Doohickie

I think northern and eastern cities with concentrated cores are more amenable to bike commuting. In Fort Worth, there is a vibrant downtown, but the two largest private employers, American Airlines and Lockheed Martin, are nowhere near it. American Airlines is out near DFW Airport (a good half hour drive northeast) and Lockheed is 20 minutes west of downtown. The city is largely based on the urban sprawl model of planning. pallen lives just south of downtown, and more people are moving back that way, but for quite a while the trend was to move out as far as you could get. In fact, most people still see sprawl = good. I need to fix up my house so I can sell it and move to pallen's neighborhood which is much more centrally located.

CptjohnC

I would say that the relative proportions of carrying items vary substantially depending on time of year (during winter I see a higher proportion of folks with Panniers, but I attribute this to winter commuters being 'hardcore'); where I am (more messenger bags once I'm in Downtown DC, more racks and panniers on the MUP heading into town) etc...

I did not count this morning, and I doubt I have the mental acuity to keep it all in my head, anyway. I would guess, though, that about 20-30% of riders are using racks/panniers, and the rest are using messenger bags or backpacks (or commuting unencumbered). Actually, I wonder how I would count the Capital Bikeshare riders wearing suits and clearly heading to the office -- are they bicycle commuters?

And I myself change modes depending on which bike I ride -- Although the MTB has a rack, I find my panniers don't fit so well, and I have lots of heel strike problems.

WolfsBane

5 1/2 miles commute one way for me and I use a messenger bag. But I see lots of racks being used by my coworkers. A fairly even mix in the community.

tjspiel

There's one guy in the office who uses a pannier during the winter but not in the summer. That's because he doesn't have a rack on his road bike. Winter is also wetter and his pannier is waterproof while his pack isn't.

It never occurred to me that there might be a difference between people who ride mostly on streets vs. mostly on paths but maybe it's true. I'd guess there's a definite difference between student and worker and those that can park inside vs. outside.

Lastly, those that are multimodal riders probably use packs more often than panniers. As much as some folks feel that panniers are the only good way to carry a load on a bike, there are situations where they can be inconvenient.

JPprivate

You know i dont really see many commuters on thr North Channel trail in the winter, ether. Lakeshore is probably different. Lately, i have a msgr bag and panniers (mostly empty though). Is that a double count ;-)

no1mad 

The majority that I observe are multi-modal like myself (bike/bus). I've seen one older guy with a trunk bag, two are sporting panniers, a smattering of messengers (usually the younger LBS workers), and a bunch of backpacks.

Mind you, I do not encounter all these people daily, as my schedule and route tends to fluctuate.

MVclyde

I see maybe 15-20 commuters on days when the weather is decent (if not, 10 or less). It's split around 50/50 between racks and packs. The roadies wear backpacks or messenger bags. Same with mountain bike commuters. Everyone else has racks with panniers or a trunk.

yammay

I have to second Doohickie - I am in the DFW area but way out in the suburbs (almost a rural area). I work regular hours and have never seen another bike commuter. I've seen a handful of people on road bikes for recreation/fitness, but no commuters. I know that there's one other person (in my building of 4,000 people) who commutes, because there's another bike on the rack when I leave. FWIW, that one other bike has a rack.

dscheidt

Chicago is pretty bikeable place. It's flat, it's dense, it's got modestly good facilities, and perhaps most importantly, it's got enough bikes that the automobile drivers aren't shocked to see one, which encourages other people to bike.

dyneq

When the weather is warmer here (May - Oct), I see almost entirely (95%) backpacks/messenger bags on commuters. On average, I see 1 other commuter during this period.

When the weather is colder, I see almost no other riders during my usual commute times (7:30-8AM and 4-4:20PM).

Steely Dan

that really is the big kahuna right there. in my 4 years of bike commuting/utility cycling in chicago, i've definitely noticed that the number of bikes on the road continues on its upward trajectory, and every time some one chooses to hop on their bike instead of get in their car, they make the streets just that much safer for all of us cyclists. and the safer the streets, the more people who will be inclined to hop on their bike, and the whole thing just snowballs from there. downtown, and in many neighborhoods, cyclists are now a very common, almost ubiquitous, part of the urban landscape of the city (winter notwithstanding; chicagoans are such meteorological pansies).

vik 

I've used both. For lighter loads I prefer a backpack. As the load gets heavier/bulkier I want it on my bike. Around here I see a mix of both - based on those factors and the fact that everyone has a backpack, but not everyone has a rear rack and panniers.

groovestew

Did an informal survey this morning:

8 cyclists with the load on the person
4 cyclists with the load on the bike

I saw another 4 cyclists with no load, but there were other things about their appearances that suggested that they weren't commuting.

edsmemberships

Me too! Not counting me:

0 cyclists with the load on the person
0 cyclists with the loan on the bike.

Counting me - 1 cyclist with the load on the bike.

tjspiel

I had intended to take my older but busier route home yesterday in order to get a better sample but I ended up staying late and had to take the quickest route possible. Fewer cyclists means a quicker ride.

Anyway, out of about 40 riders, 12 were carrying a load on the bike in some way. About 4 had no load and may have not been commuters. The rest were all using some sort of backpack, sling, mess bag, laptop bag, etc.

melonyogloo

I used to work in downtown Chicago and live 10 miles southwest. I used messenger bag exclusively. I now live in Arlington Heights (suburb of Chicago, 25 miles northwest of downtown) and work in Schaumburg and use rack and pannier. When I used to commute in the city, you couldn't leave anything on the bike while it being locked up without fear of getting something stolen. I had my headlight, rear blinky, and quick release rear fender stolen before. With multiple stops on the way home to get groceries and dry clean, it is just much easier wearing a messenger bag or backpack then hooking and unhooking my panniers.

fietsbob

I really like the Touring bag and head tube mounted clip, on my Brompton .
the bag has a shoulder strap and it's own frame.

Tied together 2 panniers to go on the front rack of my new Friday,
much less convenient ..

JOHN J

on my commute if I had to think I would say the % is

50 % good quality road bikes ,riders in full kit with back pack.

30% less expensive flat bar bikes with back packs

17 % road bike or hybrid with rear rack (often seat post rack) and single trunk bag (not a euro saddle bag like carradice)

3% (my group) hybrid, cross or tour bikes Usually panniers , though I have yet to see another carradice or rivendell type saddle bag on my commute besides mine.

"John"

fevans

Let me rephrase that:

My theory is that the number of backpacks/messenger bags is exponentially proportional to the number of bike commuters.

EKW in DC

Interesting distinction, captjohnc. Thinking about it now, I think you're definitely right. That said, I'd say given my experience coming up the MVT from Alexandria into DC via 14th St bridge, that the breakdown is something like this:

racks & panniers or trunk: 25% (incl. me)
backpacks/messenger bags: 40-50%
no load/rec riders/other: 25-35%

That's just a rough guestimate.

zonatandem

16 years of commuting in Tucson . . . but now retired (!).
I always used a rear rack as did most other commuters.
Putting the weight on the bike frame is much easier than on your back; and yes it gets wasrm here.
Hottest commute was 117 degrees.

wisaunders

Agreed