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Bicycle Commuting: riding my commuter bike to work - factors to consider, commuter equipment, bike commute strategy

Bicycle Commuting

 

Bicycle Commuting involves a few other topics also addressed on this site:
Night bike riding, riding in the rain, and winter bike riding.

I like to ride my bike to work at the Pittsburgh airport, but it's difficult to find a good opportunity. If I drive to work it's 13 miles in +20 minutes, if I ride to work it's 18 miles and it takes 1+15. And, to complete my list of "why it's inconvenient" whining, I'm expected to wear a necktie etc. Whine whine yada yada yada, these are the same excuses everybody uses.

But I periodically pull a week of midnight shifts (when the tie is forgotten) so I can leave my house at 8:45 pm in order to arrive at 10:00 pm. After the "mid", I depart at 06:30 and return home at 07:45. In June/July, the sunset comes late, and the evening drive to work has at least some twilight to go by. So my commuting focuses on finding opportunities in May/June/July, and if I find any chances outside of that I'm ahead of the game.

For me, every commute is in some way a night-time commute. I've found a route that minimizes curving roads with bad sight lines, and avoids repeated climbing/descending (it does increase the distance from 13 miles in the car to 18 miles on the bike).

I carry a change of clothes in rear panniers. We don't have showers at work. The midnight shift is more relaxed and a bit more tolerant of eccentricity, so there's no real stigma about bike commuting. Riding to work for a midnight shift lets me show up quite awake, and riding home after the mid lets me sleep well on arrival.


don't be late

Commuting Route

This route is how I ride to work, from the Center Township Municipal Building to the PIT airport. It does not go to the passenger terminal; it leads to the hangar complex. Total distance is 18 miles, takes about 1+15.
 
Starting at the Center Municipal Building, turn right onto Center Grange, first right on Chapel.
Take Chapel all the way to Brodhead Road. Turn left onto Brodhead.

Take Brodhead through New Sheffield.
(Alternative Route: at Arby's, turn right onto Kane Road (blue). I've tried this and I don't prefer it-- limited sight lines, undulates, greater chance of getting run over.

At Five Points (McDonald's), turn right on 151, down the hill. At bottom of hill, traffic light, convenience store on right, take the left turn across from the furniture store, Gringo Clinton Road.

Gringo-Clinton road takes you west of 60, then back across 60. Turn right on Flaherty Run Road.

You'll be on Flauherty Run Road in Mcallister's Crossroads. Turn left on Moon-Clinton road, go beyond the golf range.

Take the new International Drive overpass across Route 60 and into the cargo complex.
Left of Cargo1, show airport ID to the guards and turn left onto the service road.

 




http://www.kenkifer.com/bikepages/commute/accessor.htm

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