Hey, everyone. Welcome to Wheels on a Bike.
I recently went back to the office,
and with that comes an opportunity to do a lot more bicycle commuting.
And commuting by bike is something that I absolutely love.
It brings so many benefits to my life.
And in this video, I'm going to share with you
what the benefits of commuting by bike are for me.
One thing that I have to mention is that I am incredibly lucky
to live very close to a multi-use trail.
This trail, the Martin Goodman Trail
is fully separated from car traffic.
It is an incredibly safe space for me to bike on.
And in fact, this was one of the reasons why
I ended up selling my car in 2019 and decided to bicycle commute.
I was not comfortable commuting on the road, but having this trail
very close by has allowed me to build that confidence.
The first benefit of cycle commuting for me is
it is the fastest way for me to get to work.
If I take public transit, it takes me anywhere from an hour
and 15 minutes to an hour and a half to get to work.
By the GO Train, the provincial train service,
it takes about an hour for me to get to work.
By bike, it takes anywhere from 35 minutes to 40 minutes,
depending on the weather and the wind.
So it is the most efficient way for me to get around,
especially to get to work.
And it provides or it gives me a sense of autonomy.
I don't have to wait for the next train or the bus
or a streetcar.
I just pedal along and I get myself places.
The second benefit of commuting by bike
for me is not having
all the financial entanglements of owning a car.
Owning a car in Toronto
is really a privilege, a privilege that you certainly pay for.
So I don't have car payments.
What else?
Insurance payments.
I don't pay for gas.
I don't pay for parking.
Parking is very expensive in downtown Toronto,
but we'll get to that next.
The third benefit of commuting by bicycle for me is getting free parking.
Free parking that is really conveniently
located, very close to either the entrance of the building
or the building itself.
I used to pay about $20 to $25 per day to park my car
in the vicinity somewhere close to where I used to work.
So again, those costs add up and those costs are removed,
fully removed, when I ride my bicycle to work.
Now, I am also incredibly lucky
to have beautiful, beautiful parking facilities at work.
Those are public facilities but there's also a secured
parking lot for those who work in the building.
So again, a huge benefit for those who ride their bike
to work is being able to use those stunning bicycle facilities.
The next benefit of riding
a bike to work is never having to be stuck in traffic.
When I drove my car to work,
I used to drive on a highway known as the Don Valley Parkway.
And in Toronto, that highway's also known
as the Don Valley Parking Lot, for obvious reasons.
It's always congested.
In the morning, in the afternoon.
Riding a bike to work gives me a piece of mind.
I certainly was
not in a peaceful state of mind when I was driving my car to work.
The next benefit of riding a bike to work is exercise.
Now, I don't necessarily look at riding my bike as exercise
because I use it for commuting purposes.
But, inevitably, I do get a fair amount of exercise.
But riding my bike in the morning
just again, preps my body, preps my mind
for a very productive workday and riding my bike
in the afternoon, again a bit of exercise
just allows me to let go of of anything that happened at work.
Reassess, recalibrate,
and just enjoy the rest of the day.
The next benefit - the views!
Now, I already mentioned that I ride my bike along the
Martin Goodman Trail, and that trail
is part of the Waterfront Trail.
And that means that I ride really close to the lake.
And in the winter especially, or in the shoulder seasons,
I get to see the most stunning sunrises.
And in the winter, stunning sunsets, if I'm lucky.
So being able to ride next to the lake,
seeing the natural beauty that is surrounding me,
it's just uplifting.
Certainly lifts the mood.
And, yeah, sets the day again, especially in the morning.
The next benefit of riding my bike to work is, it's fantastic
conditioning and preps me for the touring season.
So I don't have to go on extra rides, etc.
I just ride my bike to work, especially in the winter time.
That's fantastic conditioning for the touring season.
I have a question for you.
Do you commute by bike? And if so,
what benefits has commuting by bike brought to your life?
Let me know in the comments below.
If you enjoy this video, give it a thumbs up.
Comment, like, share, subscribe, do all the YouTube
things and I will see you in the next one. Bye.
And that's all I want to share with you in terms of ... Wow!
[loud airplane flies above]