future Tempe bicycle commuter
 

I'll be temporarily living in Scottsdale this summer and working in Tempe. I'll be working near Rural Rd and Southern Ave in Tempe and live almost straight north of there. Is this a decent area for bicycle commuting? Is Tempe in general a good city for bicycle commuters? What about Chandler/Gilbert?

I've been a commuter in ND for a long time but just looking for some AZ commuting tips. Thanks.

I used to live in tempe and commute to phoenix, briefly passing through scottsdale. Just moved to ahwatukee. Still bike to work and my route is 70% the same.

I take mill most of the way and pass thru Papago park on the crosscut canal. People have recommended I take priest or college instead. Mill can be a bit busy, but it works for me. Has a bike lane. I'd guess rural is a bit busier, but I've wound up on rural some mornings and it's been ok.

Originally, i tried to work the western canal into my route, but wasn't worth it. Had to go too far out of my way.

There's a couple jogs where there's no bike lane. In that case I usually hop on the sidewalk if there's much traffic.

Bottom line, commuting from scottsdale to tempe shouldn't be a big problem.

You can go to google maps and select bicycling to see bike routes and lanes. Also you can go here to request a paper copy of the MAG Regional Bike Map.

MAG Publications

It looks to me like you have several choices. Straight down Scottsdale/Rural may or may not work for you. I've ridden both the Crosscut Canal and Indian Bend Wash and they were fine. Don't know about 68th St. I can't tell you much about south of Tempe Town Lake either.

Good luck.