Cycling Promotion Fund - Commuting Tips

Commuting Tips

Cycling is a great means of door to door transport

Riding to work benefits the individual, the business, the environment and all road users. More and more people are redisovering the convenience of commuting to work, shops, school or university by bicycle. Cycling offers a great alternative to the car, especially for short trips or for longer trips combined with a bus or a train.

Commuting by bike is a great way to maintain a healthy lifestyle, safe money , deal with stress and many instances safe time as well. The average speed of a bicycle is between 15km to 20km/hr which means it only takes around 30 minutes to ride 10km which is most likely faster than traveling by car in peak hour traffic.

Watch below a short film showing the commute of a bike rider and a motorist from the same starting point to the same workplace. Guess who got there quicker?

Follow the Boy Scouts - Be Prepared

Your bike
To ride to work you don't need an expensive bicycle but it needs to be roadworthy and ideally include a rack to carry your gear, mirrors to monitor the traffic, and good lights if you ride at night or low visability.

Some other gear
Wearing a correct fitting helmet is the law and makes good sense. Gloves protect your hands, keep your fingers warm and reduce jarring. Don't forget a good lock to protect your bike from being stolen. A water bottle is also a good idea, particularly for longer trips and for hot days.

What to wear
If you ride a short distance or if you like to take it easy on the bike, your regular clothes will be fine. If you want to work up a sweat, or for longer journey's you may want to wear cycling knicks and a cycling jersey to increase comfort. They also dry easy so you have dry gear to ride home.

Plan your route
Before heading off it is a good idea to plan your route by finding roads that have less traffic, have bike lanes or sealed shoulders, or off road paths to get to your destination. Sometimes an alternative route is a bit longer but will be more enjoyable and safer.

Talk to other staff at your workplace who cycle to work and ask them for tips on great routes to get to your workplace. Many road authorities or other Government programs such as travel smart provide cycling maps which help you to plan your route. A City Rider Guide with tips on riding in traffic, at night and in wet weather can be dowloaded here.

Tips for riding to work

Start cycling one or two days a week when the weather is good and then ride more regularly once your confidence and fitness improves and you become more familiar with your route.
Try to ride the route beforehand to check out the journey and get an estimate of the time it will take you to ride.
Riding in traffic requires you to be altert at all times.
Be confident when cycling on the road and ride out from the kerb to avoid debris in the gutter and to be more visable for motorists.
Watch for people in parked cars who might open a door in your path of travel.
Cycle at your own pace, cycling to work should be enjoyable.
Riding two abreast no more than 1.5 metres apart is legal and can improve your safety and visability.

Get support from your workplace
There is evidence that people who ride to work have less time off sick and are more productive. An increasing number of workplaces encourage staff to ride to work and provide high quality end of trip facilities (parking, shower, hair dryers) and other incentives. Why not encourage your employer to consider offering incentives for staff to ride to work such as allowances such a milage for cycling, membership of cycling organisation, subsidies for bikes and accessories, and subsidies for cycling events participation.

Click below to links for publications on the benefits of riding to work programs for employers developed by;

TravelSmart: How to set up a successful bikefleet - a Toolkit

This toolkit has been prepared by the Bicycle Federation of Australia for the Department of the Environment and Water Resources . The purpose of this Toolkit is to assist organisations that may be considering the implementation of a bike fleet. The Toolkit can help them do so effectively and efficiently.

It can also be used by organisations that have decided to implement a bike fleet, or by individuals who are trying to convince management of the benefits of a fleet.

Ride to Work Day
Maybe you want to join the National Ride to Work Day which will be held on Wednesday 17 October 2007.

Click here for more information on how to become involved.

For more tips on riding to work follow the links below

Last Updated ( Thursday, 28 August 2008 )