Cycling to your airport

[shootingstar]

If you live in a city where there is an international airport, can you cycle to it?

Article rates nearly 10 airports worldwide on ease (or lack of) to cycle from downtown to airport.

**Just scroll down midway in article to see the airports ratings.

Commentary is a culmination of dearie's experiences as a touring cyclist over past 10 years.

(Yes, some countries are missing. So hey, let everyone else know about your city.)

[Melalvai]

That's a great article. I wanted to bike 10 miles to the regional airport recently. I called and asked "Is there a place I can leave my bike?" They have a parking lot for cars, I reasoned, surely there's some place for a bicycle. "No," they answered. No bike rack, no little room they could stash it in. It's a tiny airport, two flights in and two flights out daily. It's not like it would be that much of a challenge.

Instead I had a friend give me a ride. Eh.

[tulip]

Washington National Airport is bikeable, mostly. Hopefully they have improved the last connections by now. It's right off the Mount Vernon Trail. I guess it's not technically an international airport, but I thought I'd mention it anyways.

I can cycle to my airport on quiet roads, but I haven't tried the actual approach to the airport. That might be trickier. I'll give it a go in the next few weeks. It's international because it has one flight to Toronto.

[shootingstar]

Washington National Airport is bikeable, mostly. Hopefully they have improved the last connections by now. It's right off the Mount Vernon Trail. I guess it's not technically an international airport, but I thought I'd mention it anyways.

I can cycle to my airport on quiet roads, but I haven't tried the actual approach to the airport. That might be trickier. I'll give it a go in the next few weeks. It's international because it has one flight to Toronto.

It's been over 15 yrs. since I've flown into Washington, DC airport, but if I can recall correctly, airport passengers can leave and catch the subway train hooked directly to the airport to get downtown, right? Then at least, one can roll on with a bike? (That's what you can do now at Vancouver International Airport, if the weather is lousy/one can't be bothered to cycle into downtown.) It's just so wonderful when I came back from airport. I just rolled onto the commuter train with my folding bike with 4 panniers.. I had a problem with my quick release pedals, so couldn't ride.

Dearie spent a few days extra on bike in Europe. He cycled from airport to home (we live downtown). After midnight. He wanted to..after a long European flight and summer night was lovely, quiet.

[tulip]

Shootingstar, the DCA is indeed well-served by the Metro. There is also a bike path right there, that links to the city very well. The problem was, at least several years ago, that there was a gap for cyclists from the bike path to the terminal. That gap consisted of access roads and parking lots. It was doable, but not clear and not bike-friendly. Perhaps they have changed that by now; I don't know.

[pumpkinpony]

You can cycle out to Denver International Airport. They have bike route signs all the way into the terminal! I rode mine out there just for the heck of it, walked the bike through and out the other side following the signs, and no one even looked funny at me. Lots of bikes chained up to various parts of the hand rail around the terminal, and there was a sign over one set of stairs pointing to 'bike parking'.

[shootingstar]

Mimi, I didn't know new commuter train line went direct to your airport. That's great.

The point of the article to provide more info. to people who are interested in combining cycling in part/all of their trip to a major airport.

The more information on experiences/different locations in terms of the local/geographic situation, the better for future cyclists who are planning trips, etc.

A taxi from Toronto airport into downtown is...approx. $50.00 or abit more. From downtown to airport, it's anything goes (within a certain max. limit per taxi travel time), which can be more than $50.00 -- unless one negotiates with taxi driver in advance.

Toronto bus system is gradually introducing bike racks on its buses. The bus that runs between airport and downtown does have a bike rack. The biggest challenge..is hoping that there aren't others waiting too with their bikes.

Not every city that a cyclist is visiting, is full of friends/family to give free /cheap car rides with a bike.