Originally Posted by tjspiel

Another question worth asking (given that money is tight) is whether or not the benefits of having clipless pedals is going to be worth it for you.

I have and like them, but I don't think there's any significant difference as far as my commute time goes. In fact if I only used my bike for commuting I'm not sure I'd bother with them. I go back to platforms in the winter. Unfortunately, it's kind of hard to know whether or not you'll like clipless without using them for awhile.