After some commuting tips for a newbie!

[Enlightenedwaistcoat]

No advice on the route however there is a large, recent thread in this section around rucksack/panniers. Id stick with a rucksack for now and see if you get into it as you may find its not for you or, that you love it and want to upgrade bike, gear etc at some point anyway.
Unless I missed it you don't say how far the commute is, short rides don't often require showers and full change etc however its good your place has these if wanted especially with warmer weather on the way.
Do the route on a day off with a rucksack full of your gear to test it out would be my best advice. Leave as much as you can at work if that's an option too in those lockers to minimise the load.
I've used a rucksack for years and recently switched to panniers only because I am making a conscious effort to leave the car at home more and shop and run errands with the bike more than I used to.

The route I'm planning on taking is about 14km and takes me about 35 mins on a road bike so imagine will take a bit longer on a hybrid with a load of gear on my back if I don't want to get too sweaty. Doing a test run sounds like a plan. I'm off in the week from next Tuesday so maybe I'll give it a go then. Would you say to leave at the time I'd usually leave, or to try it after the morning rush to get used to it without having to deal with the added stress of traffic? I suppose one of the bonuses is I can generally modify my hours to suit, so as long as the hours get worked its no issue.

 

[Scotchlovingcylist]

@Enlightenedwaistcoat Personally I'd do it any time of the day just to see how long it takes then add maybe 10 minutes to the commute to allow for any issues. I suppose it would depend however on how stressed that traffic makes you, im used to it and traffic doesn't really add much extra time or cause any issues for myself however appreciate your commute is probably a lot different to mine based on what I've picked up in the first few posts.
My advice is just go an do it and see, remember you have to get home too after so will be 24k round trip rather than the break of work in between.

 

[GeekDadZoid]

Traffic around the city centre at the moment is all over the place. A nightmare in some areas and nothing in others, so it might be worth giving it a try around the time you would normally.

You have to add the cycle traffic in too if your using Wilmslow / Oxford road too, that can make a difference, especially when the guy you just waited 1km to safely pass saunters through the red light and you are back behind him again, rinse and repeat.

I've noticed more glass than ever over the last 2 weeks around the city centre roads, seems to me that the sweepers have not been active, possibly redeployed gritting?

The giant commute thread on here is a great one to follow, not loads of conversation, but lots of story's of the little things that happen to us all. Some are learning points, some things to dispair at and others to laugh at.

 

[Enlightenedwaistcoat]

Traffic around the city centre at the moment is all over the place. A nightmare in some areas and nothing in others, so it might be worth giving it a try around the time you would normally.

You have to add the cycle traffic in too if your using Wilmslow / Oxford road too, that can make a difference, especially when the guy you just waited 1km to safely pass saunters through the red light and you are back behind him again, rinse and repeat.

I've noticed more glass than ever over the last 2 weeks around the city centre roads, seems to me that the sweepers have not been active, possibly redeployed gritting?

The giant commute thread on here is a great one to follow, not loads of conversation, but lots of story's of the little things that happen to us all. Some are learning points, some things to dispair at and others to laugh at.

Thanks. I feel you on the Oxford Road Lane - I often ride in the road due to issues with slow people who then ride thru red lights, or as I saw on Saturday - someone taking photos stood in the cycle lane feels a bit scary to get started but as most people here say - most commutes are pretty uneventful!

 

[biking_fox]

Couple of months on - just saw this thread. How ar eyou getting on?
I use the Floop and intermittently Ox road cycle lanes (usually take A34 Birchfield/Upper Brook) have had no troubles. I ride Marathon Plus for an extra Kg but reliable. I use a rucksack as I don't like the unbalanced single panier and don't have enough stuff for two.

 

[Enlightenedwaistcoat]

Haha a few days after I wrote the post I went for a job interview and got a new job, so I'm now in Birchwood 35km away. Still planning to give the commute a go sometime though because it's a lovely route, plus who can say no to extra time on the bike? Bonus is I now have a tiny laptop so much less to worry about.