The Daily Dig: ‘Google Maps For Bikes’ Edition

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• We’re all kind of tired of handing over untold billions to Saudi Arabia for oil to power our inefficient transportation system, right? Well, now the Kingdom wants us to pay them billions for not pumping oil. Otherwise they’ll hold out on any global warming agreement. (Green Inc.)
• “High speed rail is not competition for cars,” declared Ray LaHood yesterday, speaking at a Masonic Temple in Detroit (see, Masons really do run the world). He was offering the reassurance, just in case someone, somewhere actually thought the country’s nascent interest in choo-choos posed any kind of threat to the, ahem, Big 3. (Crains Detroit)
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• Toronto’s real estate market remains stronger than in cities like NYC, as evidenced by the success of a trio of new eco-friendly office towers in the financial district. When completed in the next few months, they’ll provide 3 million sq ft of new office space–with approximately 2/3rds of that pre-leased. (Sqaure Feet blog)
• Earlier this week we ran a link to a WSJ opinion piece by David Owen. The argument in four words or less: “Congestion pricing isn’t green.” The item has drawn a volley of (well-founded, we think) criticism. The critics, in seven words or less: “What you say, sir, makes no sense.” (Streetsblog DC, Yglesias)
• Taking to heart the message of a recent book (we interviewed the author!), a conservative argues that his ideological brothers-in-arms are kinda stupid for not embracing mass transit. After all, it’s not like our freeway network is the result of free market forces. (Daily Politics)
• A Brooklyn writer finds that social media like Facebook isn’t making us all into pathetic homebodies: “When it comes to technology and cities, today’s thrilling development - “thrilling”, that is, if you like real cities and corporeal people - is that social networking is enhancing urban places.” Then he tells a story about eating an ice cream cone. (Wired UK)
• Google Maps is getting more multi-modal all the time: Perhaps on their own or perhaps in response to a robust lobbying campaign, the folks from Mountain View are adding a “Bike There” feature to supplement the current directions for driving, walking or taking public transport. (Some blog)

Photo: Globe and Mail — a Google employee doing fancy things on a bike.