Bus vs bike - bus sucks

Yes, posting has been light of late. So has the bike riding. In fact, it's been non-existent for a week due to a combination of unsocial work hours, social occasions and a torn muscle that makes it hard for me to get my leg over (the saddle).

That's given me the opportunity to record my trips into work on the bus using a nifty app on my phone (which I also use for the occasional bike ride).

I have a choice of only one bus route to work, and it's a sucky route. It's designed to maximise patronage rather than minimise travel time. Even though the route is a long and winding one, it's still 4km shorter than my bike route (I deliberately extend my route at several locations to get a bit more exercise).

How do the travel times stack up so far this week?

Bus trip one - duration of 50 minutes, average speed of 7.75km/hr. That was before peak hour when the school holidays were still in progress, meaning traffic was light. It was the fastest trip home on the bus in living memory.

Trip two - duration of 61 minutes with a pace of 6km/h (for some reason, the app has recorded different journey lengths for a trip with the same start and destination). The suckiness of that trip was enhanced by me leaving my umbrella in the office, so the last 300 metres of my journey home was completed in the pissing rain in a suit.

Bike trip one - 13.33km/h (I forgot to stop the app recording at the end of the trip).
Bike trip two - 18.37km/h
Bike trip three - 17.31km/h
Bike trip four - 21.57km/h (one time I actually remembered to shut the app down when I reached my driveway) - a time of 32.5 minutes.
Bike trip five - 20.2km/h (another time I remembered to tell the app I had arrived home not long after I actually got home).

I'll be on the bus a few more times over the next week, and I'll try to remember to record each journey (I simply forgot to record most of them). On the evidence so far, the bus sucks balls big time. To cap it off, it's been cold and wet, but the air con on the buses has been set to a very warm 18 degrees or so. It's easier to catch a cold on the bus than standing in the rain and wind at an exposed bus stop.

I guess this also helps explain why I ride - I can get to work and back in less than 90 minutes (barring the occasional puncture) and get some exercise at the same time. The alternative is to spend two or more hours waiting for or waiting on a bus whilst getting a fat arse. The bike is simply the logical alternative.

By the way, regarding the Big Blair Race (which is coming soon) - the trip to the rowing club will probably add five minutes to my ride time, meaning I should be able to do the CBD to the finish line in about 40 minutes (depending on traffic densities, traffic lights etc). It'll be interesting to see if Tim can do the same at 5pm on a Friday.