Work Commute: Bike vs Bus

Jamis Explorer that I use to commute,
but not usually in these clothes
and I swap the basket with grocery bag
panniers for better maneuverability

My primary modes of getting to work without a car are riding my bike or the bus, so I thought I would compare the two looking at various factors: time, flexibility, cost, multitasking, exercise, weather, cargo, route, and effort. Is there an important factor I left out that I should consider?

As you will see, there is no clear winner with each having their share of advantages and disadvantages. It's almost a draw most days, but other circumstances usually make one more attractive on any given day. If I lived closer to work, and I was not training for a marathon (or 3) the bike would probably win every time.

Time (draw)

Both take roughly the same amount of time, about 1.5 hours, to arrive to work from when I leave my apartment. This is the total time including walking to/from bus stop, waiting for the bus to arrive, or waiting at lights/intersections when biking. I have to allow time to shower when I get to work if I bike, but I don't necessarily see that as added travel time since I have to shower before I leave when I take the bus.

Flexibility (+1 bike)

When riding the bus, I am restricted to a fixed time schedule and speed -- the bus only comes every 30 minutes and stops frequently. Biking to work is more flexible and I can potential make up time by biking faster if I'm running late. If I am running late for the bus and I miss it, even by a few minutes, I automatically add 30 minutes to my commute.

Cost (+1 bike)

It is $2 per trip, one way, to ride the bus or $50 a month if I buy a bus pass. Biking is free, although there is the occasional maintenance cost like replacing tubes, etc. I lost my bus pass a few days after buying it, so Jason and I have been sharing his further reducing our cost. This has worked for the past few weeks because we've been biking and taking the bus on different days due to our workout schedules. On days when we both ride, I pay cash and he uses the bus pass. If our schedules remain the same, we may continue doing this and just alternate who buys the pass each month. The pass is only cost-effective because we are not biking as often as we'd like due to training for the other sports, but it is also more convenient than having exact change every time we need to take the bus.

Multitasking (+1 bus)

I can do other things while I ride the bus, such as read a book/email/news, play games on my iPhone, knit (when I learn) or listen to music/news. Other than exercising while I commute, I can't multitask while I bike (except maybe listening to music/news/book, but riding while wearing headphones is illegal). Biking does give me time to think, and I suppose I could use my phone or other recording device to record notes.

Exercise (+1 bike)

If I take the bus, I walk a total of 2.5 miles (less than 1 hour) to/from bus stop. When I bike, it is 29 miles roundtrip or 2-2.5 hours of exercise a day. Bike is a bit more strenuous than walking, although I try to ride at a somewhat leisurely pace so I am not too exhausted to work and it doesn't affect my running workouts. Sometimes I walk/ride a little less or a little extra depending on which office I go to or if I make a detour to the store on the way home, but the difference is usually 1-2 miles at most.

Cargo (draw)

When I bike to work, I need to bring a change of clothes, bike repair kit (tube, tools, pump), extra water, and extra food. Sometimes I plan ahead and bring things to work the day prior to biking, but that doesn't always happen. I have a grocery pannier on my bike where I keep all this stuff (I need a 2nd to better balance my bike), and 2 water bottle cages on my bike. I also have a rear rack and basket (which I usually remove) if I need to carry more stuff. Carrying more stuff affects my balance and maneuverability on the bike, specially in the front basket, but it's not too bad.

When I ride the bus, I still carry a tote bag full of stuff. I need to bring lunch, and sometimes breakfast if I am running late, and never leave home without my Kleen Kanteen water bottle. I bring headphones and mp3 player to keep me entertained. I sometimes carry extra clothes or food so I don't have to when I bike the next day. If it's going to rain, I may carry an umbrella or poncho. It is actually harder to carry more when I take the bus because I have to walk 1-2 miles with the stuff, whereas on the bike I just roll.

Weather (+1 bus)

If it is raining, I only have to deal with it for a short while while walking to the bus stop and I can use an umbrella/poncho. Riding in the rain requires a lot more gear and is just not very pleasant unless it is a light drizzle. Heat is another factor, and as long as I stay hydrated is not too awful on the bike. Since the humidity is a bit insane, I usually wear workout clothes to walk to the bus then change when I get to work.

Route (+1 bike)

We are really fortunate that our 15 mile bike ride to work is mostly on trails. We spend about 6 miles total on roads the entire ride. Riding on the Econ Trail is gorgeous and I always see at least one bunny and lots of other fauna. The bus roue is a direct shot along Colonial Dr with a detour to VCC. It stops a lot, so that is why it takes longer than driving, but the stops are less frequent or quicker depending on the time of day.

Effort (+1 bus)

Obviously, it takes more effort to spend over an hour pedaling to work than seating on a bus, even if I ride slow, so some days the decision not to bike to work is based on my level of exhaustion or body aches. However, there are other additional considerations that take effort when commuting to work regardless of method.

I need to bring a change of clothes because it's not feasible to bike 15 miles in my work clothes in the Florida heat without being a sweaty, smelly mess when I get to work. I need to bring supplies to take a shower (towels, toiletries). I  keep a set of these at work, but do have to monitor them to replace them when they start running low. I need to bring more food because I need more calories on days I bike. I need additional gear to bike than to walk to the bus, i.e. helmet, gloves, bike tools, water bottles, etc. So yeah, a lot to consider. I try to pack my bag the night before, but that doesn't always happen, so that means getting up earlier to do it in the morning.

Commuting by the bus takes some effort too. I still need to get up on time and time everything just right so that I don't miss the bus or stand out there for too long (I always do because the bus is always late). Because of the increasing humidity, I've started wearing different clothes to walk to the bus and then change at work. This does not require a shower, but I do need to pack clothes. I need to make sure my iPhone and/or mp3 player are charged to entertain myself on the bus.

With either method, the effort required to prepare before leaving is minimized if I just plan ahead and pack the night before. But that cuts into my seating around on the couch surfing the web or blogging time =P

Final Score: bike 4; bus 3

So there you have it. It's pretty close. Given all the facts, which do you think you would you choose more often?

Atypical Afternoon Bike Commute

Wow, two posts in one day! I actually have several more in the queue (spoilers: bike camping recap; commuting by bike vs bus; the joy of running), but I just have to post about my very bizarre bike ride home this afternoon.

About a half hour before I left work, it was pouring sheets of rain and the radar showed a huge angry red blob on top of us. I almost got a ride home with Amy, but the rain stopped by the time it was time to go so I headed home on the bike. The rain was moving towards downtown, staying mostly in front of me, which made for a cooler (almost cold) ride. It started to drizzle a bit, but it was quite enjoyable. I counted 6 bunnies while riding in Blanchard Park, then things got weird. 

As I rode under the Econ Trail overpass, some guy sprints (on foot) ahead of me across the wooden bridge.  I figured he's just some random runner. When I get to the end of the bridge, there he is with his pants down exposing and pleasuring himself at me. I turned and shook my head and sped away. I was dumbfounded and a little uneasy, but then I saw 3 more bunnies and put the incident behind me ... or so I thought.

I crossed Harrell Rd and saw him again behind a tree waiting and looking for me, I presume. WTF! As soon as I saw him, I sped up. He whistled and shouted at me when he spotted me; I flicked him off and shouted some colorful words and sped off. Now I was really freaked out. Was this guy following me? How the hell did he even get in front of me on the trail? The more I go over this in my head, the more I question it because it just seems impossible, but it looked like the same guy in the same clothes.

I felt uneasy for the rest of the ride, and kept looking in my rearview mirror expecting him to pop out of thin air at any moment. I stopped at the mexican store to call Jason (he had rode ahead of me) but he did not answer. The rain picked up a bit, and I considered hanging out at the store until it passed, but I just wanted to get home. I didn't see the guy anywhere, and there are more people around for the rest of the ride so I pressed on. I felt a little cold, so I put on my cycling jacket. The rest of the ride was fairly uneventful. This was certainly a first!

My Morning Bike Commute

It was a gorgeous morning for biking to work, and I had so much fun. The photo on the right is my scenery as I bike along the Econ Trail in Blanchard Park. Near here is were I often see bunnies, but I only spotted four today and they were scattered throughout the park.

I set out to take it easy and enjoy myself this morning, so I left a little earlier so I would not feel rushed, yet I still managed to average 12 mph. I know this is not that fast, but I really have to work at going much faster on my comfort bike with panniers. I wore my tri shorts with my running skirt over them, and that immediately added a bit of fun to the ride. I was cheerful and courteous, saying "Good Morning" to everyone I passed on the trail, and most returned the greeting. This made a world of difference.

The photo to the left is a lady I see on the trail on almost every ride to work. She has a 2-wheel recumbent bike with a seat on it and a canopy to keep her cool and shaded from the sun. Brilliant!

I made a few adjustments to my route based on Keri's suggestions at Monday's class, and it went great. Riding on Colonial, even for one block, still had my heart pounding and threatening to bust out of my chest, but the moron who honked at me may have had more to do with that.

I encountered very little traffic or resistance on Colonial. While I still have to wait at the light to turn left on Maguire, the nice thing is that almost everyone passes me on the left at the intersection itself and then I have the lane to myself most of the way. It gives me plenty of time to command the lane and by the time new cars enter the road they are far enough behind me to change lanes long before they reach me.

I am still not comfortable riding on Semoran or Hanging Moss Road, so I rode the sidewalk most of the way there. I know I shouldn't and the road is safer, but I take it nice and slow and I am very alert of all driveways. Maybe after I finish the Cycling Savvy course I'll give it a try again :) I did use the road and wait for the green light to turn right onto Forsyth. Cars patiently waited behind me for a chance to pass me and I was at Partridge Ln before I knew it. Rode down that road, instead of the zig zagging trail that jumps from one side of the road to the other, and that was awesome.

After that, is all trail riding on Econ through Blanchard Park until Alafaya, where I hop on the road at Science drive to make the left onto Alafaya and ride the bike lane to Research Parkway. This intersection is a bit tricky because there are always a ton of cars waiting to turn right. When the light turned green, I let them all pass me and turn first, then I turned just before the light turned red. This basically gave me the lane all to myself for a bit, and a lot less cars turn onto that road and see me with enough time to change lanes to pass me.

It is amazing how much more enjoyable riding your bike can be with a little patience and the right mindset. I wish my commute was shorter so I could rock the Cycle Chic. I need to get more casual cycling shoes, though this bike doesn't even have clips or cages so I can wear anything I want. I am just not sure how comfortable riding in sandals or other girly shoes would be for 15 miles.

One Green Thing: Bike to Work Day

Lately, with the exception of the February when I blogged every day, my blog has turned into one race report after another. As a way to blog more regularly, I'm going to begin posting some weekly features on my blog. The first you saw on Monday, and I will try to participate in Jillian's Brain Exchange every week as long as I have something to contribute to the weekly topic.

Jason gave me the idea for the 2nd weekly feature: One Green Thing. Every week, I will feature one thing that I am doing to help the environment. It may be something new I tried that week, or something I've been doing for a while that I want to bring to your attention with tips and resources on how you can do it too if you choose. I'll post every Wednesday until I run out of things. You may think this has nothing to do with running or biking or swimming, but this blog is about my lifestyle change, not just fitness :) And you will find that the two do intersect plenty.

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So today's topic is Bike to Work Day, which took place last Friday on March 26. I should have posted about it then, but I'm a slacker =P May is national bike month, but because it's hot in Florida in May, we celebrate it in March and the last Friday is Bike to Work Day. Jason and I have been biking to work semi-regularly (read "when the weather is nice and are not training for a marathon =P) for 2 years now. We organize Bike to Work at the office each year with free bagels for all cyclists to raise awareness and get others to try it too. This year we went a step further and hosted a bike clinic the previous week to further raise awareness about cycling safety and how to change a flat tire.

There were 4 of us who rode to work together on Friday. The forecast called for rain earlier in the week, but the rain cleared out just in time to yield a beautiful morning for riding, and we spotted 3 bunnies along our route.

The ride home was a bit more eventful. We had 20+ mph headwinds the entire way, so we took it slow and enjoyed the alligator sightseeing safari. We spotted four gators on the Econ Trail, including this huge one. You can see more photos from bike to work day and the bike clinic on Flickr.

Bike commuting, wether to work or to the market, is a great way to go green because it is a win-win for all: you get some exercise while enjoying some fresh air and saving money on gas, and you help ease congestion and reduce pollution by having one less car on the road. I also find that I am much more productive at work in the mornings when I bike commute. It's probably all those endorphins from the exercise.

When we lived closer to UCF, we biked to work 3-4 times a week. Now our ride is 14.5 miles each way, so we only ride 1-2 days a week. I would love to ride more often, but time is the biggest limiting factor since it takes twice as long to ride our bikes than to drive there. This would not be such a problem since I get up by 6 am to exercise most days anyway (I can actually sleep in a tad on days when we bike to work), but if I spend all my time biking to and from work, when will I run and swim? We're going to try biking every day one week and see how it goes, but I don't think I'll have the time or energy to sustain that in the long run unless I gave up running -- yeah, that's NOT happening =P

Resources

• Biking Directions on Google Maps - fast and easy way to plan a safe biking route -- it even tries to avoids hills!
• Bike Commuting 101 - Are you new to bike commuting? Have a look through our Commuting 101 articles. Tons of info for the beginner to commute by bike safely and quickly.
• Bicycling Street Smarts - A compact tutorial on how to ride a bicycle in mixed traffic.
• Commute Orlando - This site is dedicated to Orlando Metro Area cyclists who are currently using their bikes for transportation, or want to.
• The Commute — Possibly the Safest Bicycle Trip You Can Make - Great article on the Commute Orlando blog

So what are you waiting for? Give bike commuting a try! If you already do, tell us about your experience in the comments, including tips, tricks, and tools you use to make your commute easier, safer and more enjoyable.

Commuting vs Training Rides

The reason we started biking to work was to save money/gas and use the car less, while getting some exercise in the process. In the excitement of getting new bikes and training for a tri/du, we kinda forgot that, and we were treating each ride as a training session. This left us exhausted and I often only rode to work once a week. We're going to start commuting to work at an easy pace so that I can do it more often, since it defeats the purpose when Jason rides and I drive. The more I do this, the faster this easy pace will be with less effort.

Today was my first ride with the cadence sensor. Jason read that a good target is 70-90. I found it fairly easy to maintain that, since I usually try to ride in the highest gear that feels comfortable without mashing the pedals. I stayed in the lowest front gear the entire ride since I was taking it easy, but I am curious what kind of cadence I can maintain when I am using higher gears and going fast. I may try that out on the ride home or tomorrow morning if I get up early enough for a short brick workout.

Stats (avg/max):

• distance: 14.45 miles
• time: 1:12:46
• pace: 11.9 / 18.5 mph 
• heart rate: 116 bpm / 151 bpm 
• cadence: 76 rpm / 105 rpm
• wild life count: 3 bunnies, 1 snake, 2 birds, 1 dog =)

ETA - Ride Home:

  

I intended to take it even easier on the ride home, but I just couldn't help myself. I find that I can ride faster when I am by myself because it helps pass the time. I averaged ~13 mph for the first 4-5 miles, then eased up a bit until the last 5. The weather was surprisingly cool and breezy, but not overly windy--like it had just rained or it was about it. I think that helped a ton. I felt great when I got home and considered going for a run, but I was hungry and wanted to save something for tomorrow. I think I need to buy new gloves because the area below my thumb on the palm of my hand is starting to blister/chafe.

Stats (avg/max):

• distance: 14.4 miles
• time: 01:10:05
• pace: 12.3 / 21.3 mph 
• heart rate: 122 / 152 bpm 
• cadence: 76 / 102 rpm
• wild life count: 1 squirrel, 1 bunny, and about a dozen birds (another way I help pass the time ;)

32 Mile Cycling Day

I biked 32 miles yesterday: roundtrip to work at PII and to campus for a meeting. That's the most I've ever ridden in one day, and I'm still exhausted.

The morning ride to work was very cold and windy. We all (as well as anyone who heard about our trip) thought were insane, but we're not quitters! It really wasn't that bad once we got moving. It just sucked when we stopped for water and had to get started again. That's when it felt really cold.

I made it to work in less than 1.5 hours: moving time was 1:13:32 for 14:.3 miles (11.7 mph). When I got there, I was fully awake and ready to start the day. I did a few yoga stretches, then hit the showers. I had an incredibly productive morning, then I biked to campus for a meeting. I was amazed that my pace for that 1.7-mile ride was slower than the 14+ I had biked that morning, but I was carrying a huge bag on my back and my legs felt tired and cold.

Around 3 or 4 pm, we started to fade and get tired. While I did a test run with Jaosn on Saturday to see how the ride would feel, I only did it one way. (I rode the bus home as Jason tried to beat me home on the bike. I got off 3 miles from the apartment and we met up 1 mile later.) So I was afraid that my legs would be too tired and I'd be too exhausted after a full day's work to keep up. Surprisingly, we had a better pace going at the beginning of the ride because it seemed to be mostly downhill, but we started to fade a little towards the end and our average pace was a tad slower, but not by much: moving time home was 1:22:16 for 15.9 miles (11.6 mph). The weather was much nicer on the ride home. It was cool, but not hot.

After we got home, we promptly walked to dinner because we were starving! I called it a night early to give my body enough time to rest since I intended to get up early to run before work. That sure didn't happen! My knee right knee, the one that's been giving me trouble running, felt a little tight and ached a bit after the bike ride. I woke to most of the rest of my body also a bit stiff, so I opted to do some yoga instead. That felt really good and I may do it again tomorrow morning. I have the Disney 5K race with mom on Saturday, so I'm letting my legs rest until then.

Even though we're still feeling the effects of yesterday's bike ride, we plan to bike to work once a week. I think we just need an adjustment period. Our bodies and minds will get used to it after a few weeks and we won't feel so tired. We probably also need to eat more, and better, to make up for it. Eventually, we plan to work up to twice a week or more! I'm excited to embark in this new adventure in fitness. I'll probably buy a new bike road soon that is better suited for this kind of millage and duathlons :)

In other news, I caved and registered for the 10-week Galloway Maintenance Session with Track Shack. I know I'll keep up with the long runs better if I have a group, and I'll feel bad not going after spending all that money. This will ensure I keep my bace and I am ready to start training in June for a fall marathon.

I'm still choosing which will be my first marathon, so feel free to post your suggestions in the comments. I would prefer to run my first marathon in Florida so I do not have the added stress of traveling or running in unfamiliar weather/terrain (i.e. hills =P)