Hello everyone. This is my first post here. Sorry if it's a bit long!
I purchased a new road bike about a month ago. I've had so much fun riding that I thought I could get more time on my bike if I started riding to work. I am fortunate enough to have showers available at work and room to store my bike at the office. I am able to fit a change of clothes in my hydration/back pack, and I keep extra shoes and shower supplies at work.
It's about a 30 mile commute, so riding the entire distance is time prohibitive. There is a multi-use trail that goes from where I live to about 5 miles from where I work and has several park-n-ride lots along the way. I started by driving all but the last 11 miles, parking my car and riding the rest of the way. Once I got to work, all I could think about was getting back on my bike and riding. So, I started parking about 18 miles out. This distance seems to be just right.
I only have one problem and I can't seem to figure out a way around it. The trail I ride on gets me within 5 miles of the office. From there, I take to the streets which aren't too bad until I get to one particularly congested road that leads to two interstate highways. About 1500 ft before I need to make a left turn, the two lanes going my direction suddenly become 3 (and extra lane appears to the right), then 4 (a right turn lane to the right of the first new lane), then 5 (the final addition is the left turn lane I need to be in.) I think this intersection would be intimidating to a veteran cyclist. It just plain scares the **** out of me. Anyone familiar with Atlanta traffic and the way the roads are laid out in Cobb County in particular knows that some areas have few alternative routes. I've explored the neighborhood streets that branch off this main artery, and they don't connect to anything. The only alternative route I can find leads to an equally scary intersection.
We do have city busses with bike racks on the front. I tried taking the bus to get past this area, but it added 30 minutes to my commute (2 ten minute bus rides with a 20 minute wait for the transfer), to cover what would take me about 5 minutes on the bike. Plus the cost of taking the bus twice a day is more than I would save in gas by riding my bike.
The only solution I can think of is to get off my bike and walk on the sidewalk until I get past this intersection. That means grinding my cleats against 3000 ft of pavement everyday, which I'm sure is not good for them.
Have any of you had to deal with really complicated and unavoidable left turns? Any ideas on how to negotiate this one? I am determined to make this work somehow, so any suggestions are welcome.
