Summary
When you are navigating with Cyclers, the route planner automatically avoids known road closures and impassable areas when generating your path. However, if you accidentally wander off course or encounter an unexpected real-world obstacle during your ride, two features are designed to help you adjust your route: automatic rerouting and Find detour.
While rerouting happens automatically when you go off track, finding a detour is a manual action you take to avoid a specific section ahead of you.
Key Differences at a Glance
Feature | How it works | When to use it | Requirements |
Rerouting | Automatic (can be disabled) | You took a wrong turn or missed a junction by mistake. | Stable internet connection & deviating reasonably from your route. |
Find Detour | Manual | You want to avoid the section ahead (e.g. construction, heavy traffic, events, or bad surface). | Stable internet connection & initiated via the in-app navigation menu. |
How each feature works
1. Automatic Rerouting
If you make a mistake, take a wrong turn, or decide to explore a side street, Cyclers will get you back on track automatically.
How it works: Once you deviate reasonably from your planned path, the app detects that you are off course and automatically calculates a new route to bring you back.
Smart reconnect: The routing engine does not simply generate a direct path to your final destination. Instead, it intelligently recalculates the best way to safely reconnect you to your original planned route — keeping your carefully designed ride intact.
Requirements & Settings: Automatic Rerouting is enabled by default and requires a stable internet connection. If you prefer to navigate strictly on your original route without automatic adjustments, you can easily disable this feature in your Profile settings.
2. Find Detour
Sometimes you are following the route perfectly, but you want to avoid the upcoming road section — whether it is physically blocked (construction, fallen trees, flooding), unexpectedly busy, or hosting a local event.
The trigger: This is a manual action. When you approach a section you wish to avoid, you initiate a detour directly from the navigation screen.
The action: You will be asked to select the reason for the detour (which also helps us improve our map data). The app will then actively recalculate the route around that section and offer you up to three alternative routes to choose from.
The benefit: A detour explicitly forces the planner to bypass an area that the map data might still consider open or rideable, giving you full control when real-world conditions change.
Requirements: Requires a stable internet connection.
How to use the Detour feature:
Swipe up from the bottom of the screen to open the navigation menu.
Choose Find detour.
Select the relevant reason for the detour (e.g. missing path, overgrown path, bad surface, heavy traffic, etc.).
Optionally, add your comment and attach a picture of the location.
Tap the Find detour button to submit the report and view your new route options.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Does the planner automatically avoid road closures?
Yes. If a road closure or block is reported in the map data, the planner will automatically avoid it and will not suggest routes through that area. You only need to use Find Detour if you encounter an unreported or unexpected obstacle on the road.
Does the planner immediately avoid a road closure that I report in the app?
No. While using Find detour immediately reroutes your current ride around the obstacle, global map updates take a little longer. Reported closures must first be reviewed, verified, and processed into our map database before the planner will automatically route future trips around them for all users.
Why isn't the app rerouting me automatically when I go off course?
First, ensure that Automatic Rerouting is switched on in your Profile settings. Second, check your mobile connection — the routing engine needs an active data connection to calculate new paths. Finally, minor GPS drifts close to the planned line will not trigger a recalculation until you have clearly moved away from the route.
Will automatic rerouting ruin my planned loop ride?
No. The rerouting algorithm is designed to intelligently reconnect you to your original path as smoothly as possible, preserving the overall structure and destination of your planned ride.
Can I use "Find detour" to report a permanently closed or unsuitable path?
Yes! Selecting a reason when you request a detour acts as a map report. If you want to submit more detail, a comment, or a photo of the obstruction, you can do so directly within the detour menu before confirming your new route.