecting data and quit.

Steps to make sure CycleTracks works properly

• DO NOT push the “Sleep/wake” button on top of your iPhone while running CycleTracks: it will stop recording and you’ll lose your trip data. The app must be visible on your screen in order to work properly; the screen is dimmed to conserve battery life.
• DO NOT push the “Home” (main menu) button while on your ride or CycleTracks will stop recording.
• DO NOT change tracks or playlists in iPhone’s iPod while running CycleTracks. Begin play before starting CycleTracks.
• If you receive a call in the middle of a ride, CycleTracks will stop recording while you are on the phone. When you finish the call, CycleTracks will restart and resume recording.

Sharing your Saved Trip maps

“Saved Trips” shows maps, dates and start times of your trips. You can share the maps with others:

• Tap Saved Trips at the bottom of your screen to see your list of previous rides.
• Choose one, zoom in or out, and take a screenshot.
• Share the screenshot via email or download it to your computer.

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How to use CycleTracks for Android

1. Recording a Trip

• Tap the Start Recording button to instantly start recording a bike trip. This will activate the GPS receiver on your phone and begin tracking your ride. You can tap the Pause button to temporarily stop or start receiving GPS updates. Click Finish when you're done with your ride.
• Thanks to Android's background-app capability, you don't need to do anything special to keep CycleTracks running. You can put the phone to sleep or use other apps while recording. The small green CycleTracks icon in the notification bar will keep recording your moves. Note that the SFCTA does not recommend using your phone while you're in motion!
• In order to remind you that the app is running and to save your battery, your phone will ring like a bicycle bell after 15 minutes, and every 5 minutes thereafter. If CycleTracks is running when your battery reaches less than 10% of its charge, the app will automatically stop collecting data and quit.

2. Selecting a Trip Purpose

We're interested in the MAIN purpose for each trip you make. Think about why you are out and about on your bike to begin with. If you're unsure how to categorize a trip, select "Other." You can always attach an explanatory note to your data before transmitting.

3. Personal Info

Tap Menu > Edit User Info. This is completely optional, and, if you choose to participate, only has to be done once. It involves a few basic questions useful to our study. They are optional and confidential.