Commuting - Is your bike a car?

Is your bike a work-horse? Do you ride to work? The store? What?

If you ride your bike to get something done that you could also do by car, stand up and let it be known. It would be interesting to see how many do.

I ride to extend my useful lifespan. Does that count?

I ride to extend my useful lifespan. Does that count?
I edited my original post, Sam. Yes, it counts! But the question now reads: is your bike a car?

i ride all over the place, thats only because i cant afford a motorcycle and i dont drive a car, hahaha, im poor, bikes are a kids best friend huh

So when am I ging to get to meet you out at Stone Mountain LBM? I was there today pulling Samantha and it was lonely....I saw one other die hard biker but it was on my way out the gate.

Anyway, if you ever see a gold 4 door toyota tacoma with a camper shell and the big red specialized "S" on the back window I am there. I park in the walk up trail lot.

I am almost alway pulling my daughter.

Yeah, a car, only I don't have to empty it out every so often of empty soda cans, or coffee cups, or work papers, god that was the worse. Now? I drop it all in a pannier and haul it home where it goes on the pile of stuff I culled from my last car.

I've never said that, until tonight, my last car, my last car. I like the sound of it, I especially like the feel of it.

MY LAST CAR!

naisme, I knew you would qualify for this one. I think you ride your bike from the bedroom to the kitchen in the mornings ;)

My parents have offered to buy me a car in the attempt to get me from riding my bike. They are just way too scared that something "bad" might happen to me. My dad even cried one day, but I'm still riding... I do my shopping, go to work, visit my friends, and whatever else needs to be done. I don't even like public transportation anymore. The only reason why I took a bus recently was because my nephews (4 and 6 years old and pretty tall for their age) were visiting, and my sister-in-law said their bikes wouldn't fit in her car, or else we would have been riding the streets of Chicago too- instead, I had to jump buses with them. It still sucked, though.

Koffee

I started riding my bike so much I found that I had to drive my car at least once a week or it wouldnt start!

I decided that I wasn't driving my car enough that I could justify getting a minivan because I kept renting vans/trucks from time to time but didn't want to own one due to fuel costs...

Now the van is utilized for bike trips out of the state and for those times I need to carry something I just cant do efficiently on a bicycle.

Bike to work, to the mall, to all bike rides, to county meetings and to dinner... Not 100% but still enough that I still have to watch how long I let the van sit...

I logged 10,000 miles on the bike last year. 3000 on the van!

Yeap..That is me.. I use a bike for errands whenever possible. My philosopy, I do not turn over the motor, unless absolutely necessary......Did half my Chiristmas shopping on the bike. Filled my panniers. ..........I am one to bad mouth this auto obsessive culture, whenever possible.. I have two T shirts and one jersey to give testimony to my ever blooming hatred of the auto congested highways.The congested-ness, is what sets me off...
Ever just watch the behavior of your fellow motorists. The games they play.Such a race to make it to the next red light.
Didn't always be that way. I love my little Red jetta. Just driving is not fun any longer. .....I skirt about town on the bike all the time...People who know me tell me they see me everywhere, on the bike... ..If I have to go to the post office, I go to the P.O. 6 miles away, instead of the Post Office one mile away. On bike of course.. I am often found stinking up the super markets upon returning from a ride.. Is that not what bikes do..To Get you about. Do not just have to be for fun..However, it makes errands more fun..

My parents have offered to buy me a car in the attempt to get me from riding my bike. They are just way too scared that something "bad" might happen to me. My dad even cried one day, but I'm still riding... I do my shopping, go to work, visit my friends, and whatever else needs to be done. I don't even like public transportation anymore. The only reason why I took a bus recently was because my nephews (4 and 6 years old and pretty tall for their age) were visiting, and my sister-in-law said their bikes wouldn't fit in her car, or else we would have been riding the streets of Chicago too- instead, I had to jump buses with them. It still sucked, though.

Koffee
Steve, decided to dump his car, when car rent was about 1/3 that of apartment rent...He kept it with friends in Grand Rapids and took the train up to G.R. to retrieve his car, should he need it..... He found the car was just too inconvenient..What was it good for..Can't park it, without a hour or so lead time to find an empty parking space.. It was good Steve got rid of it.. He lived on North Adams, couple blocks off the Lake.....He would walk to some nearby bar district..Dread to think what his life would have been like with all those DUI's....
ps..That was a pretty busy bar district..Lots of clubs..North Street or something like that...Was pretty fun..

No my bike is not a car, but the hallway closet is really a spaceship.
No, it's mostly my car, and my pals with trucks seeing that I bike all the time, and am not lazy- really don't mind helping out w\ a haul or a ride to the ferry or airport. 2 or more in a car I got no prob with, it's the lazy- one block to the corner shop people I get bugged by. I try to do anything within say 10-15 miles by bike if time will permit. ( oh weather, as well. Don't mind rain, HATE wind.)

I have never had a car, and see no reason to buy one in the near future. I use either bike or public transportation for shopping and other errands. On those rare occasions when I really need a car, I take a taxi or rental car. But my bike is my primary means of transportation.

--J

So when am I ging to get to meet you out at Stone Mountain LBM? I was there today pulling Samantha and it was lonely....I saw one other die hard biker but it was on my way out the gate.

Anyway, if you ever see a gold 4 door toyota tacoma with a camper shell and the big red specialized "S" on the back window I am there. I park in the walk up trail lot.

I am almost alway pulling my daughter.
Thanks, Sam, next time I head out there I'll look!

If you're pulling a passenger, that counts as using your bike as a car!

Unfortunately, I have been heading in the opposite direction the last year or so. With a 6 month old child biking has had to take a back seat. As the kid(s) grow, I imagine my utility cycling will vastly increase. I can't wait for the day where we can all ride to the store. (I am currently child-trailer shopping.)

Steele, The child trailer I use is the trek transport deluxe and it is great. The attachment setup stays connected to the bike and with the insertion of a pin and safety looop you are hooked up and ready to ride.

I may be able to get into the best riding shape ever due to puling the kiddie cart. I started Samantha in it at 7 months old.

I could justify getting a minivan because I kept renting vans/trucks from time to time but didn't want to own one due to fuel costs...
!

Let me get that straight, you're from the States and you think Fuel prices are high?
I've just done the sums and over her I pay roughly $6.00 for a gallon of fuel.

I ride the bike a lot!

www.belfastandbeyond.com

The bike is my primary transportation. The only time I drive, is when the family needs to get somewhere together. Sometimes when I drive the car, it feels wierd, like "this isn't my bike!" The third eye is in the wrong place, and you brake with your foot...Who designed these things anyway!?

Either way, I still fuel with food, but the car wants gas too. Bummer. :rolleyes:

Unfortunately, I have been heading in the opposite direction the last year or so. With a 6 month old child biking has had to take a back seat. As the kid(s) grow, I imagine my utility cycling will vastly increase. I can't wait for the day where we can all ride to the store. (I am currently child-trailer shopping.)
Steele, you don't have to be car-free to answer "yes," in fact, it doesn't matter if you only use the bike once a month for utility purposes. The point is, do you ever do it? I'm pretty sure you do, sometimes.

I think that's 12 of us so far that use a bicycle for utilitarian purposes. I'm sure there are a whole lot more (Mike and Raymond apparently haven't stumbled in here, yet.)

:D

Let me get that straight, you're from the States and you think Fuel prices are high?
I've just done the sums and over her I pay roughly $6.00 for a gallon of fuel.

I ride the bike a lot!

www.belfastandbeyond.com

Yep, when I was in the military and stationed in Italy the price of fuel was about 5 dollars per gallon if I bought it without my military discount rations.

We Americans don't have a clue about high fuel costs. If we did we would also be driving Fiat's ,Mini's, VW's Alfa's and Citroen's. Instead we drive the equivalent of the small school buses that the handicapped children ride.

I think that's 12 of us so far that use a bicycle for utilitarian purposes. I'm sure there are a whole lot more (Mike and Raymond apparantly haven't stumbled in here, yet.)

:D

You can add me to that list. I don't even own a car; therefore my bike has to be a car.

I have decided I have bad car Karma and may just stick to the bikes. Right now my bikees are my only form of transportation until I get around to sinking some money back into the Subaru

Apart from commuting nearly every day I often shop on the bike and run local errands. Especially in warmer and dryer weather I'll do all my grocery shopping by bike with a car trip every 2 weeks or so to stock up on canned goods. I just use my panniers as I don't own a trailer.

I became car free several years ago and now use the bicycle in conjunction with the Light Rail (Tram, Trolley). I consider the 1.2 billion dollar Light Rail as my car since it gets me to work and downtown for shopping at the mall. I also consider the New York City subway my secondary car since I would be insane to drive in Manhattan.

I'm lucky that I live in an area where billion dollar transit systems are at my disposal 24/7. I understand that many people hate public transportation but the waiting time for rail in my neighborhood is a mear 10 to 15 minutes. There are very few people on this forum who know what it's like to live in a large city with excellant rail transport. It truly liberates you from having to spend 10-20 percent of your income on personal auto transportation.

The bicycle is my secondary form of transportation. When used with the Light rail, I can travel all over town in minutes to locations that would require a lenghtly bus ride or a long walk. The bicycle gives me power that I had only when I owned a car for a fraction of the cost. I lived most of my adult life car dependant and thought this was the only way of life. It was only when the machine nearly bankrupted me, that I gave up this illusion for a simple life.

OH Yeah. I did go Christmas shopping by bicycle and the biggest load was a sewing machine!

My car is about 25 miles away being used by my mother since her car died. I'm thinking I will either sell her my car on the cheap and buy a touring bike or eventually get it back from her, sell it, and buy a touring bike.

Meantime i get everywhere on my bike.

I became car free several years ago and now use the bicycle in conjunction with the Light Rail (Tram, Trolley). I consider the 1.2 billion dollar Light Rail as my car since it gets me to work and downtown for shopping at the mall. I also consider the New York City subway my secondary car since I would be insane to drive in Manhattan.
...........

The bicycle is my secondary form of transportation. When used with the Light rail, I can travel all over town in minutes to locations that would require a lenghtly bus ride or a long walk. The bicycle gives me power that I had only when I owned a car for a fraction of the cost. I lived most of my adult life car dependant and thought this was the only way of life. It was only when the machine nearly bankrupted me, that I gave up this illusion for a simple life.

OH Yeah. I did go Christmas shopping by bicycle and the biggest load was a sewing machine!

I also am a big proponent of mass transit..It would make it so easy to be really mobile without a car, if they allowed bikes on trains.. Can you get your bike over to Manhattan easily or throughout the suburbs.?
We have buses here equipped with bike racks, but of late I have had problems with them being full. That will get you nowhere...
Here, The local commuter trains and with Amtrak service you are always guaranteed a spot for your bike..That is what I expect from public transit... That and bike lanes, it would be no problem then to not have a car...
Yes, my panniers were full of Christmas gifts..Really made me feel like Santa with me being Blixen... My Christmas tradition at least for half of my gifts..But a sewing machine? Sounds like a tactical problem?

I commute by bike regularly, and use a bike for small shopping trips. I admit that I usually do take the car to home depot or for major food shopping trips. Most of the time though, I start the car twice a month. It is always interesting how much berth I get when I ride with a used pooper-scooper lashed to the rack. The tools of my trade are the height of cool.

My bike is the original SUV. And wow, it get's infinity miles a gallon, and can go where no Ford Explorer can go.

Eighteen.

I have been using my InStep Turbo Elite trailer to haul my daughter to and from school and day camp I also commute by bike every day; use my car almost entirely on weekends.

Back when I was in graduate school, not only was my bike a car but my car was a bike. I used my bike for transportation, and my car for recreation/sport.

Paul

Same here Paul, in my Portland, OR grad school days, I cycled to school & then to work. We rarely drove the car except for family excursions on weekends & trips up to Seattle to visit friends. Good for me & good for the car. Now I try to run errands with a bike whenever possible but depends on which bike I'm riding. Sometimes the bike is an SUV then again sometimes its a Ferarri & not able to carry much cargo. Don

For the most part, it definitely is my car.

My world right now is pretty small - seven miles from home to the two places I need to be for professional reasons, but I do it five or six days a week.

Unfortunately, there are so few facilities to secure my bike that I really can't do any errands with it. I can't even make a light grocery run or go to a Walgreen's, for god's sake - there is NO place to lock up a bike. The commercial real estate design around here is totally out of sync with anything other than cars, and this is definitely a car-centric area (southwest Nashville, Tn.).

If I could do errands with it, I would, but then I'm afraid my light system would be vulnerable. Still, I commute all the time unless the rain freezes, and when I need to buy stuff I take the family minivan. Incidentally, I had to put a little gas in that the other day, and only then realized how long it's been since I had to pull into a Mapco and pay a large amount of cash for a small amount of gasoline.

I also am a big proponent of mass transit..It would make it so easy to be really mobile without a car, if they allowed bikes on trains.. Can you get your bike over to Manhattan easily or throughout the suburbs.?

Yes, my panniers were full of Christmas gifts..Really made me feel like Santa with me being Blixen... My Christmas tradition at least for half of my gifts..But a sewing machine? Sounds like a tactical problem?

The policy aboard most transit systems are that bikes are prohibited during rush hour but folding bikes are always allowed. I used to bring my folding bike with me on the Light Rail and New York City Transit without any problems. Today, I simply use a system of junk bikes that I keep on opposite sides of the journey so there is no need at all to lug a folder on trains anymore.

I bring my bikes aboard the Light Rail during weekends and non-rush hour as there's plenty of space to put a bicycle, wheel chair, shopping carriage and stroller all at the same time.

The sewing machine was in a box that I simply put on the rear rack attached with bungy chords. In all fairness, I parked the bike at the train station and took the Light Rail to the mall. The station is only several blocks from my house and just across the street from the mall. The box only rode on the back of my bike for about 8 city blocks in total. The Light Rail did most of the work.

Over the past tens years, many Light Rails have been started in states all accross the country. If you go to www.lightrailnow.org, they recently started a new line in Houston Texas which is a major motor city. You wouldn't believe the 10 year fight they had to put up to get the state to spend money on transit. The Light Rail is the transit system of the future and I'm lucky to have one in my backyard.

In the San Diego/Los Angeles rail corridor over the last 10 years full size commuter trains have been established. LA has commuter trains radiating out in maybe three directions and two light rail systems. When the Northridge earthquake closed down the freeway coming in from the Northwest the trains sure were worth their weight in gold. They were full and extra trains were put on as I recall.
These trains have plenty of room for bikes..Bus' not always the case. Criticism of trains in LA..Their budget really hurts bus' maintenance and buses carry far more passengers.
Believe I recall reading about 60,000 commuters use the commuter train stretching from San Diego to L.A. daily.

Well, I don't like the title of the thread.

My bike is definitely not a car, but it's a very useful vehicle that I use for most of my business and leasure: to go to work, to shop, to relax in the evening once the children are in bed, to go to chuch or to parks with the children. It's also used year round.

I generally do many less purely recreational rides when it rains hard, when there is too much loose snow or slush on the ground or when the temperature is under 0 to -5 C, and I even limit my trips to the most essential ones when the temperature is below -18 to -20 C. BTW, I wouldn't dare to take the car when it's that cold, unless I have to do more than 50 km.

Regards,

I would like to say that I'm not anti car. It just happens that I am able to adapt my life to not using the car except when required.

I actually love cars... Esp if I get the opportunity to ride them on a track. They are neat machines just like bicycles... However I've found that for riding around in town that many times the bicycle is more enjoyable than sitting in traffic in the car where the only thing I can really enjoy is the CD player.

Plus I save a lot of money on gas and a lot of wear and tear on a more expensive machine by using the bike when I can use the bike!

I would like to say that I am anti-car, even though I own one( or actually my wife owns two) . I gotta be anti-car because they are neighborhood busting pollution machines that happen to transport( mostly lazy) people here to there.

So I can't insult my sweet wire donkeys by calling them cars. I ride them mostly to shop and get to work. My kids are bike commuters of sorts in the summer. They commute to the icecream parlor as long as I have the money to indulge them.

It's a streatch, but can you count us as 3?

My kids are bike commuters of sorts in the summer. They commute to the icecream parlor as long as I have the money to indulge them.

It's a streatch, but can you count us as 3?
It was the sweet memories of riding a bike as a kid/teenager that helped lure me back on the bike as a 30-something adult. Count them in, especially since so many kids today think Nintendo is a "skill."

Is my bike a car -- well, let's see about that. A car costs around $AU10,000 per annum to run, a car gets extremely smelly both inside and out if you spend any length of time inside it in a Queensland summer, and is totally slow, ponderous and inefficient in dealing with the Gold Coast's notorious school holiday traffic. My bike has none of those problems.

IN addition, my bike allows me to see and experience things as I travel, it makes me fitter and stronger the more I use it, and probably covers more km per annum than most cars. Not to mention actually allowing me to enjoy it when it rains.

I would say no, my bike is not a car, and thank the lord for that, sir!

Not to get into a car war but the negborhood busting is due to your friendly government zoning laws dated back to the 1950s.

As for polution... That depends upon the type of car I guess. I would say for today I would agree however I've turned an eye toward electric car races and there is some promise on the horizon that this will trickle down fairly soon into the normal population.

The biggest problem is zoning. Get rid of the "group all like things together and put in LARGE roads to connect them" and you will see the car being used less to travel across town to pick up a bottle of milk or a long trip to work and to drop off the kids. Instead the store is at the end of your block and a small neghborhood school with multi-grades at the other end of the block... The car will then turn into a device used more for long distance travel.

I use my bike probably 5 0r 6 days a week, don't drive at all on weekdays (and often not at weekends)

If I don't commute by bike I use public transport. We both occasionally shop by bike ( but not "big shops").

In summer we cycle in to Edinburgh to buy books, have coffee etc.

It's not a substitute for a car, the few times I use it the car is a substitute for a bike.

I ride to work almost every day and use my bike on weekends to run most errands. I tool around in a Mango velomobile which has plenty of storage for carrying stuff. For larger loads, I ride a mountain bike with a Burley trailer in tow.

The biggest problem is zoning. Get rid of the "group all like things together and put in LARGE roads to connect them" and you will see the car being used less to travel across town to pick up a bottle of milk or a long trip to work and to drop off the kids. Instead the store is at the end of your block and a small neghborhood school with multi-grades at the other end of the block.

I hardlily agree that zoning has lead to The Car Culture as we know it, but that just got the ball rolling. Now people drive a block and a half to drop the kids off at school, then drive to the store, then drive to the mall. Work is often miles and miles away.

I know that there are many people that can't commute or shop by bike, because of their particular circumstances, but many can and are reinforcing the 50s zoning by choosing to live in suburbia and not making sure that work is a short distance away.

Driving is so engrained that most people would drive everywhere, even if their employment, shopping, schools, and home were closer together, but they would drive less, polute less, congest the roads less, and probably have more quality family time. Who knows, some people might even think about biking. Or walking. Wouldn't that be radical?

Work is often miles and miles away.


That's what I'm trying to conquer on my bike. If I can defeat this monster, by golly, I will, even if everyone else wants to be a conformist.

:)

I hate to admit this, bit I am back in school. I commuted 75 miles last week by bike. I put fenders (ick) on my SS along with Specialized Armadillo tires, and use my big ass Reload bag and this is now my "car" to get to school. I use my bike for many "car" specific activities - I have a BOB trailer when I need it. I still have a car (X2) but my miles are even between my bikes and 2 cars per year.

gave my car to my parents to do w/ as they wish and now all transporting is done by cycle. (except when i'm home and use my donated car)

cheers
kat

I've been car-free for 5 years now.

Instead I use my bicycle, my feet, or the public transportation system to get around.

Well, I don't like the title of the thread.

My bike is definitely not a car, but it's a very useful vehicle that I use for most of my business and leasure: to go to work, to shop, to relax in the evening once the children are in bed, to go to chuch or to parks with the children. It's also used year round.
Mgagnonlv,

I wouldn't have expected anything less of you. I stand corrected: the title of this thread really stinks.

:D

I think it's fair to say we all have a complicated relationship with cars. I sold mine over a year ago and have never been happier but that doesn't mean I haven't ridden in other people's cars in the last 16 months. Most of the time I ride with a driver because that's their way of getting around so I adapt to them. Can I survive without the car?-- easily. Without combustion engines?-- well, how would the food get to my (very close) grocery store?

What I'd like to see more of it people who are posting to this group. We all drive less (or not at all) compared to non-cyclists. If I had bike only riding paths (in Albuquerque there are quite a few good ones) I wouldn't hate cars so much. The truth of the matter is distracted, angry, mindnumbed motorists are dangerous to cyclists. Residential roads are adequate, nice drivers are quite welcome.

Oh, to answer the question... my bikes are my sole means of transportation. I may not be able to transport bulky luxuries but all the necessities are well handled.

Chuck