http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Topic: What would be your maximum commute? en Wed, 13 May 2026 02:18:10 +0000 http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613&page=2#post-235896 Tue, 08 Nov 2016 12:57:18 +0000 ivangrozni 235896@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>I guess maximum commute is really a function of what time you can afford, your level of activity, your fitness and your levels of discipline. Best thing is to find your limits yourself. </p> <p>At the moment I'm commuting to Livingston from Edinburgh. Not a morning person - I opt for the easy way in and get the train to Livingston North (I must surely cross-paths with Fimm!). Then cycle the full way back (can be anywhere between 16 and 20 miles depending on the route I take). I can usually do this in 50 - 60mins. </p> <p>At least once during the week I'll be in Ratho climbing so I tend to give cycling a rest on climbing days - I find even walking a challenge after climbing :-D </p> <p>Recovery from climbing is a limiting factor for me on the distances I can do in cycle-commuting - for me ~60 mins is a good balance - any more and I end up struggling! </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613&page=2#post-235880 Tue, 08 Nov 2016 12:09:39 +0000 Jester 235880@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p><blockquote>wee folding bike<br /> Member<br /> PM this user</p> <p>You ride a bike in Airdrie?</p> <p>And you're not me?</p> <p>Oooooof.</blockquote></p> <p>I'm the other one apparently... </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613&page=2#post-235814 Mon, 07 Nov 2016 19:06:51 +0000 paddyirish 235814@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Generally find that the time and not distance is the main limiter for the commute. </p> <p>In summer a 50 min-1hr commute with 10 mins each end at work for showering/changing was fine and wasn't noticeably slower than taking the train. </p> <p>In Winter the extras (putting on overshoes/extra layers/lights and also leaving them to dry while at work) taking more care on the road, especially on descents, means the same route is 1hr - 1 hr 10 and 15 mins each end at work - it takes an extra 30 mins each day, which is noticed when I get home. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613&page=2#post-235810 Mon, 07 Nov 2016 18:29:44 +0000 wee folding bike 235810@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>You ride a bike in Airdrie?</p> <p>And you're not me?</p> <p>Oooooof. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613&page=2#post-235808 Mon, 07 Nov 2016 18:28:11 +0000 Jester 235808@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>I live in Airdrie and generally cycle to Bathgate (12 miles) before catching the train. Recently I've upped that to the occasional cycle to Uphall (18 miles) and a few times I've cycled from Airdrie to Edinburgh (32 miles).<br /> As two hours on my road bike from Haymarket to Airdrie that's not a bad ride, but tied in with a 12 hour shift and it becomes an occasional treat, rather than a daily commute.<br /> Having been laid up for months after knee surgery winter is coming at the wrong time.. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613&page=2#post-232099 Tue, 27 Sep 2016 12:39:31 +0000 cb 232099@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>More on the "separate study" referenced in the Scotsman piece:</p> <p><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-37453581">http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-37453581</a></p> <p>"The happiness index, created by Bank of Scotland and YouGov, found that the longer a person had to commute to work, the unhappier they felt."</p> <p>"Among commuters, people who walked to work were happiest, scoring 43.16, while those who took the bus rated their happiness lowest at 34.62." </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613&page=2#post-232055 Mon, 26 Sep 2016 20:23:13 +0000 MrGrumpy 232055@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>I would consider 20 miles approx each way as a max, but must confess that I'm finding. The commute tougher these days and only managing 3 days a week , was doing 5 days a week with big diversion on the way back to fife in summer ;-) last year but have very little flexibility these days ! </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613&page=2#post-232021 Mon, 26 Sep 2016 16:21:39 +0000 paddyirish 232021@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>@Boff, I don't like the A904 at all. I follow the coastal route through Hopetoun House and Wester Shore Wood to Blackness and along the coastal path to BoNess which is fantastic. I wouldn't normally do that on a road bike though, but this morning my pal proved it is possible... </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613&page=2#post-232020 Mon, 26 Sep 2016 16:21:13 +0000 chdot 232020@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>" I tried to find the coastal path and ended up carrying my bike over rocks somewhere near Blackness."</p> <p>It's been fixed! </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613&page=2#post-232018 Mon, 26 Sep 2016 15:59:39 +0000 Boff 232018@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>My cycling commute option involves a cycle uphill to Waverley station to catch the train to Linlithgow and then an 8 mile cycle along the canal path to Callendar Park in Falkirk. It's an hour long commute even by car. Taking the bike adds 30 minutes to this. I used to cycle in every Friday and cycle all the way back to Leith but the A904 between Bo'ness and South Queensferry is a horror show. I've had too many high speed close passes on that poorly maintained road to justify doing it again. It was about 27 miles door to door and took about two hours except for the time I tried to find the coastal path and ended up carrying my bike over rocks somewhere near Blackness. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613#post-232017 Mon, 26 Sep 2016 15:47:06 +0000 dessert rat 232017@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>my commute is/would be 3km all downhill to The Shore, so I go via Joppa and it's a nice 15.5k. I'd like a longer option going home but haven't managed to work out a nice route yet.</p> <p>Anyone know of a nice way of getting back from Mussleb / QMU to innocent ? </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613#post-232006 Mon, 26 Sep 2016 15:11:46 +0000 gembo 232006@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>@chdot that is sort of news coming back from across on the continent.</p> <p>So maybe i shuld have said in optimal conditions - e.g. a cycle path that extends from the centre say to commuter belt 20km away people are now living 40km away and commuting on the path which is like a sustrans route, but maybe straighter</p> <p>mAYBE i Exaggerated same time - maybe slightly longer. They go at 16.6mph and think nothing of hills (you can pedal them faster though) so I think would get me up my hill home in 30mins rather than 45mins but maybe only ten mins faster down the hill. If my uphill was twice as far then they would do it in an hour instead of an hour and a half to two hours it would take me??. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613#post-232000 Mon, 26 Sep 2016 14:49:12 +0000 Ed1 232000@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>It would depend if was uphill or downhill my commute is currently 8.5 miles but is getting increased to 10 miles when my office moves to Edinburgh but its actually the same time </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613#post-231994 Mon, 26 Sep 2016 14:38:47 +0000 deckard112 231994@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>When the FRB was closed last December I decided one day to commute in to Edinburgh from home in Dunf via Kincardine Bridge, a distance of 46 miles one way. Largely because I was utterly sick of getting the overcrowded train in. Took about 2h45m and I have to say I really enjoyed it, catching the sunrise as I came through Dalmeny. However, once was enough! Was shattered by the end of the day! My current commute is 16 miles each way although I think I'd go to 20 max. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613#post-231985 Mon, 26 Sep 2016 14:00:54 +0000 paddyirish 231985@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>I did accept a job in Stirling and thought about cycling one or 2 days a week (or if I could leave the bike safely somewhere one way on multiple days). Would probably be a minimum of 2 hrs 1 way. Again that would be combined commute + leisure time + exercise and probably limited to BST.</p> <p>(Un)fortunately the job fell through and I got one closer to home. Happy with my ~ 1hr commute and still exploring different ways of extending it. There is plenty of scope still out there... </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613#post-231983 Mon, 26 Sep 2016 13:41:43 +0000 chdot 231983@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>"Same time, ... twice the distance"</p> <p>That's optimistic. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613#post-231981 Mon, 26 Sep 2016 13:25:33 +0000 gembo 231981@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Motherwell also has quite fast but not frequent rail connection to Edinburgh.</p> <p>The electric bike can double your commute. Same time, same amount of exercise, twice the distance. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613#post-231935 Mon, 26 Sep 2016 09:20:23 +0000 AKen 231935@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>The downside, of course, being that if you buy a house in Motherwell then you have to live in Motherwell. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613#post-231933 Mon, 26 Sep 2016 09:10:53 +0000 chdot 231933@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Not really about <em>cycle</em> commuting (and 'based on a survey by a bank').</p> <p>"</p> <p>Despite being almost 40 miles away, Motherwell topped the list as the most affordable commuter town to Edinburgh, with an average house price of £130,268 compared to £225,133 in the capital.</p> <p>"</p> <p><a href="http://www.scotsman.com/news/scotland-s-most-affordable-commuter-towns-revealed-1-4239856" rel="nofollow">http://www.scotsman.com/news/scotland-s-most-affordable-commuter-towns-revealed-1-4239856</a> </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613#post-116555 Tue, 02 Jul 2013 21:04:06 +0000 Dave 116555@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Very true. I've never had a job where it was significantly quicker to get there by any means other than cycling.</p> <p>Even driving out from Edinburgh to Fife (pretty rapid on the motorway going the opposite way to everyone else) only got me to work 5-10 minutes quicker than cycling, and it was a no-brainer to apply a quality modifier to my time that made driving the worse deal... </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613#post-116550 Tue, 02 Jul 2013 19:11:09 +0000 Instography 116550@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>I suppose it also matters that it doesn't make that much difference how I commute: cycling or public transport takes much the same time. If PT was twice as fast, I'd maybe swap cycling for sleep. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613#post-116459 Tue, 02 Jul 2013 09:42:47 +0000 ARobComp 116459@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>I reckon 1 hour each way but then again I like being in the centre of town so perhaps only if I was commuting OUT of Edinburgh rather than into it? </p> <p>I met an audaxer who was going for his SR on Glen Shee on Sunday and he has a 40 miles commute each way from Aberdeen over some mountains or other which he does twice a week. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613#post-116457 Tue, 02 Jul 2013 09:35:25 +0000 cc 116457@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>15 hours in the cab! :-O </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613#post-116455 Tue, 02 Jul 2013 09:27:17 +0000 splitshift 116455@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>well as I drive a lorry each day, I can assure you that after nearly 15 hours in the cab,the prospect of biking home, all uphill,in the rain , or worse, invariably in the dark,is less than appealing ! still I do it most days,only 25 minutes home comute,but sometimes I just want to throw the bike away and get a taxi !<br /> cant actually remember the last time I was in a taxi ........<br /> scott </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613#post-116453 Tue, 02 Jul 2013 08:56:47 +0000 Instography 116453@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Thing is, it's not just the time spent commuting. To manage the full round trip of 35 miles on the four days that I work in the office, I'd need to be going to bed earlier (than 11pm) so that I could get up at 6am to to do it again. In effect you lose the time twice - on the road and sleeping.</p> <p>To be honest, I don't like cycling to work enough to be going to my bed about an hour after the kids. That really would be a groundhog day treadmill of wake, ride, work, ride, eat, get ready for tomorrow and bed. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613#post-116450 Tue, 02 Jul 2013 08:42:42 +0000 fimm 116450@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>I seem to recall reading somewhere that 1 hour each way travelling time is about the maximum that most people are willing to tolerate (of course there are exceptions).</p> <p>I'm very fortunate that I have options for my commute. My usual commute is bike to Haymarket, train to Livingston North, 10 minute cycle to office. This is what I use the Brompton for. There is actually a minibus to the office (no useful public transport) so I can do without the bike, I just prefer to cycle, but it is nice to have the option especially in snow/ice. </p> <p>My 'long commute' is 16 miles each way on a road bike. That's about 2h05 - 2h10 total cycling time (over the hour on the way in and around the hour for the return, depending on wind, mostly). I usually do this once a week throughout the year and sometimes twice. In the run up to the Snow Roads (and for other events in the past) I extended the homeward run to take up to 2 hours. I wouldn't want to do that every day - partly because I want to run and swim as well and don't have time (or energy) for everything, but also to do it regularly in winter I'd need a much more weather-proof bike than my current lightweight racer. I'm very nervous/cautious about doing the long comute in snow/ice.</p> <p>I'm not sure what maximum distance I'd do every day. It would depend a bit on the route, as others have said. If I could be confident that it would be gritted I'd be happier than if it was something that was going to be an impassible ice rink every winter. Also it is nice to be able to commute (short commute) in office clothes - though there's a couple of men who also bike-train-bike who prefer to change when they get to the office. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613#post-116449 Tue, 02 Jul 2013 08:41:35 +0000 Dave 116449@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>My longest has been 17 miles each way, which I did 5 days a week for maybe two and a bit years.</p> <p>I agree that it comes down more to time than distance. I don't want to spend more than two hours a day - currently it takes me about 90-100 minutes for a ~21 mile round trip, so I'm getting my workout from rough terrain more than distance.</p> <p>I reckon 25 miles each way in the Netherlands in a velomobile..? </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613#post-116437 Mon, 01 Jul 2013 21:25:06 +0000 Charterhall 116437@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>I was commuting 15 miles each way for a while, not a problem in summer, in fact I used to add miles on in summer, but riding through snow and ice in the winter wasn't much fun.<br /> In recent years my shortest route commute has never been more than 6 miles, but I add to that most days. I have been known to do 60 miles on the way home, or on other days I've set off on the Biggar road before 6am in order to take one of the off road tracks over the Pentlands into work. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613#post-116430 Mon, 01 Jul 2013 19:09:05 +0000 Instography 116430@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>For commuting, I reckon an hour each way is enough. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10613#post-116429 Mon, 01 Jul 2013 19:07:00 +0000 Darkerside 116429@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Definitely the above. Plus cycling is my decompressing time, so the almost two hour transit means although I never get home before half six, I am immediately in home mode on arrival. </p>