Hit the Bike Pedal Instead of the Gas Pedal

Biking to work takes too long; work is too far; I will be sweaty for my first meeting.  There is an endless variety of great excuses for not biking to work, and many are completely legitimate.  If you, for instance, have to give a presentation to a group of investors or meet with your boss about a project, you don’t want the smell of the commute to linger between you.  But for all the excuses, there are more than enough reasons why commuting via bicycle is a viable idea.  And, best of all, you will probably discover that you love it.

Kiplinger has a tool that allows you to determine how much you can save by biking to work.  If, for instance, you have a ten mile round-trip commute, you pay $140 in parking per month (the US national average is about $148), and you do not pay any tolls, you will save over $11 a day by biking.  If you do pay tolls, you can also add them to your savings when you use your bike.

Besides the monetary savings, you are helping reduce greenhouse emissions.  An average passenger car emits 77 pounds of hydrocarbons, 575 pounds of carbon monoxide, 38 pounds of oxides of nitrogen, and 11,450 pounds of carbon dioxide per year.  It also uses 581 gallons of gas annually.  If you biked to work even half the time, you’d be able to significantly reduce emissions and improve air quality.

Back to excuses for a moment: any one of the many could be good enough reason to not take your bike to work.  You have to want to make biking work for your commute. It may involve sacrifice at first.  You may get up and feel like the absolute last thing you want to do is negotiate traffic and deal with tired drivers.  But the benefits to your wallet, your health, and to the planet are undeniable.  Here are some ways to make it easier:

• You don’t need to go out and buy a $5000 commuter bike for your first ride.  If you already have a bike, use that. If not, try a used one first.  If you need to upgrade later, you can always do that.  Many bike commuters, though, prefer older style bikes because they have fewer parts that can break.  Don’t give into the temptation to get the Lexus of bikes when the Ford Focus of bikes will do just fine.
• Go slowly at first. If you’re not used to biking two, three, four, or more miles, give yourself plenty of time.  You’ll find that the miles go by more quickly than you’d imagined, and you’ll get speedier with time.
• Most bike accidents are caused by inexperienced bikers and their fear of the roads and drivers.  Know the laws and know your responsibilities.  Ride assertively and safely.
• Have work clothes to change into at the office if you’re likely to sweat a lot!  You may also want to bring deodorant, a washcloth, and some other freshening-up items to work if you cannot take a shower.
• But it’s raining (or snowing, or cold, or 100 degrees). If the weather isn’t compliant, don’t feel bad about taking your car.  Biking to work isn’t all or nothing.  Even reducing our driving helps make a positive impact.  As you gain experience, you may find a little rain can’t get you down.
• Work is too far.  Sometimes, we just work too far away to bike, no matter what shape we’re in.  It’s ok.  Take the car, train, or bus. You can do your errands on a bike.  Short car trips actually release more greenhouse emissions than longer trips, so you are still making an excellent choice.