Commuting weather diary

antoobrien · 21-11-2013 2:44pm

what_traffic wrote: »

Road was wet, fallen leaves are not swept often in Galway City

Looks can be deceiving. I've been out for a walk several times this week. The first day the pathways were being cleared, the next day it looked as if nobody had cleared it since spring.

Iwannahurl · 21-11-2013 4:46pm

There was a wee sweeping machine on Threadneedle Road, yesterday I think it was.

The operator was trying to clear up the fallen leaves, and I don't think the machine was quite able for it.

yaledo · 21-11-2013 5:09pm

Iwannahurl wrote: »

My own perception is that while rain is clearly a feature of Galway life throughout the year, it is still possible to walk or cycle a reasonable distance to work or school without being soaked on a regular or frequent basis.
...
It would be good if we can keep this going for a decent length of time, in order to build up a picture of what walking and cycling is really like in terms of weather.

I fully agree with Iwannahurl's contention that it's dry enough in Galway to commute without getting wet frequently. If we gather enough data, and summarise it, I think a lot of people would be pleasantly surprised at just how rare it is for bicyclists & walkers to get soaked - even during the winter.

If anyone is planning an informal, ongoing survey like that, I'd like to see them announce the start of it and the end of it - invite people to join, and give a monthly summary of the results. I would like to contribute details of my own regular journeys on foot and by bicycle.

A difficulty of trying to prove a negative correlation is: If boardsies see dozens of "Today I walked x km and nothing interesting happened" posts, then it won't take long before the thread [and the people posting in it] are ignored.

Perhaps somewhere like livejournal, blogspot or surveymonkey would allow easier collection, management and analysis of data.

Iwannahurl · 22-11-2013 11:31am

The thread is intended as a 'weather diary', and unless one is a celebrity diaries can indeed get a bit boring.

That's not the point though. It's meant to be a rolling record of weather as experienced while commuting. A HSE researcher conducted this exercise several years ago, as part of a broader work travel survey iirc.

What's of interest is whether daily weather conditions really are a significant deterrent to walking and cycling over manageable distances, and whether it rains on commuters as often as is believed.

Data are very important and useful, and for that reason I am also trying to get my hands on local weather statistics, with a view to working out rainfall probabilities/odds.

Today's commute: usual 3+3 km school run by bike. Glorious weather, cold and dry. Senior Infant greatly enjoyed it, and was toasty warm arriving at the school. Traffic unusually light in some areas, unusually heavy in others. Weather-related?

what_traffic · 22-11-2013 11:43am

Trip: Work Commutte @ 09h00
Distance: 10 km.
Time taken: 50 minutes
Mode: Walking and Bus.
Weather: Dry, Sunny and cold.
Comment: 2 bus hops. 405 (Rahoon @ 09h05 to Eyre Sq - 09h15) and then 409 (Eyre Sq@ 09h20 to Parkmore - 09h45 )
Day bus ticket is €3.90

Iwannahurl · 25-11-2013 1:32pm

Trip: usual 6 km round trip by bike to Senior Infants.
Weather: dry again, much milder than I expected.
Comment: school bike shed quite full.

Spoke briefly with another parent and child who had walked 2.2 km (20-25 minutes) rather than their usual cycle, which was not possible/advisable because of an injury.

what_traffic · 25-11-2013 1:52pm

Trip: Work Commutte @ 08h30
Distance: 11 km.
Time taken: 30 minutes
Mode: Cycle.
Weather: Dry, Dull and cool. No wind
Comment: Pleasant cycle. Road damp.

Mr_A · 25-11-2013 8:39pm

Since this thread started I've done a full week of commuting by bike Doughiska-> Ballybritt Industrial Estate. Only had to wear rain pants once and even then it was only precautionary because the road was very wet. Long may it continue!

snubbleste · 25-11-2013 8:45pm

Mr_A wrote: »

Since this thread started I've done a full week of commuting by bike Doughiska-> Ballybritt Industrial Estate. Only had to wear rain pants once and even then it was only precautionary because the road was very wet. Long may it continue!

Do you go through the Ballybrit junction or use the tunnel?

Iwannahurl · 25-11-2013 9:03pm

Mr_A wrote: »

Long may it continue!

We're spoiled these days. Keep those pants on standby...

zarquon · 26-11-2013 1:04am

snubbleste wrote: »

Do you go through the Ballybrit junction or use the tunnel?

The tunnel would put him on the wrong side of the road to go towards the industrial estate. I don't think anyone is stupid enough to Salmon cycle down a dual carriageway!

Iwannahurl · 26-11-2013 10:30am

Trip: school run with Senior Infant cycling under own steam, followed by commute to work.
Distance: 3 + 4 km one way. Journey home after work will be 3.5 km.
Weather: dry, 7 deg.
Comment: all the zeros are in still in the right place, according to galwaycityweather.com. No rain since 2013-11-24 05:24.

kayos · 26-11-2013 10:46am

Trip: To town from Claregalway to do the weekly shopping
Weather: Who cares I was in a car.
Comment: It was fine until travel from the Tuam road down to motor park I came across a group of cyclists (around 10+) and every single one of them on the road, two abreast pretty much taking over the inside lane, rather than the provided Cycle lane. Forcing me to break the speed limit to be safely able to overtake them in the outside lane.

what_traffic · 26-11-2013 11:54am

Trip: Work Commutte @ 09h00
Distance: 11 km.
Time taken: 30 minutes
Mode: Cycle.
Weather: Dry, Dull and cool. No wind
Comment: Pleasant cycle. Went through new junction at Fairhill Road/Raven Terrace/Fr. Griffen Road. Sequence of lights will have to be observed.

kayos · 26-11-2013 12:46pm

Ah what_traffic you deleted your comment about me having to report myself to the AGS.... why the change in heart?

Redhairedguy · 26-11-2013 12:47pm

'Cause it was off topic, and so is your comment. Reign it in!

Iwannahurl · 26-11-2013 12:48pm

what_traffic wrote: »

No wind

The lack of wind is very noticeable too. The leaves on the trees in my back garden were perfectly still yesterday.

Mr_A · 26-11-2013 1:47pm

snubbleste wrote: »

Do you go through the Ballybrit junction or use the tunnel?

Don't use the tunnel on the way in obviously but sometimes on the way back depending on traffic levels, where the lights are in their sequence etc.

what_traffic · 27-11-2013 3:51pm

Trip: Work Commute @ 20h00 on thje 26-11-2013
Distance: 11 km.
Time taken: 30 minutes
Mode: Cycle.
Weather: Dry and mild. Had to remove jacket at 7km mark. No wind
Comment: Pleasant cycle. Car traffic is light at this hour but speeds are higher

what_traffic · 27-11-2013 3:53pm

Trip: Work Commute @ 11h00
Distance: 11 km.
Time taken: 30 minutes
Mode: Cycle.
Weather: Dry and mild. No wind
Comment: Pleasant cycle. Met two horses and riders on the footpath/cyclepath on Bothar na dTreabh between Tuam Road Junction and Ballybane junction. They crossed the road midway between the two junctions before I met them.

Iwannahurl · 27-11-2013 10:27pm

Senior Infant did school run today by bike in both directions, 3 + 3 km. Accompanied on foot for homeward leg, approx 40 minutes. Weather still dry and sunny.

what_traffic · 28-11-2013 1:43pm

Trip: Work Commute @ 20h30 on thje 27-11-2013
Distance: 11 km.
Time taken: 30 minutes
Mode: Cycle.
Weather: Dry and mild. No wind
Comment: Pleasant cycle.

what_traffic · 28-11-2013 1:44pm

Trip: Work Commute @ 11h00
Distance: 11 km.
Time taken: 30 minutes
Mode: Cycle.
Weather: Dry and cool. No wind
Comment: Pleasant cycle. Low motor vechicle traffic at this commutte time.

Iwannahurl · 28-11-2013 3:41pm

Trip: Usual school run, with planned stop-off.
Weather: very pleasant, and I was actually a bit too warm coming back. Still no rain since Nov 24.
Comment: traffic was surprisingly heavy and there was a line of stationary or slow-moving cars stretching back about 1.25-1.5 km from a set of traffic signals. Maybe it's a timing thing (time of morning that is, not timing of traffic signals). Were we just early or late leaving home? I don't know, because I didn't keep track of the time.

what_traffic · 29-11-2013 11:25am

Trip: Work Commute left house Rahoon @ 08h15 -> walked in work door @09h25 Parkmore
Distance: 11 km.
Time taken: 1h10 minutes
Mode: Walking and Bus.
Weather: Dry and cool. Light breeze.
Comment: 405(08h30->08h50) and 409(09h00->09h20) buses taken. Bus was full for both journeys. Bus is a slow mode of transport but could at least read the Tabloid City Tribune.

Iwannahurl · 29-11-2013 11:47am

Trip: Usual school run.
Weather: mild, overcast.
Comment: traffic heavy. Senior Infant asked if it was raining as we were about to head out. Seemed as if there had been a recent shower, but galwaycityweather.com says no rain since 24th November. Impressions can be misleading. Bought City Tribune on the way home.

Iwannahurl · 01-12-2013 11:25pm

It's worth pointing out that November was unusually dry and mild, according to Met Eireann.

Usual school run by bike today. No rain since 24th November.

Iwannahurl · 03-12-2013 7:49pm

Trip: school run.
Distance: 3 km there, 4 km back.
Mode: cycle.
Comment: Senior Infant travelled under own steam. Weather worse now, but still only 1 mm of rain as of 18:45 on 03 December. Totally dry on trip home.

Mr_A · 03-12-2013 11:47pm

After 2 weeks that was the first time cycling in the rain. The met app proved useful once again as I got home in a gap in the worst of the weather. It still wasn't great and could have been worse.

Iwannahurl · 04-12-2013 11:16am

Trip: usual school run, 3 + 3 km. SI under own steam.
Weather: very nice indeed.
Comment: Left home very late, and therefore much later coming back. Long traffic queues on inward leg. Tailbacks starting to form on return journey, presumably related to the time of morning. School pick-up will also be by bike, and weather is expected to be the same. Tomorrow might be a different story...

Mahogany Gaspipe · 04-12-2013 11:47am

I think that this thread should at least make some reference to the weather conditions yesterday evening. It was horrible out there last evening and I would not of liked to been on the bike during that weather.

The absence of such comment is noticeable, and for me at least, it hints at bias.

Iwannahurl · 04-12-2013 12:01pm

What time was that? When I saw and heard the rain last night I was getting the kids ready for bed, iirc.

If anyone was commuting at that time, then by all means post here about it.

To repeat: the purpose of this thread is to make a note of weather conditions while commuting in Galway City. For the majority of commuters, including those on the school run, the morning travel time seems to be 07:30 to 09:30. The afternoon and evening commute times vary, because of different school pick-up times and work knock-off times.

What's of primary interest is whether it really does rain as often -- during the work/school commute -- as people seem to be believe.

Mr_A · 04-12-2013 12:12pm

Mahogany Gaspipe wrote: »

I think that this thread should at least make some reference to the weather conditions yesterday evening. It was horrible out there last evening and I would not of liked to been on the bike during that weather.

The absence of such comment is noticeable, and for me at least, it hints at bias.

I did mention it- but I maybe think the heavy rain came later than most people would be commuting (I was leaving work about 7). I cycled home in the rain, but not in the worst of it admittedly- which I probably would have without the met eireann app and being lucky enough to have the flexibility to delay travel. Even if I'd had to it would have been a big deal though.

Mahogany Gaspipe · 04-12-2013 12:23pm

Iwannahurl wrote: »

What time was that? When I saw and heard the rain last night I was getting the kids ready for bed, iirc.

If anyone was commuting at that time, then by all means post here about it.

To repeat: the purpose of this thread is to make a note of weather conditions while commuting in Galway City. For the majority of commuters, including those on the school run, the morning travel time seems to be 07:30 to 09:30. The afternoon and evening commute times vary, because of different school pick-up times and work knock-off times.

What's of primary interest is whether it really does rain as often -- during the work/school commute -- as people seem to be believe.

Fair enough. I do approve your promotion of cycling in the city. I just thought, maybe mistakenly, that the atrocious conditions of last evening were being ignored.

To comment: from ~1900 onward on my commute NUIG to Kilcolgan it poured down with severe intensity. I was thankfully in a car but it took utmost concentration to drive safely. I found it hard to see the road markings; the road was that inundated with surface water.

Should cyclist go out in such conditions? That isn't meant to be a snide comment; I would feel very exposed as a cyclist on the road in that weather and would be concern of my well being.
Even being in the relative safety of a car I was happy to get off the road on my arrival home last night.

biko · 04-12-2013 1:07pm

This thread is intended as a diary feed. There is another thread for cycling (and walking) discussion.

Lumi · 04-12-2013 1:15pm

My stats from Upper Newcastle show that the heaviest rainfall here occurred between 19.00 and 20.10 and it certainly impacted on my son's evening commute home.

Rainfall for yesterday: 10.0 mm
Maximum rain rate: 54.6 mm/hr at 19:11
High Hourly Rainfall: 8.0 mm at 20:06

Remember that weather conditions in and around Galway city can be very localised. Rainfall in particular can vary tremendously even over very short distances - for example I have often noted a heavy downpour here while the weather station at NUIG - less than 800 meters away has experienced dry conditions. My point is that the Commuting Weather Diary is a useful personal record for individual contributors perhaps but it is impossible to make generalisations about commuting in Galway based on these observations

Iwannahurl · 04-12-2013 2:40pm

Mahogany Gaspipe wrote: »

To comment: from ~1900 onward on my commute NUIG to Kilcolgan it poured down with severe intensity. I was thankfully in a car but it took utmost concentration to drive safely. I found it hard to see the road markings; the road was that inundated with surface water.

Should cyclist go out in such conditions?

This thread is focused on city commuting, and how weather might relate to that on a regular (and probabilistic) basis. Earlier on I mentioned the 47% of Galway residents who live 4 km or less from their place of work or education.

For the record, I can say with almost 100% certainty that I will be doing the school run by bike every day between now and the end of (primary) term. My prediction is that the weather will not be a determining factor (for me anyway, though Senior Infant has balked at cycling to school in rain once or twice since late August).

Let's see how that pans out! :pac:

Iwannahurl · 04-12-2013 2:50pm

Lumi wrote: »

Rainfall in particular can vary tremendously even over very short distances - for example I have often noted a heavy downpour here while the weather station at NUIG - less than 800 meters away has experienced dry conditions. My point is that the Commuting Weather Diary is a useful personal record for individual contributors perhaps but it is impossible to make generalisations about commuting in Galway based on these observations

That will work both ways, through the seasons.

The rain it raineth on the just and also on the unjust fella

. It is possible to make generalisations because individuals are part of communities and the weather affects us all in much the same way over time. When we cycle to school in the morning, for example, we are travelling the same roads as hundreds (thousands?) of other commuters. We are all experiencing the same weather, but from different perspectives perhaps.

One valid and reliable way of making generalisations is to calculate probabilities. I hope to do that eventually, if the data are available and can be used for such a purpose. The key is to base the calculations on secular trends, I reckon. I wonder how many years of data would be sufficient to draw generalisable conclusions from a single data source?

what_traffic · 04-12-2013 3:20pm

Trip: Work Commute @ 09h00 on the 03-12-2013
Distance: 11 km.
Time taken: 30 minutes
Mode: Cycle.
Weather: Dry and mild. Light westerly wind
Comment: Pleasant cycle.

Trip: Work Commute @ 18h40 on the 03-12-2013
Distance: 11 km.
Time taken: 35 minutes
Mode: Cycle.
Weather: Rain, mild conditions. Westerly wind
Comment: Light rain when leaving work, heavy shower at Monivea/Bohermore @18h55(rough guess) eased off again for rest of journey.

Iwannahurl · 05-12-2013 12:27pm

Usual 3+3 km school run this morning, with SI on own bike. Left home slightly earlier than usual. Windy on the way there, and a small amount of rain on the way back. Weather has deteriorated since.

Screenshot from galwaycityweather.com below:

Iwannahurl · 05-12-2013 12:57pm

IWH-OH did work commute by bike within the last ten minutes. Sun coming out, no rain.

Iwannahurl · 06-12-2013 7:57pm

SI did usual school run this morning. No rain.

Light shower during pick up (by car) in the afternoon.

Iwannahurl · 09-12-2013 12:28pm

Trip: usual school run.
Mode: cycle.
Weather: fine, mild.
Comment: nice sunrise. Took around 3 minutes to cross the road at one point, due to unyielding traffic.

Iwannahurl · 10-12-2013 2:16pm

Trip: usual school run.
Mode: cycle.
Weather: fine, mild.
Comment: sweating a bit after 6 km round trip. Feels a lot colder right now though.

Lundar. · 10-12-2013 9:10pm

Trip: work
Mode: cycle.
Weather: fine, mild. Strong head wind at around 9am
Comment: had a fairly strong head wind ,but otherwise another nice day

Lundar. · 11-12-2013 7:42pm

Trip: work
Mode: cycle.
Weather: fine, mild. Breeze has picked this evening
Comment: Got another puncture on the QB.

snubbleste · 11-12-2013 7:50pm

Lundar. wrote: »

..
Comment: Got another puncture on the QB.

Was it from a twig/thorn from the hedge cutting. I warned you guys!

Lundar. · 11-12-2013 9:23pm

Hi snubbleste,

i'm not sure as it was dark when i was cycling i try to watch out for glass, the tyre wents down rather quick (less than 30 secs)

Iwannahurl · 11-12-2013 9:55pm

I recommend puncture-resistant tyres. Got mine several months ago (forget exactly when) and have had only one slow puncture since caused by a tiny piece of wire embedded in the tyre. Someone on Boards advised me a while ago to check regularly for such items, but I forgot. How right they were...

Trip: school run.
Mode: cycle, SI under own steam.
Weather: very pleasant.

inisboffin · 11-12-2013 11:20pm

Trip: work related
Mode: cycle. Finally fixed bike chain and happy!
Weather: Odd weather. Rainy and cold! Only got nippy as I was heading out. Nose cold by time I got to town, but happy to be on the bike again. Seemed to warm up once I got off.:cool:
Comment: Evening cycle. Time of day work wise will skew weather reports either direction. It would be good to have more evening and swing shift type commuters weigh in too. Or at very least mention time of day in the post?

Commuting weather diary

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