How does Brakeaway calculate route safety?

Brakeaway analyzes bike route safety using real-world infrastructure data from OpenStreetMap, including bike lane types, traffic volume, elevation changes, and road characteristics.

What data sources does Brakeaway use?

Brakeaway uses OpenStreetMap (OSM) for infrastructure data, elevation data from USGS, and traffic information from various sources.

About Brakeaway

Brakeaway is a free, open-source bike route safety analyzer that helps cyclists find safer routes using real-world infrastructure data.

Our Mission

We believe cyclists should never have to guess if a route is safe. Brakeaway was built to provide data-driven insights into route safety before you ride.

How Safety Scoring Works

Brakeaway analyzes multiple factors to calculate a comprehensive safety score:

Bike Infrastructure: Dedicated bike lanes, protected lanes, painted lanes, or no protection
Traffic Levels: Estimated vehicle traffic and road volume
Road Type:strong> Residential streets, arterials, highways
Elevation Profile: Hills and climbing intensity
Intersection Density: Number of intersections and crossing points

Data Sources

We use the following trusted data sources:

OpenStreetMap (OSM): Community-maintained bike infrastructure data
USGS Elevation Data: Accurate elevation profiles
Traffic Networks: Estimated traffic volumes

Safety Score Scale

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Score	Rating	Description
90+	Very Safe	Excellent infrastructure and low traffic
75-89	Safe	Good infrastructure with moderate traffic
60-74	Moderate	Mixed infrastructure, caution advised
45-59	Caution	Limited infrastructure, high traffic
30-44	Risky	Minimal protection, heavy traffic
0-29	Unsafe	No protection, high-speed traffic

Getting Started

Upload a route by importing a GPX file or connecting your Strava account
Brakeaway analyzes the route in seconds
View detailed safety breakdown by segment
Export results or share your route

Open Source

Brakeaway is completely open source. View our GitHub repositorya> to contribute or run your own instance.

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