Riding a bike is the most economical and efficient way of moving around. I am writing a series of why bicycling is KING comparatively to taking the public transport. I have tried the public transport not for 1 day, 1 week or even 1 month but for 1 and a half years. I really had enough.
My case study or analysis is based on my personal experience and
the distance is 25km radius one way.
1. Public transport is expensive:
a) Rural areas- eg From my house to the Bus Terminal in town the distance is 4 about miles, I have to pay RM1.20 per trip.
So to and fro would be RM2.40. If I work for 20days it would be RM48 a month. A year would be RM576.
Riding a bike would only take me about 20 minutes at a moderate pace. It also gives me the opportunity/power to stop wherever I like without incurring extra cost.
b) Urban areas-eg From USJ to Central Market, the bus fare is RM2.00 per trip. So to and fro would be RM4. Per month would be RM80 (20 working days). A year would be RM960.
Time taken to reach destination is about 45min to 1 hour. Riding a bike would take me about 1 hour 15min at a speed of 20km/hr. So it's not much different in terms of time to travel. I have not included the time waiting for the bus especially during off peak hours.
I will write more about the fun and freedom of riding a bike comparatively taking the public transport.
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24 comments:
Ha, found your blog through LGRAB!
I'm currently cycle to work daily in New Zealand but I tried my best to commute by bike whenever I could when I was back in KL for three weeks earlier this year.
My friends all commented on how 'brave' I was and expressed their shock that I cycled from A to B instead of driving.
I had to ride on my sister's bicycle-shaped object that was falling to bits but the commute wasn't hard or dangerous. I suspect it's due to the fact that most people in their cars were trying to figure what the heck I was doing on a bicycle.
The satisfaction of beating the rows of cars backed up in a traffic jam can't be beat. :)
My gripe is the task of finding a proper place to lock up your bike especially in malls. In One-Utama, for instance, bicycles and motorcycles are relegated to a tin shed parking without any rain-cover access to the mall itself. Good job guys, for reinforcing the stereotype of two-wheels poor, four-wheels rich and treating people as second-class citizens based on their mode of transportation.
Hi Su Yin
Thanks for your comment. Not only your friends but some of the cyclists I met are scared to ride in town...even a small town in Batu Pahat. So far I can say that 95% of the motorists give way to me.
Yeah...the malls normally don't provide facilities to park the bicycles. Normally I will just lock up my bike at the railing or where ever I feel its safe from theft.
People still have the perception that bicycle as a mode of transport is only meant for the haves not.
helo
i have been multi-modal (cycle+public transport) to work for quite some times...at first i cycled to the nearest station form my home but now i cycle to the further distance.... i think cycling in our country is more of sport & recreational (you can see a lot of mountain biking activities going on over the weekend and some group of fellows with lyra riding road bike in the evening or early morning during weekend) ... so far it was only me alone that ride to work (to ktm station actually) in my area...
ktm station do not have parking facilities for bicycle either...as a matter of fact a lot of public buildings or area do not have proper bicycle shed/park
best regards
haslan
what a great research you've done bro! :D
mohdhaslanr
bike commuting among malaysians is still not a lifestyle yet. I guess building a parking facilities is still like chicken and egg situation. Will more malaysians ride to work should more parking facilities build? Would they want to park at the parking areas provided? I realised that most of us ride a recreational/sports bike which are not suitable for commuting purposes.
Well I think when the no of bikes increases that park haphazardly at the parking areas, then only the respective authorities would consider of building one for bikers.
syafiqisfree
Thanks. I just write based on my personal experience of taking the public transport.
Salam ...
Hi Bro... Minggu nie saya baru start ride to work sebab basikal baru siap pasang minggu lepas. Sebelum nie saya dah biasa pergi kerja naik basikal sebab tempat kerja lama nie baru 7km (one way). So di sebabkan dari puchong ke Sek19 P.J lebih kurang 25km(one way) nak kena proper sikit la basikalnya..
Dari segi pemandu-pemandu kereta & motosikal memang dalam 95% yang bertimbangrasa lah... tapi kita kena lah hormat mereka dulu kalau nak mereka hormat kat kita, betul tak bro? so the main point is we need to respect each other on the road.
Semoga ramai lagi nak ke tempat kerja via Bicycle.
Nice one bro..
To me hot weather is the main reason people in Malaysia refused to bike commute to work, even they are staying <10km from workplace. Just look at Putrajaya..bike lane ready but still less bike commuters.
Interest & passion are something to be considered for people in Malaysia which is new to this bicycle culture. Maybe our gov got to do something.
My 1st suggestion is to add an extra coach to lrt/komuter for rider/bicycle. I am confidence this will be a good start to bring bicycle commuting culture into Malaysia.
Ride safe :-)
RuDon
25km memang jarak yang ideal. Memang pengalaman saya pun 95% motorist memang bagi jalan. Alhamdulillah dah semakin ramai yg berkayuh ke tempat kerja.
Fio
Hot weather is one of the excuse people give. But honestly to me, there's such thing as bad weather but bad clothing. Also you won't really sweat if we cycle at a slower pace.
It would be great if there's extra coach or even they allow bicycle in the lrt or KTM komuter. But I understand that they allow foldable bike.
But personally if the distance is 25km and below (one way), it would be more efficient to just ride coz some of our time would be lost waiting for the trains.
Akan berbasikal semula ke opis lepas bersalin bulan 10 nanti. Only 20km but rolling route bro..nak pakai rodiah plak kali ni..
Angah
Wah dah ada rodiah ya:-) Tentu terperanjat orang kat opis bila tengok bos naik basikal. Tapi tu contoh yg baik dan mesti ramai nak kayuh gak ikut contoh bos gteww...
SALAM BRO...... NEW SET UP OF MY BLOG....
ENJOY....
http://greenbikeride.blogspot.com/
how about everyday cycling!!
wherever you go no matter to the office, scholl, etc...
go riding a bicycle everyday!
I ride to work everyday from Bandar Sunway to Shah Alam, a distance of 30 KM to and fro.
If I drive it takes me 30 mins to 45 mins depending on what time I leave my house. It also takes me the same time depending on how fast I want to ride.
I ride with extreme care without taking anything for granted even at harmless looking junctions, parked vehicles and traffic light. At heavy traffic junction, I just walk my bike to safety.
The roads where I take can be as safe as I make it to be with my riding attitude.
I have been doing this for 16 months now and have not had a scary moment till date.
Thank God for this.
Salam all,
This post has inspired me (influenced me) to take up the challenge and its benefits of riding to work as a prefered commuting option.
For a start, with a moderate investment, what would be a good purchase for this purpose? A mtb, a fixed gear bike or a road bike? I prefer a decent bike that is good for both work and weekends getaway. After many research on the internet, i am lost.
Your advise and insights is very much sought after.
Thank you and salam.
hoping for answer with the same question above,thanks
^_^
hello amt and burhanuddin,
this is just my humble opinion, i started bicycling when i realised i couldnt fit in almost all of my pants and my cholesterol levels sky rocketing 6.2 total cholesterol which it's supposed to be below 4.2
and my weight of 76kg with BMI 27.Now after 5 months of cycling, i've lost 5 kg and my cholesterol level dropped to 3.0. I can even wear my 5 years old pants now. Feeling more healthy and light!!
me and my wife decided to start cycling and both of us also finding it difficult to find a suitable bike for us with limited budget.
as we are also looking for a moderate investment of a bike , so we decided to buy 1 roadbike and 1 mountain bike. at the begining she prefers hybrid bike.
dont get confused with hybird and city bike. hybrid bike has a suspension and a slick tire and sometimes the frame can be mtb frame or road bike frame.
city bike features is more towards road bike features with a flat handlebars and wider tyre ( as compared to road bike tyre).
if you are looking for a bike to enjoy weekend ride as well, well it depends whether you want to go for on-road (touring) or off road track( which is more challenging).
U can use any bike to ride to work depending on the distance. if less than 10km, any bike will do. More that 10 km you may want a good bike so that ur ride will be more comfortable.
So, it really depends on what you really want, it's worth to invest and it will benefit you! Enjoy ur ride!!!
RuDon
Nice blog:-)
hub'n ride
Yes you right. It should be our lifestyle. The idea of cyclefriday is to encourage people at least to cycle once a week if they can't do it on a daily basis.
Skyman
TQ for your comment. Yes I do sometimes cycle from USJ to Shah Alam via Glenmarie. It took me about 30-45minutes as well:-)
amt, Burhanuddin
Adventus Circle (AC) has already answered your questions. Tq AC.
In addition to that, for my daily commute, I ride an old beater 7 speed chromly MTB and a convert fixie as I don't want to attract attention to my bike. I just need a bike which is low in maintenance.
Should you need further assistance and info, kindly sms me.
Great to hear this!
Wanna know where to park your bikes?
Check out http://honghong-environment.blogspot.com/2010/09/how-to-make-world-greener-cycle-to-work.html. Probably common in KL now...Free parking...hehe
Hi azizan,
Cycling is the best, cheap and fun transportation. When I was in Japan, I used to travel a lot with my frens and sometimes took a few days for touring. But when I back to Malaysia, in Klang Valley itself have many highways. I live in Cheras and really want to cycle to my office in PJ but I dun think I can avoid from using highway. My question is, is it legal to cycling on highway?If yes, then I will try to find the best route to my office this weekend.Another thing is, there will be no problem to ride in the morning coz I will traveling in early morning with lees traffic. But when in the evening, the traffic become busy and riding on highway to Cheras from PJ will be scary me off. I do need an advise for that?
Thank you
Zaidi,
Sorry for the late reply. I am extremely busy that I don't have the time to update this blog.
As per your question, if you are travelling alone most probably they will allow you to use the highway. I am so sure the best route for you.
The best is to try it out during holidays first. That's what I did before. I tried it out for a few weekends until I am confident and familiar on the route.
Regarding on your way back, I would recommend to start your journey after maghrib as there will be less traffic. That's what I did when I travel from KL to Subang.
Good Luck!
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