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.