The core of the PBN is made up of several dozen major routes that link specific locations of commercial, residential or tourist importance.

Each of these routes is assigned a combination of letters and numbers.

The letters NW, NE, SW and SE indicate to a rider whether most of a route travels through the northwest, northeast, southwest or southeast corridor of the city.

You may have noticed the distinctive blue and white signage around the suburbs that provides users of the PBN with valuable information.

The top section of each sign indicates the route name (for example SE24), while the lower portion gives distances in kilometres to major points of interest.

This system allows a rider who has no map, and is unfamiliar with a particular area, to reach their destination simply by following the directions.

A recent initiative to supplement the standard PBN signage has seen route information painted directly onto path and road surfaces to increase visibility and help reduce the impact of vandalism.

Determining the best route for a bicycle journey is made much easier with a good map.

For the past 17 years, the Department for Planning and Infrastructure has produced a comprehensive series of maps that details the majority of cycling facilities across the metropolitan area.

These maps enable riders to plan their cycling trips to maximise enjoyment, convenience and safety.

The latest edition consists of five maps (drawn at a scale of 1:25000) that include useful information such as the location of shopping centres, post boxes, public toilets, picnic areas and service stations where riders can pump up their tyres.

Perth bike maps can be purchased from bike shops or the Bicycle Transportation Alliance office at 2 Delhi Street, West Perth, for a small fee. You can also view them on our Perth bike maps web page.

This not only allows cyclists to plan their route before they leave home, but cyclists with an internet-connected mobile telephone or blackberry can also view the latest versions of maps while out riding.

Bike maps are also currently in production for the cities of Mandurah and Albany, with other Western Australian regional centres to follow shortly.