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Making a plan!
Dec. 14th, 2009 11:59 pmSo this whole commuting to work by car is starting to get old. Here's what I currently do:
Get up around 7-8am, get in the car by 8:30. Drive to work (880S to either San Maeteo or Dumbarton). Get to work around 9:30-10, depending on traffic. Each way is about 40-50 miles, $4 toll (one way), wear and tear on the car, and I have to stay awake for the entire thing.
But what if I find a way to ride? One "easy" option would be to just take BART down to Union City, and ride across the Dumbarton. ~45 minutes on the train, then on my bike for ~25 miles. Including across the bridge, which is a very windy 4 mile hill. I've ridden across it a few times, it was never fun.
Another option that I started thinking about today is to go the other way. Cross the bay to SF, then take CalTrain to Palo Alto. Thing is, my bike isn't allowed on BART during rush hour across the bay. Which leaves me with two options:
- Take the BART shuttle from MacArthur station to SF (costs $1, runs during rush hour every 45 minutes or so, usually fills up at some point)
- Borrow S's folding bike, which is always allowed on BART, and ride that.
I'm not a huge fan of riding her folder though, but it might do for a test run. If I do like it, I could always buy a modern folder, with a reasonable gear selection, that wouldn't kill me going up the hills to work.
I might try that, but I think I'll try the shuttle first. Which leaves me with the following plan:
- Get up at 7 or so.
- Ride down to MacArthur by 7:30 (2mi ride). Should be there early enough to get a seat on the shuttle.
-- If that fails, ride back home, drive to work, and try again another day!
- Shuttle across to SF, ride to Caltrain (1.2 mi ride).
- Get one of the trains that leave at 8:19, 8:24 or 8:44.
- Get to Palo Alto by 9:01, 9:18 or 9:26.
- Ride to work (3.8 miles).
Total ride: ~$9, 7 miles, get to work by 9:45 or so.
If this works, it's a little bit slower than driving, but not that bad. Significantly cheaper. And I get to read on the shuttle and train for more than an hour. Oh, and also, drive a lot less :)
Sounds awesome, right? ;)
Get up around 7-8am, get in the car by 8:30. Drive to work (880S to either San Maeteo or Dumbarton). Get to work around 9:30-10, depending on traffic. Each way is about 40-50 miles, $4 toll (one way), wear and tear on the car, and I have to stay awake for the entire thing.
But what if I find a way to ride? One "easy" option would be to just take BART down to Union City, and ride across the Dumbarton. ~45 minutes on the train, then on my bike for ~25 miles. Including across the bridge, which is a very windy 4 mile hill. I've ridden across it a few times, it was never fun.
Another option that I started thinking about today is to go the other way. Cross the bay to SF, then take CalTrain to Palo Alto. Thing is, my bike isn't allowed on BART during rush hour across the bay. Which leaves me with two options:
- Take the BART shuttle from MacArthur station to SF (costs $1, runs during rush hour every 45 minutes or so, usually fills up at some point)
- Borrow S's folding bike, which is always allowed on BART, and ride that.
I'm not a huge fan of riding her folder though, but it might do for a test run. If I do like it, I could always buy a modern folder, with a reasonable gear selection, that wouldn't kill me going up the hills to work.
I might try that, but I think I'll try the shuttle first. Which leaves me with the following plan:
- Get up at 7 or so.
- Ride down to MacArthur by 7:30 (2mi ride). Should be there early enough to get a seat on the shuttle.
-- If that fails, ride back home, drive to work, and try again another day!
- Shuttle across to SF, ride to Caltrain (1.2 mi ride).
- Get one of the trains that leave at 8:19, 8:24 or 8:44.
- Get to Palo Alto by 9:01, 9:18 or 9:26.
- Ride to work (3.8 miles).
Total ride: ~$9, 7 miles, get to work by 9:45 or so.
If this works, it's a little bit slower than driving, but not that bad. Significantly cheaper. And I get to read on the shuttle and train for more than an hour. Oh, and also, drive a lot less :)
Sounds awesome, right? ;)
