mjr
Comfy armchair to one person & a plank to the next
- Location
- mostly Norfolk, sometimes Somerset
Agreed. Hence, "Mostly, ..."
Commuter race
- Thread starter confusedcyclist
- Start date
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BigMeatball
Senior Member
It's a slightly flawed experiment in that the "train" option, isn't the train. It's walking + train. There is almost 30 minutes of walking involved.
Therefore a hybrid option of cycle / train / cycle would probably be as fast as (if not faster than) a pure cycle depending on the timing with the train.
The cycle timing is consistent with the Google estimate for cycling, so the cyclist shouldn't necessarily be bathed in sweat. A faster / racier cyclist could probably shave many minutes off the time. That said, the commute time for the cyclist should really also include the time taken to wash / change, as the other travelers will walk into the office ready to start work immediately, whilst the cyclist has to lock up the bike and get changed / showered as appropriate.
That said, the distance isn't particularly long (about 6 miles) and the route fairly flat.
Therefore a hybrid option of cycle / train / cycle would probably be as fast as (if not faster than) a pure cycle depending on the timing with the train.
The cycle timing is consistent with the Google estimate for cycling, so the cyclist shouldn't necessarily be bathed in sweat. A faster / racier cyclist could probably shave many minutes off the time. That said, the commute time for the cyclist should really also include the time taken to wash / change, as the other travelers will walk into the office ready to start work immediately, whilst the cyclist has to lock up the bike and get changed / showered as appropriate.
That said, the distance isn't particularly long (about 6 miles) and the route fairly flat.
BigMeatball
Senior Member
Reminds me of a job I had in the past; this guy (not my colleague, but working in the same open plan office) used to arrive to his desk at 8:45ish, in his cycling outfit, logging into his computer and "clocking in" into the intranet flexi time system and then disappearing just to come back well after 9:30 all clean and showered in office clothes
Disagree on this point - I used to commute much further and had a shower when I reached the office - given that I would have had a shower regardless I don't see this as being needed to be taken into account. Otherwise you are needing to add in the time for a shower/bath to all the other modes of transportation and that way lies madness.
@si_c You don't correlate or extrapolate anomalies.
No one I know of showers when they reach the office unless they have been running or cycling. This therefore suggests that those people who shower when they reach work but are not runners / cyclists are the exception rather than the rule. For the purposes of representative statistics therefore those people are anomalous.
Extrapolating the transport test for the "usual" commuter suggests that the cyclist is the only one of the 4 groups tested that would routinely require a shower and / or clothes change, and therefore this should form part of his or her journey time. I don't have a terribly arduous cycle commute but I do change my clothes which requires a journey to the shower / changing facility. My colleagues who travel on the tube just walk to their desk.
It's disingenuous to suggest that cycling is the quickest way to get to work, if you can't actually start work for another 15 minutes. What the test shows is that there isn't that much to choose between the methods, with the exception of the Bus which is terribly slow. Cycling is the best in terms of health outcomes, but by a departure to desk measure probably only saves a few minutes over the train or car.
No one I know of showers when they reach the office unless they have been running or cycling. This therefore suggests that those people who shower when they reach work but are not runners / cyclists are the exception rather than the rule. For the purposes of representative statistics therefore those people are anomalous.
Extrapolating the transport test for the "usual" commuter suggests that the cyclist is the only one of the 4 groups tested that would routinely require a shower and / or clothes change, and therefore this should form part of his or her journey time. I don't have a terribly arduous cycle commute but I do change my clothes which requires a journey to the shower / changing facility. My colleagues who travel on the tube just walk to their desk.
It's disingenuous to suggest that cycling is the quickest way to get to work, if you can't actually start work for another 15 minutes. What the test shows is that there isn't that much to choose between the methods, with the exception of the Bus which is terribly slow. Cycling is the best in terms of health outcomes, but by a departure to desk measure probably only saves a few minutes over the train or car.
That makes no sense. Nobody would have a shower beforehand to then have a shower at work. Those who do shower at work simply time shift it - you're getting ready at the office instead of at home - your total time from getting up would remain the same.
OP
OP
confusedcyclist
Veteran
Bearing in mind cycling times are independt of traffic volcumes, even if on any given day if a car and bicycle commute took equal amounts of time, I would still set off later on my bicycle meaning more valuable time in bed or supping coffee;
1. I would otherwise shower before I leave anyway, (does that mean the commute starts when I shower at home and drive?)
2. Unless I showered at work when taking the car, and thus maybe setting off 10-15 minutes earlier to be at my desk at 7.30, when driving I still have to shower at home, meaning I'm setting off 10-15 later in the car, but in reality this means a longer commute for me (the traffic actually builds up the later I set off.)
@si_c beat me to it!
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BigMeatball
Senior Member
So shall we just say that, based on the articles/links provided, going from a certain point A to a certain point B could be quicker by bike rather than car/bus/train.
But can we take those results and conclude that cycling is the best/quickest way to commute to work? Well, nope!
But can we take those results and conclude that cycling is the best/quickest way to commute to work? Well, nope!
I think in most urban scenarios then it's likely that cycling is competitive, the moment you have extra-urban commutes the car is likely to be quicker. That being said cycling is likely to be the most consistent in terms of duration of commute regardless of route.So shall we just say that, based on the articles/links provided, going from a certain point A to a certain point B could be quicker by bike rather than car/bus/train.
But can we take those results and conclude that cycling is the best/quickest way to commute to work? Well, nope!
BigMeatball
Senior Member
Also let's not forget the quickest, most environmental friendly and overall best type of commute ever: walking from bed to your home office when you can work from home. Can't beat that
OP
OP
confusedcyclist
Veteran
Not heart friendly though! Gotta get the ticker pumping for 2 hours a day. Also, other major downside, you've got pay pay to power and to heat and light the house when you might not otherwise be in it. If you don't commute by bike, then you're gonna need to spend more time elsewhere in your week keeping active. Gym membership?Also let's not forget the quickest, most environmental friendly and overall best type of commute ever: walking from bed to your home office when you can work from home. Can't beat that
Arguably communal office space is more environmentally friendly, depending on the building stock. Sorry, I know I'm pedantic, and strictly speaking we're just talking about the commute here
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mjr
Comfy armchair to one person & a plank to the next
- Location
- mostly Norfolk, sometimes Somerset
It's an artificial contest, agreed, but that doesn't only benefit the cyclist. Presumably a real person going to work by car would have to find a parking space and lock up their car and walk in from wherever that is, which also isn't mentioned in the article. Then you get the already-mentioned fact that not all cyclists ride full sweaty tilt in lycra, so it's not a given that they have to change and shower.
The comment about hybrid options is fair enough, but how many permutations do you want? I sometimes travel by car+bike when it's too far for bike alone but there seems little point driving into a city centre.
I work from home sometimes and I think a bit of sunshine and exercise often beats walking across the house.Also let's not forget the quickest, most environmental friendly and overall best type of commute ever: walking from bed to your home office when you can work from home. Can't beat that
Moodyman
Legendary Member
Reminds me of a job I had in the past; this guy (not my colleague, but working in the same open plan office) used to arrive to his desk at 8:45ish, in his cycling outfit, logging into his computer and "clocking in" into the intranet flexi time system and then disappearing just to come back well after 9:30 all clean and showered in office clothes
When you're saving the world with each pedal stroke, you're allowed small privileges.
Wobblers
Euthermic
- Location
- Minkowski Space
Have you ever been on the Tube at rush hour on a hot summer's morning? Stuffed into a hot metal box with lots of other hot sweaty passengers for a good half hour or more. Public transport isn't the cool non-stinky option. Come to think of it, many workplaces don't have AC - the last place I worked at didn't, and it was an oven in the summer. It wasn't the ride to work in the morning that was the hot and sweaty bit! You can take it easy on the way in - it is after all going to be less effort than going flat out!
