First commute yesterday

tom101

It was horrific. Around 7.5km through the centre of Madrid. Almost no cycle lanes, the ones that exist are full of parked cars, wheely bins and pedestrians. No provision for cyclists on the road whatsoever. All the roads choked with traffic. Got lost several times, my stupid GPS kept telling me to go onto motorways or the wrong way up one way streets despite being set to cycling mode. Buses scared the crap out of me. Almost suffocated from diesel fumes. Saw three other cyclists the whole time. All my colleagues kept telling me I was crazy and would end up dead before the end of the week. Er... I don't really know what the point of this post was other than to vent to some sympathetic ears. Would you even bother trying to commute by bike in these conditions?

attica

Ooh, you have my sympathy, I've seen the traffic in some Spanish cities, it would scare me silly.

Have you considered planning the route beforehand using mapmyride or similar? Stick to the back roads and away from the main arteries as much as possible, that might be the best way to get across town.

UndercoverElephant

You're probably much better off sitting down with a map. You can find quieter routes on a bike, and you don't get slowed down by them. After a while, you'll get more confident. Bike lanes are vastly overrated by new and non-cyclists, most of the more experienced I know can't see the point.

Keep at it, you'll have a great time.

Clever Pun

Attica wrote:

Ooh, you have my sympathy, I've seen the traffic in some Spanish cities, it would scare me silly.

Have you considered planning the route beforehand using mapmyride or similar? Stick to the back roads and away from the main arteries as much as possible, that might be the best way to get across town.

this

not getting lost will reduce the stress level and you can just concentrate on getting there

lost_in_thought

Clever Pun wrote:

Attica wrote:

Ooh, you have my sympathy, I've seen the traffic in some Spanish cities, it would scare me silly.

Have you considered planning the route beforehand using mapmyride or similar? Stick to the back roads and away from the main arteries as much as possible, that might be the best way to get across town.

this

not getting lost will reduce the stress level and you can just concentrate on getting there

+1

Kudos for doing it too! Give yourself a well deserved pat on the back, or hell, buy yourself a well-deserved beer!

cjcp

Good luck!

tom101

Thanks for your words of support. Finding a decent route (if such a thing exists) is going to be key. Last night I rode home via the 'green ring', a cycle path that encircles madrid. It was actually very pleasant, although the distance is twice that of taking a direct route, so I might just do this all the time instead of finding a direct route. It only takes an extra 10-15 mins each way.

It's such as shame that Madrid is so cycling unfriendly. It has a decent climate and is relatively flat so could be a joy to ride around. Unfortunately the council has recently scrapped their cycling mobility plan citing lack of money, although they seem to have found €millions for road upgrades. Here the car is king. Ironic really since the loudest complaints are about pollution and noise, and probably made by the same people that commute by car every day.

R_T_A

Totally agree with planning ahead. Try a few routes out and at different times (e.g. 08:00 or 08:30) and you may find something that suits you.

It may also be a bit of a confidence thing to. As part of a stag do in Madrid, we did a tour of the city by mountain bike. My friends who don't cycle regularly really struggled with the traffic, whereas I didn't even notice it as a problem.

Admittedly this was at the weekend so the traffic was less so it may not be a fair comparison, but don't give up just yet. Good luck!

cjcp

The cycle path sounds like a good plan.

OT a little, but I've often wondered what it would be like cycling in cities on the continent. Genoa, Paris and Rome look like nightmares. Geneva looks much, much better.