Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with bicycle and Commuting

Is it safer to do a 5 mile commute on city streets on a bicycle or a motorcycle?

realpseudonym — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 01:45:08 -0800

Is it safer to do a 5 mile commute on busy city streets on a bicycle or a motorcycle? Let's say we have a 5 mile commute along fairly busy 4 lane city streets. Cars are parked on the curbs on both sides of the streets. Some of the streets are very commercial with cars coming in and out of driveways. There are city buses.

Assume that I am a perfect driver, and that accidents only happen because somebody doesn't see me or sees me and misjudges how close they are to me.

Am I safer riding a motorcycle with full safety gear (going up to 35 mph) or riding a bicycle with only a bicycle helmet (up to 15 mph)?

My first thought was that the bicycle is obviously safer because of the lower speeds involved. On the other hand, I thought the motorcycle might be safer because you move at the same speed as traffic; whereas on the bike, angry drivers will constantly be trying to pass you.

I need general advice about bicycle commuting and specific recommendations for Seattle.

GPF — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 14:11:27 -0800

I need general advice about bicycle commuting and specific recommendations for Seattle: where to live for commute to UW, bike shop recommendations, must have equipment, neighborhoods to avoid, good routes and trails, and the like. I'm planning a move to Seattle. Lots of good threads on the green about Seattle info and bicycling info. The Seattle department of transportation maps and guides seem fantastic -- any personal experience you could add to using them would be much appreciated.

I'm considering using a bicycle as my main commuting vehicle to the University of Washington. Obviously, closer is better but closer means higher rents and more undergrads -- right? In searching for places to live, I'm trying to gauge how far from UDub I can get and have a tolerable commute. I'm a pretty good judge of my fitness and stamina for it, but I don't have any idea which neighborhoods make for a convenient ride. As in, I'd prefer an hour long ride on an easy trail to a twenty minute ride on a hilly five-lane road. Are there any definitive architectural encumbrances (e.g. bad bridges, freeway crossings, etc.)?

Bonus for family friendly parks nearby and cheap rents. Double bonus for specific apartment or landlord recommendations.

I'd also love some recommendations for bike shops - especially ones that trade in used gear and cater to the commuter.

How/where can I get a Dutch-style city bike in NYC without breaking the bank?

zvs — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 18:15:25 -0800

How/where can I get a Dutch-style city bike in NYC without breaking the bank? I've been riding around a beat-up old Panasonic road bike for awhile (it's a 1981 model that I bought used, and has turned out to be something of a lemon), and I've sank so much money into repairing it that I don't see the point of keeping it anymore.

I'm an occasional commuter (Brooklyn to downtown, ~5 miles, including a bridge), and a pretty experienced rider (fairly fast, traffic weaving) but not a bike nerd or great at maintenance. 99% of this bike's usage will be on-street.

I saw these on Wikipedia and fell in love (my work pants are always getting torn up in the chain, drum brakes are probably better for the seemingly always-wet roads)... can I find a bike after the Dutch model in NYC? Without dropping a grand? Or is it time to call eBay?

Heavy biker seeks bike for heavy biking

Slap*Happy — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 19:17:47 -0800

What sort of bicycle should a big, heavy guy buy for a short, hilly commute? I'm 6'2", 330+lbs (yet pretty active and outdoorsy) and I take the train into the city every day. Currently, I get a ride to and from the station, but as the weather gets warmer, I'd like to bike the distance to and from the station. (I don't need the bike in the city.)

I'm used to biking everywhere in flat, well-paved places (Florida and New Orleans), but it's been a few years, and this is New England - there are a series of steep hills going to and coming from, and the roads are terrible. The commute itself is only a few miles, but they're pretty rough compared to my previous biking experience.

I got around OK on a 3 speed beach cruiser, but I don't think that's going to cut it here... and I beat the tar out of my cruisers just with normal use: constantly warping wheels, occasionally snapping chains, breaking pedals, bending handlebars, stems and forks. I don't think a road bike is going to be tough enough, and besides, my body isn't currently configured for the "crouch" position.

Any suggestions for a commuter or "hybrid" bike that's comfortable to ride, good on hills, and nigh-indestructable? (Under $500 would be nice, too. Used is OK.)

As heavy as I am, would a suspension or "shock absorber" seat post be pointless? (Did I mention the local roads are really, really bad?)

Disc brakes for a commuting bike?

Captain Rayford Steele, Tribulation Force — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 07:56:39 -0800

What kind of disc brakes and brake levers (if necessary) should I get for my new commuting bike? I'm going to be building a new commuting bike using a Soma Fabrications Double Cross DC frameset. I've never had a bike with disc brakes before, so could use some advice.

What disc brakes should I look at? Think good quality but not wildly expensive. I already have regular wire-pull-type brake levers but I'm not sure that they can be used with discs, so if you have lever recommendations that'd be helpful too.

I'd also appreciate any thoughts on wired versus hydraulic disc brakes... a few years ago, when I was paying more attention to the market, that was the major distinction between cheaper and more expensive discs, though I'm not sure how things have changed in the interim.

Please can I have a new bike?

greytape — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 06:10:12 -0800

Help me buy a commuter bike in London. This weekend I want to buy a bike to commute to work on. My route is from Brixton in South London into Central London, so it's a faily flat three miles each way in heavy traffic. Any general tips would be appreciated, but specifically I'm looking for shopping guidance, and advice on how much I need to spend.

There are already AskMe questions about buying a commuter bike, but they seem to be focused on people who are willing to pay more than me. I'm looking to spend between £100-£400 ($200-$800), and I'm curious to know what the advantages of spending more are.

I have a shower and a locker at work, so I can afford to get fairly sweaty on the way, but I'm not a terribly confident cyclist (at least not in London traffic).

So how much should I spend, what sort of bike should I get and what are the important things to look out for?

Is a folding bicycle right for a train commute in Chicago?

crios — Sun, 15 Jun 2008 16:46:50 -0800

This is actually a two part question. First, can anybody recommend a folding bicycle? I'm going to need to travel from a train to my work and it's about 2 miles. Would you recommend one of these bicycles for this kind of commute? How do they hold up in the rain and when it gets cold? Is there anything I can do about water flying up from the front and rear wheels? 2nd, does anybody know if you can buy a monthly Metra pass that will allow you to transfer between two Metra lines? Here is my situation. I recently took a job in the western suburbs of Chicago and I live in the northern tip of Chicago. I would need to take the Union Pacific Northern line downtown, switch to Union Station and then take the BNSF route out to the western suburbs. Then from there I would still have to trek 2 miles to my work from the station. My original idea was to buy an old clunker bicycle and leave it at the station to ride back and forth. It would sit there through rain and snow and meteor storms and all that. Now I'm wondering if I should invest in a folding bicycle. I know basically nothing about these bicyles. Does anybody have any recommendations? How easy are they to fold and unfold? How compact are they? Would people hate me on the Metra trains if I got on with one? How does it handle the wet (as well as some snow, I might be willing to ride it through light snow)? How is maintenance? Is there anything I can do about water flying up from the front and rear wheels so that I can keep my nice work clothes from getting all spattered?

As a second part to my question... does anybody know if you can buy monthly passes that will allow you to transfer from one line to another? I'm going to have to transfer from the Union Pacific North to the BNSF line. I can't find anything about this on the Metra site and if I try to buy a monthly pass online I can ONLY buy for one line. Will I have to buy two monthly passes each month?

Hey, that's my bike?

ontic — Mon, 14 Aug 2006 09:39:29 -0800

I want to start bicycle commuting to work. It's about 6 miles each way. I have no idea what kind of bike I need. I have no experience with bikes in general. I want to be comfortable and, if possible, not look like a dork. I guess I need help with the very basics of choosing and outfitting a bike. Question balloons further out of control inside. I have no intention of ever riding long distances or trails. The road conditions are pretty good and the route I've chosen is fairly flat: paved roads, mostly state maintained with a few potholes here and there. They're country roads, so very little traffic until I get into town (small town, not much traffic there either). My work requires me to dress somewhat nicely (slacks/jeans and a button-up shirt), and bring books back and forth. No real place to shower, but I can change and don't sweat too awfully much.

A brief bit of research seems to suggest there is something called a "racing" bike and a "touring" bike, but then the discussion seems to turn to technical things. I've also seen some webpages and former AskMe's about "comfort" bikes, which sounds very promising, including bikes that let you sit up-right, which sounds really promising. But what are the trade-offs for sitting up-right in terms of ergonomics, speed, etc? I've read some things about getting a bicycle "fitted" at a bike shop. Do I need this? Will they do it for any kind of bike? Will any bike shop be willing to do it for a bike I don't buy from there?

Also, what else do I need other than the bike? A helmet, I suppose. Any special kind? Do I need a rear-view mirror?

Vital stats: I'm shorter, not terribly light guy, yet (but I'm hoping the commute will help with this). The first few times riding in will probably be a little challenging for me, even given the flat surfaces. And I have always had bikes that certainly weren't very comfortable for me to ride, so I didn't ride them.

Biking to work in the city

leotrotsky — Thu, 03 Aug 2006 12:46:53 -0800

How dangerous is riding a bicycle to work in a major city relative to driving or taking public transit?

Hub-motor drive electric bicycles?

loquacious — Mon, 05 Dec 2005 01:40:13 -0800

Do you have any first or second hand electric bicycle experiences, particularly with the new hub drive retrofit kits? I'm sick of waiting for buses - but I'm entirely uninterested in "giving up" and buying a big, bulky, wasteful car. I've got a meager 18 mile commute, round trip in a town that has something like 500 days of sunshine a year - it's even sunny here in Phoenix on the days it rains in Monsoon season. My shifts are generally long enough that I can get a full charge back into a battery.

I'm looking at these particular models: 600 watt brushed motor and 400 watt brushless motor, both front wheel hub-motor designs. This seems to be a pretty good price.

I'm also interested in the chain-gear driven "LashOut" electric bike, but the bike they mount it on sucks greatly. (I had a chance to ride one on the streets recently. The motor/gear combo has some serious pickup and oompf, but the bike is a piece of crap.) They apparently don't have a proper "LashOut" add-on kit, yet. Only the old Currie "ElectroMotiveDrive" model, which looks hinky and is apparently rather inefficient, and the precursor to the current "LashOut" design.

Does anyone have any first or second hand knowledge about the reliability, speed, cold-start power and durability of these new, imported hub-motor-drive models linked to above?

Long, anecdotal disclaimer: Yeah, I can ride that 9 miles, easily. The bike I have probably has 20,000-40,000 miles on it, and the one I had for 8 years before that probably had twice that. I love biking and cranking, but I get to work all sweaty and gross, and there's no showering options, and I deal with staff, faculty and students at a helpdesk all day long. I get really sweaty. I'm a large, hairy mammal with well a well functioning cooling system. I'm also looking to extend my bike-travelling range. I was recently in a rather hardcore but broad-spectrum bike shop looking at commuter/mountain bike style hybrid bikes, and when I asked if they had any electrics the guy got all snooty on me. "Bikes are meant to be pedaled!", the guy said. "Yeah, I pedal mine a lot. I have a 10 mile commute, and I'd get to work all sweaty. Plus it gets to be like a gazillion degrees here in the summer." "Well, I bike 20 miles to work every day! Even when it's a hundred and twenty!", he said in a superior tone. *blink* "Uh, yeah, but you work in a bike shop. I have to wear a shirt and frickin' tie and deal with corporate doofusii all day. I really want an electric bike". As a further example of this anti-powered bike bias, just before I went into this store I met the nice fellow who had the LashOut bike that I tried on the streets. Some yuppie yelled some sort of bike epithet at us as he cranked by in his spandex and $3,000 Klien carbon graphite full suspension mountain bike. We stood there and talked for a while and the guy rode by and yelled something at us again, then proceeded to go rack up his bike on his frickin' Lexus SUV and drive off. Grr. Damn your SUV-drivin' yuppie hide, I want an electric commuting bike - not a 5 pound mountain bike that's the price of a small car I only ride on weekends on the street.

advice for a budding bike commuter

dicaxpuella — Tue, 13 Apr 2004 16:43:31 -0800

Need advice on bike commuting (more inside)... I finally live somewhere where its feasible to commute by bike (relatively short distance, good roads). I have a good bike, but I'm sort of clueless what's important for a safe, fun commute. What's the important equipment/gear to have? Any special considerations for traffic, or biking home at night (I often work late)?