Internet users can now view their old college haunts, or scout the route of a potential scenic jog, with the introduction of Google's Street View maps service across 11 Canadian cities.
The Internet behemoth launched the free service in Canada on Wednesday. With it, users can see 360-degree images of mapped areas, including Canadian landmarks such as Quebec City's Chateau Frontenac or Parliament Hill.
The new type of maps are available for Banff, Calgary, Halifax, Kitchener-Waterloo, Montreal, Ottawa, Quebec City, Squamish, Toronto, Vancouver and Whistler. Users can access them by using , clicking on the orange figure above the zoom control, and dropping it on the map.
Google launched the program in five U.S. cities in 2007. Since then it's expanded into 14 countries, most of them in Europe and south-east Asia.
Drivers collect the images using high-resolution cameras and equipment that matches the images to their location using a GPS system. The company blurs faces and license plates prior to making them accessible online. And the images are patched together, creating a panoramic view.
According to the Google Maps website, it can take several months to map out a city, depending on the weather. The company said it drove 49,400 kilometres digitizing the 11 Canadian cities.
Not all of the images are flattering, however. In Toronto, at least one of the city's parks is shown piled high with black plastic bags -- the photographs were taken during the recent city-workers' strike.
Still, the technology is being touted as a potential tourist draw, particularly in the lead-up to the approaching Olympic Games.
With the promotional benefits in mind, several Canadian organizations, from Montreal to Vancouver, partnered with Google to bring the service to Canada.
Gregor Robertson, the mayor of Vancouver, said in a statement that he was "thrilled that the world can now look at our city online." Peggy Mooney, executive director of Heritage Toronto, another of the program's partners, said that it "makes Toronto's history more accessible to everyone."
Although Google blurs out faces and licence plates, it said that anyone concerned about privacy issues from the images can report it to the company, which will then review whether to have it removed. In addition, Google said it has only taken images of public roads.
