Cyclist's experience of commuting (1)

The Transport Authority would like to get us all out of our tin cans and on to our bicycles to commute to work.

I have been doing just that for the last two winter seasons, approximately 12 miles per day which takes me around 10 minutes longer than if I commute by car. I ride in the cooler winter months because June, July and August are simply too hot.

First of all you need a bicycle, which today will cost you at least Lm200 for something decent. However you could easily spend around Lm1,000 if you chose some of the more up-market models. A safety helmet is a good idea at around Lm15; front and rear lights cost around Lm8 and a small waterproof backpack around Lm5. So for very basic equipment, just to get started, you will need around Lm230, not to mention shorts, shoes, reflectors, pollution masks etc. So far I have had to buy three new replacement wheel rims at Lm8.50 each (cheapest possible replacements) after they were bent and buckled by our excellent roads.

Where bicycles are popular it is usually flat. Holland comes to mind. However, Malta is not flat and it's quite hard work pedalling. By the time I get to work I am perspiring quite heavily. I try to avoid rainy days but if I get caught in the rain I arrive at my destination filthy, covered in road grime due to the poor road drainage and puddles on most roads. I am very lucky to have shower facilities at work but I am sure not all commuters have that luxury.

While many drivers are courteous and polite towards me, there are those who are not and one can risk life and limb commuting, especially riding home in the dark.

Painting white lines along the side of some roads and calling them bicycle lanes is questionable; sadly the majority of Maltese roads just do not have the room for these lanes.

So tell me, how many commuters are going to fork out around Lm230 to Lm250 to risk life and limb every time they pedal to and from work not to mention the physical effort, arriving sweaty at best and possibly very dirty. Sadly not too many. A few people like myself do it primarily for the exercise.

So I do not think that Joe Borg (Cyclists - The Need For Legislation, December 20) will see our roads being taken over by thousands of pedal pushing maniacs any time soon. Perhaps the ADT needs a serious rethink.