Trekking, Road, Gravel or Safety: Which VeloRand Route Type Fits You?
VeloRand's four route types – Trekking, Road, Gravel and Safety – don't just relabel the same route. Each one is a distinct routing profile that scores every road and path differently, which is why the same target distance from the same starting point can produce four genuinely different loops.
Here is what each one actually optimizes for, so you can pick the right one on purpose instead of by trial and error.
Trekking: the balanced default
Trekking is built for efficient, comfortable point-to-point travel rather than a specific surface or speed. It assumes a relaxed, moderate pace and tolerates gravel tracks and unpaved side roads without actively avoiding busier streets – it aims for a sensible route rather than the safest or the fastest one.
This makes it the right default when you just want a solid loop and do not have a strong opinion about surface or traffic.
Road: pavement only, as direct as possible
Road mode assumes a sportier pace and reacts to unpaved surfaces far more harshly than Trekking – a gravel or dirt track that costs Trekking only a mild penalty can cost Road around ten times as much, so it will detour well out of its way to stay on tarmac.
It also keeps a respectful distance from trunk roads and will not touch a motorway at all, so "as direct as possible" still stops short of anything genuinely unsafe to cycle on.
Gravel: rewards good tracks instead of just tolerating them
Gravel flips Trekking's logic: a well-maintained gravel or forest track is scored almost the same as tarmac instead of taking a penalty, so the generator will actively route you onto them rather than avoid them.
It also assumes a more athletic power output than Trekking, but caps top speed lower – built around the reality of a gravel bike rather than a road bike.
Safety: Trekking's logic, with one switch permanently on
Safety is not a separate routing philosophy – it runs on the same logic as Trekking, with exactly one setting changed: a permanent penalty on standard roads that lack dedicated cycling infrastructure.
That single switch is enough to noticeably reroute you towards cycle paths and quiet streets, even if it means a longer way round. Pick this one when low stress matters more than the shortest path.
Which one should you actually pick?
A rough guide based on what each mode is built to optimize for:
- Commuting or a relaxed loop with no strong preference: Trekking.
- Road bike, want to stay on tarmac and keep the pace up: Road.
- Gravel or all-road bike, want to actually ride the good tracks: Gravel.
- Riding with kids, new to cycling, or just want the calmest option: Safety.
Under the hood
VeloRand's route types are built on BRouter's open-source routing profiles, which score every stretch of OpenStreetMap data using dozens of factors – surface, road type, traffic likelihood, and more. If you are curious about the exact scoring logic, BRouter publishes its profiles openly.
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FAQ
Not by default – Road is deliberately tuned to avoid unpaved surfaces almost entirely. If you want gravel included, Gravel or Trekking mode will fit the route far better.
No route type can promise zero traffic on real-world roads, but Safety consistently prioritizes cycle paths and low-traffic streets over the direct route wherever the map data allows it.
It reflects real-world gravel riding: more effort is assumed for the terrain, but the realistic top speed on mixed surfaces is lower than on a road bike, so the ride-time estimate stays accurate.
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