Bike to Work Week

Last week was Bike to Work week. I've always been a supporter of such a thing but I've always had good "reasons" that I couldn't participate. For several years I lived relatively close to work but I didn't have a bike in operational order. Then I moved out to Surrey and worked downtown. That would have been close to 70 km round trip which isn't exactly a comfortable distance. For the past several years though I've worked in Burnaby and the round trip was only about 45 km. My excuse for that trip though was that there wasn't a good route that would keep me out of traffic.

This year I decided I would at least give it a shot. The lower mainland has been doing a lot in recent years to improve biking routes and after a bit of research I found out that there were bike routes I could take that would keep me out of traffic almost the entire way. The first day was a bit of a nightmare because some of the routes weren't exactly the most direct however by day two I'd mastered my route and it turns out there are dedicated bike lanes or back streets designated for bikes for 80%. The other 20% has bike lanes beside traffic that are clearly marked. The most harrowing part is probably the Pattullo bridge but only because it seems like the bridge could collapse at any moment. The sidewalk you ride on is separated from traffic with a one foot curb and plenty wide to ride on.
By weeks end I'd traveled 225km rain or shine. On Wednesday it was definitely more rain then shine. It took 2 hrs in the drier to dry my shoes. Despite that minor set back I've now decided I'll bike to work at least two days a week. When you include the 45 minute trip each way on transit and the hour I would spend at the gym anyways I'm actually saving time.