Originally Posted by Isaiahc72

Check your local bike shop would be the first advice I'll give you. The type of bike you should get would probably be a hybrid or possible a road bike. Your bike shop should be able to recommend one to you or you could go on Craigslist and find some good bikes. Top brands to look for include but are not limited to Trek, Specialized, Giant, Santa Cruz, Cannondale, and Raleigh. After that, make sure to invest about $50 in a good U-lock for the bike and possibly a rear rack and some fenders. You'll also want to buy a good set of lights for the bike so that you can be seen in the dark. You can either carry a backpack or have panniers or some sort of bags then mounted to your rear rack with all the tools needed for basic maintenance. I usually carry a spare tube, wrench, frame pump, chain tool, and a spare chain link.

This is my setup. I live in the Ozarks which is known for being hilly and I get around perfectly on this.