Folding bike vs DBS vs Two Bikes for Commute

SachaJ

I'm moving up to Drogs in the next couple of months and assessing my options for the commute into Dublin City centre. Chances are I'll be able to work from home a few days a week.

So assuming I have to commute two days a week, I'm thinking Motorbike vs Car vs Train/Bicycle. At the minute the train/bicycle option is not looking bad if I can manage to cycle to the station in Drogheda and from Connolly to work. Judging by the current MPG on the motorbike, the yearly fuel (two days a week) would cost €960 whereas a yearly train ticket is just over €1000.

So for the bike options I can either:

1. Have two tatty bikes and leave them locked on location
2. Buy a folding bike and bring it on the train with me
3. Have one tatty bike and leave it in Drogheda station and use Dublin Bikes in the City

Which of the option sounds the best? How heavy are folding bikes and are they really an option to carry on a train as luggage (or would they have to go in the hold?).

I've heard of bike lockers in Connolly but not sure if they still exist.

lennymc

a good few people bring foldy bikes on the drogheda - connolly line. Dont rule out cycling in, its not a bad route, and depending on where in dublin you are, it may not be that much slower than the train. I sometimes cycle in, and it takes about 20 minutes more than getting the train.

hardCopy

What part of the city centre are you in, is there a DB stand nearby?

I don't think I'd want to leave any bike in the city centre overnight.

SachaJ

Yeah, think there are a couple of DB stations near work so that might work out. A fold up bike would be handy in that I wouldn't have to lock a bike in Drogheda station and hope it's there when I get back.

There's no way I'm cycling down. They'd need a defib when I get there....

Mr. Grieves

A friend of mine commutes between Drogheda and Trinity. He gets the bus and they let him put a full size bike in the luggage area (it's one of the private bus companies, I don't know the name, think they have wifi too). I gather it's quicker than the train and he can cycle to and from the stops at either end. The only caution I'd give is that this guy travelled everywhere by Dublin Bus when he lived in Dublin, which indicates an unusually high tolerance for public transport and great patience.

Jawgap

Matthews Coaches let you put a full size bike in the luggage compartment - it can get crowded so maybe don't use your best bike.

It's also cheaper than the train (and quicker) - E5.50 one way if you pay using a Leap Card.

tomasrojo

SachaJ wrote: »

How heavy are folding bikes and are they really an option to carry on a train as luggage (or would they have to go in the hold?).

A Brompton is fine for taking on a train as hand luggage. You can even put it in a bag if you think anyone will try and stop you. Once it's in a bag, it really doesn't resemble a bike at all.

A Brompton weighs much the same as a normal bike, but it unfolds and folds very quickly, so you can wheel it all the way to the train before folding and boarding.

However, they are quite expensive (about €800-900 for a three-speed with front-mounting luggage), and there is a long wait of at least a few months after you order.

They're great though.

Qualitymark

SachaJ wrote: »

Yeah, think there are a couple of DB stations near work so that might work out. A fold up bike would be handy in that I wouldn't have to lock a bike in Drogheda station and hope it's there when I get back.

There's no way I'm cycling down. They'd need a defib when I get there....

My granddad used to cycle to Drogheda and back three times a week to teach a carpentry class. In his seventies.

rflynnr

I'd go with the folder for about a million different reasons, the key one being flexibility but also that, depending on where you work, you can avoid locking it outside and bring it in with you. A good one - Brompton, Mezzo or top of range Dahon - is nearing €1000 however . If you're willing to travel, however, it can be worth looking at bikes for sales on the CTC Forums in the UK. If there's one for sale within range of a "Ryanair-ed" airport, it can bring the cost (travel included) down significantly.

drogtastic

Definitely go matthews coaches.

V comfortable busses, v reliable service, much greater range of services (pretty much on the half hour), free wifi, gauranteed seats, courteous drivers and none of the guff, excuses, lies and downright disgraceful treatment you can expect from CIE's axis of evil (irish rail, dublin bus, bus eireann).

They also carry bikes free (bus eireann charge 12 eur per journey), I'd recommend doing that. Forget about dublin bikes, they'll let you down during peak times (i.e. half the stations empty, half them full) and are totally unreliable now that the fuss has died down. Don't lock a decent bike anywhere in dublin, I've taken to buying a second hand crock and painting it to make it look even less desirable to the howayas!

lennymc

matthews coaches are a good bit dearer than irish rail for an annual ticket IIRC. If you can avail of the taxsaver ticket I think it worked out about twice as expensive for matthews, but I could be wrong.

Sachaj, a few of us are thinking of starting a commuter group heading in from drogheda and home in the evenings couple of times a week if your interested. Should be starting in the next couple of weeks.

bren_mc

lennymc wrote: »

matthews coaches are a good bit dearer than irish rail for an annual ticket IIRC. If you can avail of the taxsaver ticket I think it worked out about twice as expensive for matthews, but I could be wrong.

Sachaj, a few of us are thinking of starting a commuter group heading in from drogheda and home in the evenings couple of times a week if your interested. Should be starting in the next couple of weeks.

i use matthews and bring my old mountain bike on it. with regard to cost, its about the same as irish rail and you can also avail of the taxsaver with matthews. there's often quite a lot of bikes stacked up in the luggage compartment so you wouldn't want to be bringing a good bike. that said, i know that if i go very early or very late, there'll be no other bikes so i can bring the road bike and cycle home - its a handy way of getting a decent spin in during the week. i used to go by rail and there's no way i'd go back to it.

SachaJ

Cheers for the info....

Do Matthews only drop off on the North Side? Or do they venture anywhere near Heuston Station?

Jawgap

SachaJ wrote: »

Cheers for the info....

Do Matthews only drop off on the North Side? Or do they venture anywhere near Heuston Station?

Yes and no.

lennymc

i didnt know matthews did the taxsaver bren - cheers for that.

drogtastic

lennymc wrote: »

i didnt know matthews did the taxsaver bren - cheers for that.

Yup they do - I have one makes it still slightly cheaper than IR. I'd never go back to trains, in fact was about to pack in the commuting lark until I started going Matthews. 8 years of sheer frustration and incompetence courtesy of Irish rail

Jawgap

drogtastic wrote: »

Yup they do - I have one makes it still slightly cheaper than IR. I'd never go back to trains, in fact was about to pack in the commuting lark until I started going Matthews. 8 years of sheer frustration and incompetence courtesy of Irish rail

+1 on that!

The wife was a regular train user - then they broke the viaduct at Malahide and she swapped to the bus and it was a case of "Oh my God, what have I been doin' all this time on the train!"

Friendly drivers, warm (in winter) comfy and clean coaches, and a seat! Plus WiFi (not very fast, but still ok). Excellent service.

Even duing the really bad snow the service still ran - they (Matthews) came out to Bettystown and gritted the road so the buses could keep rolling.

drogtastic

Pity the matthews management crew couldn't be put in to run the northern line. Can you imagine how great the trains COULD be. That's the most annoying thing, all in all the train should be the best option but its just run so badly. As you said, matthews go all out through weather problems and crazy dublin traffic and still are the best option.