Originally Posted by
Artkansas
Got a notification from a headhunter about a potential job. So as part of my due diligence, I was checking out what the ride would be like. It's a long one, the shortest length that google maps would give me was about 15 miles each way bicycle only. Taking the bus into downtown Little Rock from home knocks the riding down to about 7 miles each way. There's no good transit on the 2nd half.
But it's nice to be able to preview the ride. The times that google maps gave for the rides seemed rather pessimistic. So I was looking for hills and stuff. There was one crucial section of the 15 mile route that was marked as a bike path, but only about 200 feet long, and the only way direct through a neighborhood without a 10 block detour. So I looked and yes there was a path between two houses. Then I went to the other side of the block and the path seems to come out beside a firehouse, and I can see a car driving along the path. So, its a doable short cut.
That kind of information is wonderful. And I was able to check out the road surfaces and widths. It makes all the difference. One section of the 7 mile route seems to be so narrow that there isn't even a white line along the side. It's pretty amazing to be able to preview a ride this way.
I would seriously look at incorporating that bus especially if there are hills. Find out the situation in the bus if there is a room for a folder otherwise you might have to use two junk bikes. I would also look at the bus schedule and see if you can time the bus so that you arrive at the bus no later than 10 minutes before it arrives. This might cut down your overall commute to work.
I don't see how the return trip should take an hour longer if you are timing the bus. You might have to stay at the job a little longer to wait for a later bus but you can use this down time to read the newspaper, make calls etc. The free time you spend doing what you want is not part of your commute.