I love my 1982 peugeot for commuting. Even though I own some very nice new bikes, I prefer to commute on the old bike. I turned it into a single speed and LOVE it. It hangs pretty much as fast as my Dura Ace equipped road bike.

There are real benefits of riding a faster older bike such as it not being such a big deal if it crashes or gets stolen. It is also less of a theft magnet.

I personally did not like the look of my old brake levers and bars so I completely re-did the front end of the bike, going with a new stem, bars, and cane creek levers. I think it looks great now.

So....you might consider giving your old road bike another chance. What exactly is unsafe about it?

That said, if you don't love the bike, you won't commute on it and that is what really matters.