Survey on Commuter Bikes
 

Hi All,

My name is Yash Chandak and I am currently pursuing my masters at UCD. I am doing an assignment on the commuter bicycle market in Ireland and the motivations and perceptions of people about it. One of my methods for collecting data is via netnography (internet etnography) which in simple words is browsing through forums and social media websites and looking for posts, comments and opinions of current and potential customised bicycle buyers. There are a few ethical guidelines I need to follow and they include me actually posting this on here so I can get your approval of using your posts as data. On top of that, I am hiding all information about people's names and post dates so everything stays anonymous. If someone is not ok with me doing this, please leave a comment and I will make sure not to include your comments in my paper.

Please help me by answering the following questions:

1. What do you love and hate the most about commuting bikes (solely as as a product, not their use)?
2. And why do you feel this way?

Thank you all,
Yash

While I commute, I have never owned or commuted on a bike that is marketed as a commuting bike, assuming that's what you mean by "commuting bike." I have used mountain bikes, my Bike Friday NWT, which is designed for travelling, and my Surly LHT, which is a bike designed and marketed for loaded touring. I even commuted to and from school on road bikes.

My 2 bikes that I commute on are not specifically "commuting" bikes, designed for that purpose. One is a traditional road bike with bigger tires then might be used for racing and weekend group rides, that bike also has add'l top tube and underseat bags to carry some stuff. My 2nd bike used is a traditional 700c wheeled touring bike, heavy steel, bigger tires yet, with rack and rear panniers for carrying ad'll gear - clothing,shoes, etc.... Note that my commute is between 18 and 27 miles one-way and is not a daily occurance.

I don't "hate "anything about either bike as they get used for other cycling uses, thus they serve their purpose well. I purchased both bikes with commiting in mind

University College, Dublin. Ireland. Do you really want the opinions of a bunch of Americans?

I don't know how helpful this will be for your research, but I have commuted by bike for 20 years on at least 10 different bikes, not one of which was designed or marketed as a commuter bike. (Road bikes, mountain bikes, CX bike, fixed gear, and I've even ridden my TT bike to work.) I suspect that this applies to many of my fellow bike commuters as well.

There's a street in Dublin named after my family (the respectable ones who stayed at least).

I don't ride a commuting bike either. My commuter is a converted classic steel mountain bike, which I love to tiny bits; it's my heart bike, and the only thing that would improve it would be -- um, nothing, really, Pretty Purple Princess Penelope is pretty perfect as she is.

Americans???

I've commuted by bicycle but have never ridden a bicycle designated as a "commuter bike".

Lost Canadians?

Canada is part of America, although some may wish to disown their southern neighbor.

I commute pretty much daily, not sure the bike I usually use for commuting (a hybrid) is marketed as a 'commuter bike' though.
However I have been commuting for a while on dutch bike with a step through frame - that should count, even though it had derailleurs as opposed to SS or IGH.

Things I liked about it:
- Full fenders and chainguard do a good job of keeping clothing tidy
- rolled very nicely
- frame lock comes in handy when popping into a store for a minute

Things I hated about it:
- I don't like the looks of full fenders and chainguard.
- it was rather heavy at around 38 lbs. It was felt un uphills and when accelerating.
- didn't like the upright sitting position and backswept bars. Not so much because of increased air drag, but the backswept bars interefered with my knees when navigating tight turns, and the sitting position put most of my weight over the rear wheel, which made steering in snow tricky.
- the combination of head angle and rake made the steering twitchy.

I never once used the rack during the ~5 month period I used it. I'm used to carrying a backpack, since my usual ride don't have a rack.

:rolleyes:

Of course, with a few wonderful exceptions...

My commuting bike was converted from an older road bike specifically to address the things encountered while commuting (e.g. installation of mud guards, racks for cargo bags, and lighting). Everybody's commuting needs are different and no one off-the-shelf bike is going to be completely functional as a "commuting bike". A person planning to commute should select a bike that has most of the desired features, but with the expectation that customization will be necessary.

I don't think I've ever commuted on a 'commuter bike', with the exception of three days using a bike share at an out of town conference (not sure if that's a commuter bike). I'm thinking of a 'commuter bike' as what's typically marketed that way: an upright, flat bar bicycle with clearance for wider tires than a road bike and braze-ons for attaching racks, fenders, etc.

Why I don't use a 'commuter bike':

• Upright position and lack of hand positions is less comfortable to me
• I prefer to have a lighter bike and carry things on my back, rather an overbuilt bike with a rack
• Narrow tires are fine for my commutes, except in ice - which can be accommodated with a gravel bike
• I like to integrate recreational road cycling and commutes into the same ride
• Deep winter riding is better served by an old MTB with wider studded tires than a commuter bike (and 26x2.0 tires are still readily available.)

Yeah, the continental Americans and the Americans by nationality otherwise known as 'Mericans or USA'ers. Not sure why anyone would disown you though. :D

We can accurately say that Canada is part of the Americas as we were taught in grade school. This denotes there is more than one country that makes up the American continent. America is often used in reference to the USA and is specifically incorrect.

My commuter bike is a beach cruiser. I love the laid back nature of the design, fat tires, fenders, and it's fun to ride.

Of course, there are citizens from many countries in the Americas and those citizens are continental Americans.

However, when speaking of demonyms used to describe a nation's citizens and the nation they are from:

Citizens of Federative Republic of Brazil are called Brazilians, and their nation is referred to as Brazil.
Citizens of the United Mexican Statesare called Mexicans, and their nation is referred to as Mexico.
Citizens of the United States of America are called Americans, and their nation is referred to as America.

As unfair as that may sound, that's the way it is.

I LOVE that my commuter bike is a true beater that cost me nothing. Rescued it after it went unclaimed following a purge of shared storage room space at my co-op. Don't care if it gets scratched, etc.

HATE that I still have to lock the thing up otherwise some loser would steal it just because it's a bike.

I think every poster here is missing the question. He/She is not asking what you ride and why, it's why you do or do not use a commuter specific bike. Conversions that you commute on or use around town use are NOT commuter bikes. Here are some random pics of commuter specific bikes I found. The question is why you would or would not buy a bike like this to commute on or use around town.

My reason is they are too heavy (I like lighter, road bike based conversion) and in New York, any new bike gets stolen so why pay > $500 for a new bike when an old beater conversion is as good and less likely to get stolen (and may have some character too).

https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...ba04913030.jpg

Heh, I assumed UCD meant University of California, Davis...long known as a bike-friendly area. In the USA there are now some nice commuter bikes including some with internal-gear hubs & even belt-drive that reduce maintenance esp in wet weather. However they're a bit expensive (one might worry about theft) & they're mostly flat-bar style. Also, those nice USA commuter bikes can be hard to find in our bike shops. In the USA commuters seem to be either enthusiasts who prefer drop bars or else working-class guys who ride inexpensive used mountain bikes.

Of course in Germany & the Netherlands etc there's a lot of sensible commuter bikes that come with mudguards & lights etc but again, always with flat bars.

I believe my Norco CityGlide with Nexus 8 hub is a commuter bike, but I didn't buy it to commute on. Simply because I'll never be able to commute by bike with my current job.

When I got it last spring (used) it weighed in right at 30 pounds. Of course, changing the saddle, changing tires, adding a rack with small basket, and adding simple lights brought it up to 35 pounds. I don't notice the weight until I heft it up to the hanging hooks on my garage's ceiling. And the rear with the IGH and rack is definitely the heavy end.

Even though I'm not a commuter, what I like about my "commuter" bike is the multi-speed internal gear hub. It's easy to shift at a full stop and it has a simple chainline, plus no derailleur hanging down. The gears are a bit spread apart compared to a derailleur bike, but the gear selection is sufficient for getting from A to B as long as you're not the type "married" to a particular pedaling cadence.

Also, the front/rear rack mounts and dual bottle mounts are nice, plus the alloy frame keeps the weight down a bit.

What I wish was different was tire width. The CityGlide can only fit a 700x38 and still use fenders. I'd like a frame that could accept up to 45mm wide tires with fenders and still be marketed as a commuter bike. Why? A softer ride over bad pavement or trails, plus a little more tread on the ground for a bit more traction always suits my preferences.

I was going to follow up to state that the OP posting this question on a forum dedicated to cycling, is likely to get answers from only dedicated cyclists. As such they/we will likely have multiple bikes, some of which are used for commuting. The OP asked "What do you love and hate the most about commuting bikes (solely as as a product", which when asked on a cycling dedicated forum, is naturally going to generate responses along the lines of ,most of us do not actually own bikes designed solely for commuting.

I would assume that folks who purchase bikes JUST for commuting, are not hanging around this forum much.

I like the new commuter bikes. I've been riding the same kind of bike for years, albeit mine is thrown together from old parts, including IGH.

It's nice to see that the bike makers are able to make a decent bike that's suited for regular urban transportation. They tend to have a comfortable geometry and fittings that you would otherwise have to pay extra for such as fenders, rack, etc.

The problems are not specific to commuter bikes, but affect all styles: Low end bikes have compromised components such as steel parts that will rust if the bike is used outdoors in varying weather. High end bikes are expensive and call attention to themselves.

Some of the things I don't like, have to do with marketing:

* Treating "urban" riding as if the city is some kind of treacherous jungle, to be conquered. Gimme a break.

* Bikes that look too much like they are designed for 60-somethings riding to the "farmers" market on Saturday.

I was still comfortable on my commuter when I hurt myself at work, because, electric.

I can't be late. Thankfully I have huge tyres,very heavily armoured. I can hit anything - kerbs, glass, whatever.

Obviously I can carry shopping. It's not a commuter if you cant.

Commuting is s chore, it's not a sunny Sunday afternoon job. Rain, snow, 5am, you've just gotta get on with it. A bomb-proof electric cargo bike is the answer. No compromises. No **** brakes, tiny tyres, plastic frame, or general trophyism. You need something that cannot fail.

If the original poster would explain exactly what constitutes a "commuter bike" I could respond better to his question.

Like many others, I have used a variety of bikes for commuting. For me it was usually essential that the bike have a rack, but not necessarily wide tires, or be "overbuilt." I just prefer not to wear a knapsack on a bike, and I generally carry more gear than could comfortably fit in a small pack.