Bicycle is King-Public Transport is Expensive

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.

Fixie on motorbike=it's only RM4

Since I don't like to take my bike with my car, I always have problem joining rides that requires me to come very early in the morning or leaving late at night after the rides. Costing wise, for instance to drive to Putrajaya to join the Putrajaya Critical Mass, it would cost me around RM21.40 i.e RM15 (petrol) and RM6.40 (Toll). If i use my motorbike (Honda EX5), it would cost me only RM2 (petrol) for that trip. So to solve the problem and to save cost, I have designed a simple bike carrier that uses 2 wooden sticks that you can find at your backyard. I just use 6 bungee cords to tie the bike and the DIY carrier which I bought at the night market for only RM4.


Before you start tying the carrier and the bicycle, make sure your motorbike tank is FULL.


It's only RM4 for this 6 bungee cords


Put the 2 wooden sticks across and tie it with 3 bungee cords (indicated by 2 reds and 1 blue bungee cords) to the GIVI motorbike rack


Position the bike slanting across the carrier


Make sure your crank are parallel and tie the chain with string.


Tie the seat tube to the carrier


Tie the handlebar, top tube and downtube with the bungee cord to the GIVI motorbike rack


Tie the wheelset with the bungee cord to the GIVI motorbike rack


Completed view from rear


Completed view from side


Shake the motorbike to ensure that the bike is firmly secured (QC)! To ensure that you will not scratch you bicycle, you need to cover some of the parts that are in contact with the GIVI motorbike rack and DIY carrier.

I know that some people has done something better than my version. But it's okay. At the moment, it's solved my problem. I will try to improve it in the future.

Use your front brake only and save more!

I have been using my front brake only for braking for the past 2 years and so far no untoward incidents happen. Since I am riding at an average speed of 20km/hr, stopping my bike is not a problem at all. Ever since I learned this technique from the late Sheldon Brown website, I will not have to replace the rear brake pad for a long long time.



I am a fan of V-brake for its low and easy maintenance. My brake pad normally cost me about RM5-10 a pair. I don't use all those expensive brake pads as I just use "Chap Ayam" (ordinary) rims. Commuting bike does not require all those high performance brakes and rims. So start learning the technique of using your front brake and you could save more!

cyclefriday slow ride is back! 8th January 2010

I have been extremely busy for the past 6 months and could not organise the Teh Tarik Session as well as the slow ride. So now let's join the fun and enjoy the city ride.


Meeting place: Pelita near KLCC

Meeting Time: 6pm onwards for Teh Tarik session.

Ride start: 8.30pm

Ride duration: about 1 hour.


Route: Pelita ---> Jln Yap Kwan Seng---> Jln Tun Razak---> Jln Pahang (GHKL) --->Chow Kit ---> Jln Tuanku Abdul Rahman ---> Dataran Merdeka ---> KTM ---> Central Market ---> Petaling Street ---> Puduraya ---> Berjaya Times Square ---> Bukit Bintang ---> KLCC


Note: Not suitable for road bikes coz it's gonna be too slow.