I had to drive around 1500km this past weekend in a rented mini-van. I don’t own a car, so that’s probably more distance than I’ve covered in a motor vehicle in the past 5 years.
Today, back home and on my way to work, there was rather torrential rain, but I was still so thankful to be back on the bike.
Because it is dry and warm and you get to sit down.
That also describes buses and trains, both of which I prefer to driving because I can do other stuff while getting where I need to go. In fact, the main reason I like bikes is because I can get exercise while going places, which saves time.
I hate sitting in cars because that means I’m not doing something productive, it’s just wasted time.
Right but for me it would add a lot of walking and about 1,5h of travel time daily. And with car I get to leave exactly when I want to and I have all my stuff in my car.
Same. If I take transit to work, it’s 2 hours each way vs 30 min by car. Cycling is similar, even with an ebike since I work ~25 miles away.
I drive because it’s faster. That doesn’t mean I like my car, it just means it’s the most reasonable way to get to work. At my last job, I bike commuted since the ride was only 30-45 min away (depending on wind), and I could take the bus if the weather sucked (esp in the winter when it was snowing).
My preference is still cycling/walking, then the train, then the bus, and then my car. I’ll drive if it’s the best option, but driving feels like a massive waste of time compared to exercising on my bicycle or doing other stuff while riding the train or bus.
I think in ideal conditions, I’d prefer not to drive. But a car right now just has just so many advantages to me and I don’t think public transit would work with my current line of work. Freedom of schedule and movements, time saving, carrying all my stuff, comfiness from familiarity and controllable ac, no other people… Downsides are having to actually drive, which is especially bad one when tired but also cost, though benzine isn’t as expensive as it is cracked out to be compared to public transport, but all the other expenses do pile on.
Right now for me, a personal car just can’t be beat. Well, there’s one thing that could beat it and that’s company car hah
If all three options were practical, which would be your preference? As in, if your work had all the amenities for cycling (bicycle storage, showers, etc), the bus stops conveniently close to your work, and there was sufficient parking, and each mode would get you there in a reasonable amount of time, which would you choose?
For example, here’s my previous commute:
The car is a little bit faster, but not dramatically so. If 30-40 min cycling is too much, change the thought experiment down 10 min for each option.
For me, my preferences are:
I don’t like driving, but I’ll do it if the benefits outweigh my preference.
The big issue with cycling for me is that I work outside and already do physically intensive work so outdoors and exercise aren’t something I’m keen for after I am done with work, even if everything else was perfect. If bus was a proper option then I could go for that for times I don’t have to carry around lots of stuff. Being able to sleep during commute would be nice.
Ah, makes sense. I work a desk job, so getting some exercise is really attractive, otherwise I need to make time elsewhere in my schedule.
If I worked a physical job, I also wouldn’t be interested in cycling to work. In fact, I don’t even really like riding bikes, I just prefer it to driving so I can get exercise at the same time.