apparently my city literally literally banned public rail funding, and people online love jerking off about how good biking is, so i figured might as well try. I have come up with:
pros:
- good for mental health / exercise / endorphins
- arguably quaint
- feel like an old timey guy taking his wares to market
- feel european
- can annoy others
- less of a police state around them vs cars
- more flexible parking, routes
- capacity to be peaceful
- nice in summer
cons:
- look like an annoying dork (esp w neon - which also hurts the quaint factor)
- have to wear a helmet (^)
- getting sweaty, potentially “unpresentable” for work
- still have to find safe parking
- still takes a while
- have to find new routes to places
- can’t listen to music or might die
- little meaningful protection against severe injury
- can only carry so many groceries/etc
- sucks in winter
pros:
- I don’t sit in a cage in the middle of a traffic jam 2+ hours a day
- When I get to work, I’m awake and in a good mood, when I get back home, I’ve left the work stress behind
- I’m actually faster door to door than in a car in rush hour traffic on my 8 mile commute
- It keeps me fit even if I don’t do any other sports
- It’s fun
- I can fix everything myself with a toolbox I bought for 40€
- My bike cost 1000€, 4 years ago, and I think I spent another … 30€ on it in all that time, for lube and tubes
cons:
- It can’t fully replace a car. Around once a week I need public transit for longer routes. Around once a month I have to rent a car, too.
- Bike lanes don’t exist or aren’t usable everywhere. In places without them you need some thick skin to deal with the incoherent rage of strangers who feel like your choice of vehicle threatens their entire lifestyle.
- Biking has become a political statement for some reason
From your con list, the only one that is actually true in my opinion is:
- little meaningful protection against severe injury
(which is mostly a problem due to cars on the road)
All the other ones either simply aren’t true, or are only an issue if you’re starting out and haven’t figured out what’s important yet.
Second this. The inconvenience of winter weather in particular. Dutch people are used to say that there is no bad weather to ride a bike, only inadequate gear.
Try that in Canada though, it’s not going to work out. 15cm of fresh snow with ice underneath and it’s still coming down, while the sidewalks haven’t been cleared yet? Good luck biking to work then…
You would have to use transit for about half the year here
Can confirm. Especially wet snow/sleet can make bicycling completely impossible. A few centimeters is only a minor annoyance, but 10 cm is a serious problem. Fortunately, it doesn’t last long where I live, since the streets get cleared fairly quickly. During one of those mornings you better take a bus/train/subway instead. It also really depends on how well your town takes care of the streets and what public transport options are available.
Realistically it’s only those 1-2 days after snowing when things are still being cleared that it’s an issue. I bike commute 52 weeks a year in Minnesota and there were only 3 days this year I regretted biking. 2 snow days and one heavy cold rain. I can always supplement another option on those days.
That’s nice for the Dutch but I’m not riding a bike in 15+ cm of snow and ice while it’s -30c lol
It’s true that it’s possible to ride all year, even in places with harsh winters.
It’s going to be decidedly less fun, though.
This was enough to tip the balance in favour of taking transit during the months of snow and slush here in Sweden, but I’m also spoiled for choice here. Now I’ve moved and have less of a ride to work, so I think I’m probably going to shoot for biking all year now.
The sweat thing is important imo. I don’t want to show up to work or school or whatever drenched in sweat. Sometimes it’s too hot outside, or you have to ride against too strong a wind, or the terrain on your route is difficult. Either way you can easily arrive at your destination soaking wet. Unless you have an e-bike, there is no easy or convenient solution for that ç. A very real consideration that most certainly has made me not choose my bike on many occasions.
While we’re on the topic of wet, weather is also an important consideration. Keeping yourself protected against the rain on a bike is not easy.
Somehow I’ve managed to commute to work on a bike year round for 10 years now, and I’m in a customer-facing role.
When it rains I wear rain clothes (jacket, rain pants and over-shoes). I also have full fenders and a chainguard on my bike.
If necessary, I ride in cycling clothes, carry my work clothes and some deodorant in a pannier, and quickly dry off and change in the bathroom when I arrive. It takes 5 minutes.
