4 ms·

In most cities going by bike is even faster. Ofc, it needs some effort to overcome weather, sweat. But at the end it pays off. Full privacy, free workouts, fas

In most cities going by bike is even faster. Ofc, it needs some effort to overcome weather, sweat. But at the end it pays off. Full privacy, free workouts, faster commute, being outside (getting sun, maybe fresh air). Invest in a good bike (maybe even eletric bike) and commute faster :)!

agumonkey 2y ago
It's really a strange realization. If your health is fine.. and you don't live in smog.. biking is immensely beneficial. There's often multiple path to the same destination, shorter than main arteries, no traffic jam, no stress. I take my car twice a month and everytime I'm surprised by the effect of having to deal with all interruption and safety because we all drive 500-1000kg metallic buckets. It's quickly annoying.. that's a feeling you never have on bike. And no gas cost, near no insurance.. cheap repairs. So true, weather is an issue (but in a way it's fun to now look at the sky to see where the clouds are going), clothing too a bit. My only problem is that weak health quickly cut your ability to move far.
- dudefeliciano 2y ago
  Only argument I have is the no stress part. I find myself stressed out more often than should be when riding a bike in the city due to careless car drivers.
  - agumonkey 2y ago
    My bad, I should have explained that I take detours on smaller / calmer roads, whenever possible, to avoid traffic as much as possible. Depending on your country, there might be a lot of alternate paths. For normal roads you can have shorter trip, but often I choose longer travel if it's on a bike lane near a river or a forest, so I enjoy even more calm. Otherwise you're right.
mg 2y ago
I don't expect bikes to take market share from cars. Bikes have been around for a long time and are expected to technically stay the same in the foreseeable future. Electric buses are so much better than gasoline buses. Fewer vibrations, less noise. Makes it much more suitable to relax or do some work on your phone. Plus, the cost (manufacturing+maintenance+fuel) of electric buses is 25% lower than the cost of gasoline buses. At the moment, only 10% or so of buses are electric. So the effect of these two improvements are mostly still to hit the market. And in a few years, buses will start to become autonomous. Which reduces the costs of a bus operation by 70%. Imagine we get autonomous electric buses with nice seats and tables. Then you can do your work in a bus while getting from A to B super cheap. Mobility would be so different.
- seszett 2y ago
  > Bikes have been around for a long time and are expected to technically stay the same in the foreseeable future. You might have missed the electric bike revolution that started a few years ago? Probably half the bikes I see here (in Flanders) are electric. It has enabled many people who would never have considered it before to start biking. And bikes are absolutely taking market share from cars here. Honestly I don't even understand why enough people still use their cars through my city instead of biking. It easily takes 2x or 3x the time to get anywhere.
  - EndShell 2y ago
    > Honestly I don't even understand why enough people still use their cars through my city instead of biking. I am an ex-avid cyclist. Bikes are easily stolen, You can get soaked if the weather is poor, If it is bitterly cold it can literally take you hours to warm up (especially if you are older). If you have to ride in traffic it can be very frightening especially if you haven't done it before. Other people find cycling simply uncomfortable, I've been told it more uncomfortable for women.
    - roflmaostc 2y ago
      I use a decent U lock. Always lock the frame to something metal and solid. Additionally I have a ~100USD insurance to cover my several thousand dollars bikes. Never got stolen any. Yeah you need to adapt to weather. But a good pair of biking pants, rain cover for the shoes, thick leather gloves and different pairs of coats (which you anyway need) usually do the job. If your bike is super uncomfortable there is tons of different sattles and options. Even bike fitting to fit your bike perfectly to your body.
llampx 2y ago
I love bikes but I value my health so I keep my exercise to places where I won't be crushed to death by rogue road users.
- roflmaostc 2y ago
  Living in Europe this is much less of an issue. Yeah car drivers tend to oversee you but after a while you can anticipate their movements very often. I bike every day to work and the only semi-serious crash was 90% my fault because I was speeding lol
  - llampx 2y ago
    Europe is a big continent. Even within one city you can have neighborhoods with more aggro drivers than others. If there is a protected bike path I don't have problems taking it.

agumonkey 2y ago

It's really a strange realization. If your health is fine.. and you don't live in smog.. biking is immensely beneficial. There's often multiple path to the same destination, shorter than main arteries, no traffic jam, no stress. I take my car twice a month and everytime I'm surprised by the effect of having to deal with all interruption and safety because we all drive 500-1000kg metallic buckets. It's quickly annoying.. that's a feeling you never have on bike. And no gas cost, near no insurance.. cheap repairs. So true, weather is an issue (but in a way it's fun to now look at the sky to see where the clouds are going), clothing too a bit. My only problem is that weak health quickly cut your ability to move far.

dudefeliciano 2y ago
Only argument I have is the no stress part. I find myself stressed out more often than should be when riding a bike in the city due to careless car drivers.
- agumonkey 2y ago
  My bad, I should have explained that I take detours on smaller / calmer roads, whenever possible, to avoid traffic as much as possible. Depending on your country, there might be a lot of alternate paths. For normal roads you can have shorter trip, but often I choose longer travel if it's on a bike lane near a river or a forest, so I enjoy even more calm. Otherwise you're right.

mg 2y ago

I don't expect bikes to take market share from cars. Bikes have been around for a long time and are expected to technically stay the same in the foreseeable future. Electric buses are so much better than gasoline buses. Fewer vibrations, less noise. Makes it much more suitable to relax or do some work on your phone. Plus, the cost (manufacturing+maintenance+fuel) of electric buses is 25% lower than the cost of gasoline buses. At the moment, only 10% or so of buses are electric. So the effect of these two improvements are mostly still to hit the market. And in a few years, buses will start to become autonomous. Which reduces the costs of a bus operation by 70%. Imagine we get autonomous electric buses with nice seats and tables. Then you can do your work in a bus while getting from A to B super cheap. Mobility would be so different.

seszett 2y ago
> Bikes have been around for a long time and are expected to technically stay the same in the foreseeable future. You might have missed the electric bike revolution that started a few years ago? Probably half the bikes I see here (in Flanders) are electric. It has enabled many people who would never have considered it before to start biking. And bikes are absolutely taking market share from cars here. Honestly I don't even understand why enough people still use their cars through my city instead of biking. It easily takes 2x or 3x the time to get anywhere.
- EndShell 2y ago
  > Honestly I don't even understand why enough people still use their cars through my city instead of biking. I am an ex-avid cyclist. Bikes are easily stolen, You can get soaked if the weather is poor, If it is bitterly cold it can literally take you hours to warm up (especially if you are older). If you have to ride in traffic it can be very frightening especially if you haven't done it before. Other people find cycling simply uncomfortable, I've been told it more uncomfortable for women.
  - roflmaostc 2y ago
    I use a decent U lock. Always lock the frame to something metal and solid. Additionally I have a ~100USD insurance to cover my several thousand dollars bikes. Never got stolen any. Yeah you need to adapt to weather. But a good pair of biking pants, rain cover for the shoes, thick leather gloves and different pairs of coats (which you anyway need) usually do the job. If your bike is super uncomfortable there is tons of different sattles and options. Even bike fitting to fit your bike perfectly to your body.

llampx 2y ago

I love bikes but I value my health so I keep my exercise to places where I won't be crushed to death by rogue road users.

roflmaostc 2y ago
Living in Europe this is much less of an issue. Yeah car drivers tend to oversee you but after a while you can anticipate their movements very often. I bike every day to work and the only semi-serious crash was 90% my fault because I was speeding lol
- llampx 2y ago
  Europe is a big continent. Even within one city you can have neighborhoods with more aggro drivers than others. If there is a protected bike path I don't have problems taking it.