Strava’s new route building feature is picture perfect

This morning, the popular social app for fitness tracking, Strava, introduced a brand new feature for its paying users with an eye on adventuring. The app now offers community photos as a component of its Route Builder tool. Strava subscribers can view recently uploaded photos of popular routes and landmarks to evaluate conditions and better plan their own workouts.

Strava’s existing Route Builder tool allows users to plan their workouts in great detail. By simply selecting the sport they intend to complete, members use the app’s interactive map to identify specific roads or trails they want to cover. To get started, users can search for specific locations, addresses, or even landmarks, and add them to a route, effectively setting waypoints as they build. Strava then provides both the most popular route and the most direct. Users can even specify preferred conditions, such as hills or dirt paths. In short, it’s a very powerful planning tool.

Now, the Route Builder offers even more by leveraging the millions of photos publically shared to the platform by Strava users on a daily basis. As members zoom in on their map, they’ll see photo collections related to specific locations, views, and waypoints. Strava plans to update these photos every 48 hours. This should keep the images as recent and relevant to existing conditions as possible. To ensure users have access to the most useful photos, Strava equips AI tools to sift through the options. These tools determine the best visuals for route planning, prioritizing those that show details such as roads, trails, and vistas.

Though simple at base value, this new addition to the Strava platform is a significant one. Sneak peeks of intended routes can play a crucial role in safety and preparation for all users. Images of waypoints may help athletes identify easy-to-miss turns. Likewise, shots of steep or tricky trails may help individuals determine if they are up for the challenge. More than anything, it’s exciting to see Strava continue to expand its platform in service of its users.