Anyone else decide on a job based on the ability to cycle?

chris_bass

I am currently looking for a new job and one of the factors i'm including in my decision is whether i'll be able to commute by bike.

does/has anyone else done this?

just to qualify this, I do have a job and i'm not desperate to move so its more about finding the right job now, not just a job to pay the bills.

asprilla

Yes. I'm a contractor and I only really look at roles where I can commute by bike most of the time.

Occasionally I've had to join a nearby gym in order to have a shower, but not often. I've got to say that these days the hardest bit tends to be location as everywhere I've successfully interviewed for in recent years has had cycle parking and shower facilities.

thistle_

Yeah I pick jobs based on cyclability.

I left my last job partly because 20 miles each way was too much to do every day in all weathers.

Headhuunter

It was a big consideration for me when I was interviewing for jobs after redundancy earlier this year and of all the firms I was interviewing with, the 1 that offered me the job doesn't have shower facilities! However we've got quite large bathroom/toilet facilities so I've got used to having a full body "shower" over the sink. I generally have to wipe the entire bathroom down afterwards though as water sprays everywhere so an actual shower would be preferable....

fatsmoker

I chose a place to live based on commutable distance to a job I'd have been daft to turn down.

macleod113

yes i have. as previous posters here i have also chosen a place to live because of the commutability.

i also have the option to work from home but choose to go to the office so i can cycle. if i didnt i'd look like a whale!

pbkclements

Yep definitely is up there on important job criteria - I'm a IT contractor, so any opportunity to get out & enjoy some exercise rather than being stuck in a car on the way to work or marooned in the office is taken at the earliest opportunity. When I can't commute by bike I will stick the brompton in the car & get out there, just to see what's locally around where I'm working.

dilemna

Chris Bass wrote:

I am currently looking for a new job and one of the factors i'm including in my decision is whether i'll be able to commute by bike.

does/has anyone else done this?

just to qualify this, I do have a job and i'm not desperate to move so its more about finding the right job now, not just a job to pay the bills.

Terms and Conditions and benefits of your employment contract take precedence for a job for me than whether you can ride to and from work although the latter is still important, things like hours, pension, holiday entitlement, etc are more important. These can amount to tens of thousands of pounds over your working life. Riding to and from work is a bonus which fortunately I can do at the moment.

chris_bass

I think i am going to factor this in, like I say, I have a job so not desperate to find a new one.

I think not being able to cycle to work would greatly reduce my job satisfaction .

Kieran_Burns

When I looked to move house I drew a torus around work with a minimum distance of 6 miles and a maximum of 15. Then found somewhere in that area, specifically so I could cycle in.

Flycatcher

Yes I have. I commuted 10 miles each way, Oldham to Stockport, then left and took a job where I was on the road all day. It lasted a year before I was offered two jobs in a day and I took the one which was further away to allow a longer commute. There were other factors of course as I could have done a longer commute but the one I took also had a city location and it was a departure from what I had done for many years. Oddly the company I turned down were bought out by the one I left so God knows what would have happened to me. Anyway, at the start I could commute most days but now I am in charge of my own diary and I need to be out in the car about half the week so I can commute two/three days a week which suits me. It would be the perfect job if the salary was doubled!!

CJ Bill

Certainly a factor for me. Like some other posters here I've worked as a contractor (permie at the moment) and being able to cycle is a factor. Did one contract in Richmond and ended up doing a loop or two of the park every morning. One where I couldn't cycle was in Nairobi, but then who's going to turn that down?

My permie job is 11 miles from home although I do a minimum 18 mile route, mostly through glorious Cheshire countryside, unless the weather is totally foul (studded tyres in winter). I did a thought experiment a while back to see how much my commute was worth to me, i.e. if I got a job in the city centre with a 3 mile commute how much more would tip the balance for taking it. Turned out to be £5000.

Big_Paul

With me it's choosing a house based on the ability to cycle to work, I presently could do my commute in 10 minutes, but I usually take the long way, SWMBO is looking to move so we're basing the choice on my ability to commute as she works 15 miles away and drives, we work different hours so car sharing isn't an option and sitting in traffic, either on a bus or in my jeep would drive me round the bend.

To me, it's much more than a commute, it's therapy.