I just took a look at Birmingham, AL CL and you seem to have a lot of bikes on the used market down there. I saw a few pretty nice looking bikes in the $250 range and down. For a one mile commute once you figure out the type of bike you might like and if you might end up using it more than just the commute pick one up on CL. There were a few $50 and down bikes that didn’t look so bad ether for a mile ride and one of them will let you know if you want to keep doing it. Traffic etc. and if you step up you can flip it for what you paid back on CL.