The majority of bike commuters cover distances ranging from a few miles up to about 15 miles. This means cycle times varying from around 10 minutes up to an hour for the morning commute. By most standards, these distances are very achievable for people with a small amount of cycling experience and standard fitness levels.
Longer bike commutes are much more demanding on your time and your body. A bike commute over 15 miles can be a more serious undertaking but is achievable with the right level of knowledge and preparation and longer distances shouldn’t mean giving up on your bike commute entirely.
A key factor to consider when thinking about longer commute distances by bike is the extra time investment required. How long your bike commute takes will depend largely on a number of factors and is explored in this article for shorter commute distances. The table below compared commute times for shorter distances at an average speed of 12 mph (19 kph).
| Distance | Commute Time |
| 5 miles (8 km) | 25 minutes |
| 7 miles (11 km) | 35 minutes |
| 10 miles (16 km) | 50 minutes |
| 15 miles (24 km) | 1 hour 15 minutes |
| 20 miles (32 km) | 1 hour 40 minutes |
Increasing your average speed will have a positive effect on the time your commute takes but there is limited action you can take here especially with a commute ride where you want to be able to effectively do your job without being completely exhausted.
The rate at which duration against distance increases is on a linear scale so you can see how adding distance will impact the time you need for long commutes so this needs to be a consideration when you opt for a longer bike commute distance.
It is important to remember, you are not just commuting to work, there are other benefits that you can trade against your longer commute time, examples, of which, are given below:
- You get a significant daily workout – you can swap the time taken for you weekly exercise and bake it into your commute, this is trade when it comes to the time spent on your commute. You will burn calories and increase fitness, which is a benefit not to be overlooked.
- You save money – the savings to be had can be offset against the extra time you spend on your daily commute.
- You spend time using other commuting methods – even though your time is increased for a longer commute, you have to offset the time you would be in your car or on public transport for your commute. You are not trading your ‘free’ time for bike commuting here. You are swapping some time in the car, which could be quite significant when considering rush hour traffic.
Opting for bike commuting when you are distances in excess of 15 – 20 miles is a real commitment and a personal choice and will depend on a number of personal factors and influences. Taking on longer daily distances will need to become part of your lifestyle and will need to develop a strong bike commute mindset but it is achievable and can be very worthwhile.
This article gives further advice on how to bike commute longer distances.
Try Multi-Modal Commuting
A simple way to start on the long commute is to make it shorter. I know this sounds obvious but many people underestimate how convenient a multi-modal commute can be to get the best of all options. Multi-modal commuting is a good way to ease in the longer commute distances and build up to taking on the whole thing at some later point.
Multi-modal commuting, for those that do not know, is taking two forms of transport and combining these into your commute. This enables a longer commute to still have an element of cycling, for example, when combined with another form of transportation.
You could combine cycling with your normal car journey by driving part of the way, parking your car, and continuing on your commute by bike. Most road bikes will squeeze into a medium-sized car with the back seats declined. You may have to remove a front wheel but this is easy with modern quick release systems.
If you can’t fit your bike in your car, then bike carrying systems are great and relatively inexpensive. These can range from rear-mounted rack systems to roof mounting systems. I personally have tried all forms of bike transport systems. I have used the £40 rear mounting ones but eventually settled on this roof-mounted system from Thule.
While the Thule system will cost a little more, it feels a much more secure option and won’t put pressure on your rear window. There is nothing worse than feeling your bike is not secure when driving on busy roads. The roof-mounted ones can almost be fitted and forgot about (unless you go under a low barrier in a car park, which I did a few weeks ago, and wiped out the bikes on the roof, a story for another day).
Whilst I like the Thule system, any system will enable you to part commute by car and part commute by bike. Once you start to build the bike commuting mindset and establish the good habits, you can increase the distance you cycle each day until you find your challenging limit.
This multi-modal approach will work well with most public transport options too. You can take your bike on most train services in the UK for free, although it does depend on space in the carriage and what time are day you travel so it is worth checking with your local service. This means you have a shorter ride to the station and then a shorter ride from the station to your workplace. An ideal solution.
Again, once you are comfortable with this approach you can perhaps look to increase the distance but getting off the train at an earlier station if your route allows increasing the length of the ride until you find a challenging limit.
This approach can also be adopted in a taxi or you can usually bring your bike on Uber. The same approach can then be adopted here.
Combining these multi-modal methods means you can reduce your cycling distance but still enjoy all the benefits of cycling to work such as improved health, fitness, wellbeing and a reduction in commuting costs.
Ensure You Fuel Your Commute
If you commute more than 20 miles in any one direction on your commute, you are going to need to fuel that length of ride. According to this article by Cycling Weekly, a person weighing 75 kg and travelling at an average pace of 13 mph will burn 600 kCal per hour. This is equivalent to eating 7 bananas approximately.
With this level of calorie burn, your 2 hour commute could be burning 1200 calories, which is like eating a Roast dinner. Now, obviously there are loads of factors that effect this, and this isn’t an article about burning calories, but you get the point, you have to fuel these rides. You are going to need to make sure you have a way of replacing calories over the course of the ride.
The main thing is being ready to fuel your long-distance bike commute is preparation. You need to make sure you have a healthy breakfast ready to go and then you have the capacity to carry any food you need for the journey. I also find that when I arrive at work, I feel much more hungry in the day when I have cycled a long bike commute.
Obviously, a major benefit to completing a long commute, is the calorie burn and the health benefits this brings so you don’t want to be stuffing your face all day and counteract all the benefits. You need to make sure you eat a balanced healthy diet throughout the day to keep hunger at bay, provide fuel for your return journey and ensure you are not overheating the calories and completely undoing your good work.
With the extra food demand, you may need to plan a short break in your long distance commute in order to take on food during the journey. This can be as simple as a protein bar on a park bench at the half way point. Or you may need something more substantial such as some oats and fruit. Whatever your body demands, be prepared to take a little extra time on your commute to eat if required.
To fuel your body you will need to be eating a good intake of carbohydrates and protein. Carbs will give your body the energy to expel on your commute, whilst protein will prime your muscles for the work to come whilst ensuring a faster rate of recovery to help with the journey home.
A 20 mile commute will also demand hydration. Water may be enough but you may need to opt for supplemented hydration to replace electrolytes you will loose from sweating, especially if you commute on hot days.
Make sure you are prepared to fuel your commute so you can smash the miles and don’t have a valid excuse to give your long-distance bike commute a miss.
Quality of Bike and Fit-Up
When considering a commute of 20+ miles, you will need to consider your equipment. I am not a fan of advocating the need to top of the range bikes or gear and generally think you can commute on anything, but in the case of long distance commutes, this starts to swing a bit in favour of better gear.
For this distance, you will most certainly need a lightweight road bike. A road bike is built for covering large distances at fast speeds and will make the long commute much less of a drag. The equivalent ride on a mountain bike would feel like riding through thick mud for the last 5 miles and would be a real challenge for the average bike commuter.
Thi may mean spending a little more on your bike than you may have planned, and whilst I never suggest owning a bike you cannot afford, a higher quality bike will pay you back with interest over the kinds of long distances discussed in this article. If you spend 5 days commuting over 20+ miles, your will be spending a lot of time and energy with this bike as your partner, make sure it is a good companion.
Once you have your ideal bike, get it fitted up for you personally. The extra comfort that can come from a properly fitted bike should not be underestimated, especially for longer distances. A professional cycle store, will generally offer free fitting if you are ordering a bike, I have even taken mine in at a later date as my needs changed and they changed the setup for free. It is well worth the time to get your bike fitted up properly.
A well fitted bike will reduce saddle soreness, shoulder and hand pain, neck pain, and it will even allow you to generate more power, and hence speed, whilst riding. Its a complete win-win and shouldn’t skipped. I even advocate fitting when your commute is not long distance but I do like my comforts!!!
Leave Plenty of Time
When your commute is short, it is much easier to predict the time it will take to get to your workplace. When you increase the distance to a more significant bike commute, you will find it harder to predict. A slightly slower average speed, due to a persistent headwind, will play havoc on your predictions.
If you have to stop for a toilet break, a drink or to re-fuel your body (food) this will also play into the time it takes to complete the ride. A longer commute will also increase the likelihood of getting a puncture and needing to change it.
This can become extremely stressful if you are on a race against time to get to that all important 9am meeting with the boss. Adding stress into the equation just makes it more likely that you will jump in the car and not onto the bike and so it should be avoided if possible.
Give yourself some extra time to complete the ride, you can always relax in the warmth of the shower, or grab an early coffee and some peace and quiet should you arrive significantly earlier than required. Better than a mad rush to the finish.
Reduce Bike Commute Frequency
A great way to tackle a long commute distance is to simply not do it as often. If motivating yourself to cover a 20 mile commute, each way, 5 times a week is proving too difficult, give yourself a break. Reduce the frequency of the commute. You could opt for a day a week at first and then build up to whatever is a comfortable frequency for you.
Taking on a longer commute for one or two days a week will have a massive benefit on your health when compared to not taking it on so use a combination of commuting methods to achieve this increased commuter distance.
Mix-Up your Bike Commute
A way to keep motivated and tackle your longer commute is just to simply mix it up. What i mean but this is just change yoru routine periodically.
Methods for mixing it up can include:
- Drive to work with your bike on the roof, and then cycle home. Then cycle to work the next morning and drive home in the evening.
- Change frequency.
- Use a number of multi-modal methods
- Take a number of different routes.
Whatever methods of mixing it up you take, this will have the effect of making your long distance bike commute much less daunting, and more manageable. It will also serve to ensure your motivation does not desert you over the long term.
Facilities Needed to Help Your Longer Commute
When taking on a longer distance commute, you are going to need some facilities at the other end. This includes a shower, lockers and changing facilities.
Whilst you can often get away with no shower for a shorter commute, when you opt for 20+ miles there is no doubt you will be sweaty. A shower is a must, it is also needed to soak away and fatigue from the commute and help you to freshen up before commencing the workday.
You will need lockers too to store clean clothes as riding with your clothes would be best avoided to ensure you are not carrying more weight than is necessary.
Summary
You can defiantly succeed in bike commuting long distances, all it takes is good preparation, a strong motivated mindset and a grounded expectations on what can be achieved. There are many ways highlighted in this article as to how to make your long distance bike commute more achievable and more scalable.
It is important to remember why you bike commute in the first place. Your commute takes time, it always has and always will, opting for a bike commute, irrespective of the total commute distance is a highly beneficial choice you can make for you health and wellbeing.
Enjoy crunching the miles!!
