Commuting - El Commuto de San Jose

Well, I finally got around to taking some shots of my commute. I've been enjoying the pictures others have posted and thought I'd post some of my commute, though my commute isn't as scenic as those I've seen here.

I have been on vacation for two weeks and used a trip today for a lunch engagement close to work as an excuse to take the shots. I was in my daughter's car and took the shots on the fly -- I hope they turn out OK.

Also, to provide perspective, I've added maps highlighting the general route I take.

So, with that, let the show begin.

What follows is a map of my overall summer route. <<EDIT -- deleted>> I vary the route somewhat day to day but it's about 19 miles from my home in south San Jose to my work in north San Jose. There's not much leeway in north-south routes, and such a route (north/south) will always involve a trip through the heart of San Jose. Today I took the better of the routes, though it's slightly longer than a more direct route.

Oh well, that didn't work all that well ... I'll re-do the maps.

In the meantime, a pic of the main road leading out of my neighborhood. This is about mile #3 through some businesses in south San Jose.

This part of my commute has a pretty stubborn hill ... just enough to get the heart beating pretty good. On the way home, especially in the heat, these hills are worse!!

Top of the hill, with San Jose appearing in the distance. On the downhill I typically reach 35-40 MPH which is kind of fun. In the morning this can be pretty chilly.

Top of the hill, with San Jose appearing in the distance. On the downhill I typically reach 35-40 MPH, which is kind of fun. In the morning this can be pretty chilly.

Sorry for the double post ... I'm struggling with this !!

This shot is of my trip along Senter Road which is a busy road that cuts through mostly a residential area.

This area to the right, with the red-colored curb, is typical of the landmines along my commute. On my morning commute traffic will be very heavy through here and to the right, right after the curb, would be 3-4 big trucks. The bottom line is that this is a tight spot.

This is the 'T' that ends Senter. I make a left here. This marks the end of the residential area and the entry into San Jose proper.

Here I make a right, onto a 'singlet' -- a one-way road that cut through SJ neighborhoods, usually about 3-4 lanes wide. This road runs through SJ and contains about 20 traffic lights before ending at a 'T' we'll see in a subsequent post.

The right turn lane here can be truly hairy on a crowded morning ride. (It doesn't look so bad at this time of day.)

The 'T' at the end of the singlet. To get to this point I'll have navigated through about 20 lights!!! At this point I'm a little more than halfway to my work ... about 10 miles so far.

This is the hairy 'light-industrial' area of San Jose. These railroad tracks are indicative of the area. These things are brutal because of (a) the depth of the ruts surrounding the rails and (b) the angle of the RR tracks, making them quite a hazard.

Another bad sign !!!

For the locals, I'm about to pass under 880, very near the junction of 101-880.

After surviving the preceding areas, I venture in to the northern side of San Jose, with its endless low-slung buildings. Lots of traffic along here but at least the road surfaces improve.

This pic is representative of this area.

Getting close now. To the right (at River Oaks and First Street) is found one of the very few remaining orchards in the area.

Last main road of the commute ... Tasman. That building you see is one of the 455,675,324,676 buildings Cisco Systems owns and maintains in this area. Again, don't let the light traffic fool you ... it's busy at this time.

The tracks to the left are for the seldom used SJ Light Rail system.

OK ... made it. 19 miles later, from extreme southern San Jose to northern San Jose.

Not the prettiest of commutes, for sure, but things could be worse. First, I have to seek hills (plenty of hills in the Bay Area, but the valley itself flat as can be). Second, the weather is great and conducive for year round commuting.

Hope you enjoyed the pix.

The lanes look pretty wide, and there are often two lanes in each direction; the pavement looks fairly smooth, too. I'm sure you're right about things being rather hectic during rush hour, but it looks like a good route!

Like I said, I can't complain about the geography and can never gripe about the weather, but I have no pix of the nastier bits of road ... because I couldn't take them for fear of traffic and peds!!!

Overall, I only wish there was more to look at along my commute -- especially after seeing some of the route pix posted earlier.

Starting Monday I'll be beginning to take the "winter route" more often, which goes through nicer neighborhoods in San Jose and Santa Clara, starting from my girls' high school in SJ. Maybe some day I'll take those shots and post them.

I used to live off of Lick Mill near where it met Tasman (5 years ago for a year) so I know the area around your destination well. I still often travel to the Bay Area (avg at least 3 times a month) but now I'm mainly in the Mtn. View area a bit further north. At least all that construction for the light rail seems to be finished in the Sunnyvale, Santa Clara and northern San Jose area but of course streets are torn up on a regular basis as people keep building new buildings and laying new fibre... well... maybe not so much anymore.

I tried commuting when I lived in the Bay Area. My offices were off Arques in Sunnyvale and we later moved to a building off of Caspian Ct. near the smelly landfill and at the edge of Moffett Field. At the time I was living in Santa Clara, commuting to the Arques offices meant cycling on either Montague/San Tomas, Great America Parkway or Lawrence Expressway... none of which were very easy streets to ride. After my offices moved to Caspian, I would have had to deal with the construction hell on Tasman that was being performed for installation of the light-rail. It didn't much matter anyways since I was on my way to moving up to Seattle by that time.

Hail to another San Jose commuter! :D :beer:

Was it you that I met in downtown a month ago and told me you/he were going down to Blossom Hill? Maybe not ...

Hey, Chi, it might have been me ... not sure. Actually, I've run into quite a few SJ commuters recently. More than in any time in my 6+ years of grinding gears. Is there a trend under way?

khuon, for quite some time I used San Tomas and still use Montague on my winter route. Both are just fine to me b/c (a) generally they have a nice shoulder (except for immediately north of El Camino) and (b) you go as fast as the cars!! The hairiest part is the interchange at 101. Lawrence and, to a lesser extent, Great America can be pains. I avoid Lawrence whenever I can. I can imagine that construction hell would have made your commute tough.

Are you doing the commuting there up there in the great PNW?

Originally posted by Andy Dreisch
Are you doing the commuting there up there in the great PNW?

Yes and no. I could commute but since I work out of my home and my office is about 10 feet down the hall from my bedroom, my wife might get a bit mad with me riding my bike to work. :D

I do however do after-work rides because I just need to get out. I've tried doing morning rides and keep telling myself it would be good for me but I can't seem to get motivated to ride in the mornings unless I don't have to or plan on working that day.

I also do a lot of travel back and forth to the Bay Area and I always stay at the same hotel in Palo Alto. My offices are in Mtn. View and I have considered buying a bike to keep at the office so I can commute on those days when I'm down there. The hotel (Cardinal) is very bike-friendly. They even have a dedicated bike storage room that was once a coat-room. The main elevator is also a freight elevator so it would be easy to the bike up to the room too.

Reminds me of the old days when I used to commute from home (tully & mcglaughlin) to work (Monteray Highway near first street) and other work spots...

I do miss the bay area on occasion.

Andy,

Thanks for the pix.

What time of day do you cruise thru? On days that I commute, I generally am coming down Tasman toward Rio Robles somewhere between 0745 - 0800. After Rio Robles, I turn right on First, left on River Oaks, and right on Zanker. For the moment, I'm at Zanker & Montague.

Steve

Originally posted by Andy Dreisch
khuon, for quite some time I used San Tomas and still use Montague on my winter route. Both are just fine to me b/c (a) generally they have a nice shoulder (except for immediately north of El Camino) and (b) you go as fast as the cars!! The hairiest part is the interchange at 101.

My biggest problem on Montague was actually trying to turn left to go down Lick Mill on my trip home. First I'd have to scoot across four lanes of very high-speed traffic to enter the left-turn lane and then I'll invariably get the moron who has no lane discipline either trying to cut into the turn lane without looking or overhanging the lane from one side or the other leaving me no room. And yes, the 101 interchange was always a bit scary. Once off Montague and onto Scott/Arques however, things were much better. Great America Parkway/Bowers was actually easier (only had to make a right to get onto Tasman and then another right to Lick Mill) to deal with than Montague/San Tomas but the 101 crossover was still kind of annoying. Lawrence I just couldn't deal with.

SteveE, I go pretty much the opposite way as you but about the same time. Look for a big geek on a big green bike with a hideously bright yellow jacket ... that'd be me.

khuon, I feel your pain (about Montague/Lick Mill). I wait on shoulder for the light to turn, then cross the traffic to turn left. This is the only place I ever do this ... it's way too dangerous to cross, in my view. True, too, the 101/Montague interchange is hairy. Tasman gets very narrow, as does First Street, where the infamous Light Rail eats up valuable lane space.

Sorry for late reply ... I've been buried

Andy,

I'll keep an eye out for you. I haven't commuted at all this week. I plan to restart the bike commute again next week. My costume varies on a daily basis but I'm usually riding a gold-colored Lemond Poprad w/red panniers.

BTW, Andy, on your commute home do you turn left from First St. at River Oaks? I have a hard time with the sensor at the left-hand turn lane. If I don't see anyone in the lane (or approaching it), I will go through the light and hit the pedestrian crosswalk button.

Steve

SteveE, no, I don't bother w/ the left turn as I make faster time going straight down First. I have 20 miles to cover and traffic lights mean a lot. I'll do everything I can to avoid them. The difference between "good" and "bad" traffic light days can be 10-15 mins.