Commuting in the Atlanta suburbs - 2 months
Route: About 4 miles one way on a MUP along 4 lane parkway. Connect at a bus stop and ride about another mile to the office.
Road conditions / surfaces: Paved MUP, moderate number of neighborhood cross streets. It's pretty clean of debris, good for about 8mph avg.
Traffic:
Traffic is generally moving 30-40mph, some stalling as we approach the schools. They are generally well behaved since I'm up on the MUP and not competing for their road space. The latter half of my commute involves an intersection I don't feel safe navigating on a regular basis, so I ride the bus down that road.
Environment:Pleasant suburban
Hills:The ride in has an elevation gain of 150 ft and the return has about 300. I pay the toll on the ride home - hardest hill is about a 3-5% incline for about a mile right before I get home.
Frequency:
Fair weather rider - no fenders yet.
2 days/wk in winter (3 if I don't telework on Fridays), hoping for 2-3 days in warmer weather.
Departure time:About 7:30am to meet the bus at 8:10, later if I decide to ride that busier road
Bike: Diamondback Insight
Bike name:Ginger (its red)
Cargo:Topeak rack and basket with cargo net. I'm usually toting a purse, a lunch bag, and a stack of a fresh shirt and base layers.
Illumination (to see and be seen):I aim to be my own stage show, complete with flashy costume and jazz hands.
I have a headlight, tail light, and a reflective neon yellow vest. I wave and go for eye contact for any car I cross in front of and generally wave to thank them if they've acted cautiously around me.
Helmet / Mirror:I wouldn't feel safe traveling along the MUP without my Take-a-look mirror. I think it's a must for MUPs that have a fair amount of cross streets.
Destination:
Parking:Up the elevator and to my office. Our landlord is a medical doctor so he is pretty supportive.
Cleanup:No showers. Creative use of wet wipes and change clothes in the bathroom stall.
Amenities:Grocery store, 5 restaurants, and drug store in same complex, mall 1/2 mi down the street.
Alternative Transportation:
Drive