Commute in or commute out, whats more dangerous?

[upsidedown]

It's taken me a while to realise it but mornings are worse because of me !
I'm usually a bit more ready to react in the mornings, and probably look a bit more aggressive in riding style. I'm sure this provokes worse driving.
On the way home when i'm knackered i ride much more smoothly and a bit slower. I think this invites less trouble.

 

[Bugner]

Evening is the worst for me as well.

My commute is just over 12 miles into Central London. I leave home between 6.15-6.30 which means I just beat the rush of cars who are trying to get into town when they can still use bus lanes.

Journey home is always a nightmare, have some large junctions around the Oval to navigate plus there are masses of pedestrians in the evening, hardly any peds at 6.30 in the morning

 

[goo_mason]

Evening is the worst.

Not many people are up and driving at 6am, so it's reasonably quiet (which is NOT to say that there are no crazy idiots on the road at that time - just fewer of them).

 

[Bodhbh]

Evening is busier, but the mornings I'm in a hurry and take the fastest route in, which is also the busiest. On the way back, there's a choice of more relaxed routes and I am awake, which I'm not sure is always the case when leaving the house in the morning.

 

[BrumJim]

.... but the mornings I'm in a hurry and take the fastest route in, which is also the busiest. On the way back, there's a choice of more relaxed routes ....

??
In the morning I am heading to work, so I'm not in a hurry. In the evening I am heading home to the warm arms of a wonderful wife. So I am in a hurry. Only the prevailing Sou'Westerlies are trying to blow me back to work again. Usually.

 

[Lazy-Commuter]

I don't think it's much different, but then my commutes are generally pretty OK anyway. In the mornings, I get most indicents (if I get them) in the last mile or so before work, one roundabout in particular. Whereas, in the evenings it tends to be the local chavs as described below.

In the mornings, the first estate I cross is empty 'cos everyone's decamped to the station to get a train to London in order to pay for their HUGE mortgages. And the denizens of the second estate are still sleeping off the Special Brew from the night before. [/Stereotype Mode]

In the evenings, the first estate (now the second estate I cross, of course) is still quiet as everybody is still up town*. But the second estate can be populated with young blokes wandering around as if they had a roll of carpet under each arm, a can of special brew and one of those short dogs that's wider than they are tall and that's so heavily muscled they can barely move their front legs. So I sometimes prefer days when the weather's not so good .. keeps them indoors watching telly.

* But I was later out of work one night and so had the misfortune to get mixed up with the Alpha Males in their cars trying to set a new PB on the two mile trip home from the station. That was - ahem - "interesting".

 

[potsy]

With working shifts I tend not to ride in rush hour morning or evening,unfortunately looks like I'll be on the 'day' shift shortly so means riding at 7am and 4.30pm at least I'll gain a bit of experience of heavyish traffic.

 

[D-Rider]

The trend seems to be that going home is worst and when I'm in Edinburgh I might agree.

In Aberdeen, however, going into work is definitely worse than going home. The difference in the morning is that I'm going more slowly since it's pretty much uphill all the way. For large parts of the trip home I'm very much part of the traffic stream.

My Edinburgh commute is roughly flatish (sort of).... in places.

 

[Bodhbh]

??
In the morning I am heading to work, so I'm not in a hurry. In the evening I am heading home to the warm arms of a wonderful wife. So I am in a hurry. Only the prevailing Sou'Westerlies are trying to blow me back to work again. Usually.

Well, takes allsorts. Not that I'm racing to get in for love of working, but I do like to lie in bed until the last minute and leave getting propped up with coffee and butties to the work canteen. I'm single and no reason to rush back home so for the most part might as well enjoy the ride back and take a detour.

 

[karlos_the_jackal]

I'm a lie in person in the morning also, so tend to be more competitive in racing in in the morning. The evening rides do tend to shatter me more, unfortunately hills come alive with the sound of pain in the last 3 miles.

 

[summerdays]

My commuting times are dictated by the school run accompanying my child to the cycle shed. I would say therefore the morning run is worst as first I have all the school run mums then I have to deal with the tail end of the rush hour. In the evening I've only got the school run rather than full on rush hour.

 

[garrilla]

I would say the morning is more dangerous with people half asleep but still in a rush. However, I have been avoiding going home in peak traffic for ages because its crazy then as well. But then again I think that light traffic is equally as dangerous as heavy traffic.

I don't actually think cycling is dangerous though, overall.

 

[hackbike 666]

I didn't really want to comment on this but I got the impression the 5pm commutes the later in the week get more dodgy.

 

[GrasB]

05:30 v's 15:00 for start times, no prizes for guessing which is more problematic & dangerous.

 

[PBancroft]

??
In the morning I am heading to work, so I'm not in a hurry. In the evening I am heading home to the warm arms of a wonderful wife. So I am in a hurry. Only the prevailing Sou'Westerlies are trying to blow me back to work again. Usually.

Interesting psychological distinction there.

I tend to be the must-rush-to-get-to-work-on-time type, wrapped up with the must-rush-to-get-home-to-lovely-wife type as well.

Rest of the time I'm a sloth.