It’s January: cold, dark and hardly the peak of the bike commute season. Yet the once-empty Caltrain bike car has been brimming with riders bound for San Jose. New Years resolutions? More jobs in San Jose? Global warming? Your guess is as good as mine. Until I get bumped for lack of rack space, I’m not complaining.
About the Bike Commute Diaries: Launched in May 2012 for National Bike Month, this series explores the unexpected and surprising things I’ve seen and learned about bicycling for transportation.
Richard Masoner
January 15, 2015 at 2:04 pm
My guess is booming employment in the Bay Area coupled with horrible congestion on roads in spite of low gas prices.
ladyfleur
January 15, 2015 at 2:08 pm
I’m voting for more jobs in North and Downtown San Jose. I drove for the first time in months and while 101 was moving fine, the exit ramps for Montague Expy and Trimble Rd were way worse than I remember them from before.
Tian
January 15, 2015 at 4:53 pm
Going to San Jose you don’t have to worry about being bumped in Mountain View because a lot of bicyclists get off here. Going north bound, Mountain View is the last stop where a decent number of bicyclists can get on. I’ve had the experience of being one of the last to get on in Mountain View and then have watched the conductor tell people in Palo Alto “we can only load three bikes”, or whatever the number was that just got off. I’ve only been bumped once, but I feel for all those who have to endure it.
ladyfleur
January 15, 2015 at 5:00 pm
Yeah, Tian, I sincerely doubt I’ll ever get bumped going south getting on in Mountain View. I have experienced what you saw in Palo Alto more than once too. If I were going north in the morning you can bet I’d be taking my Brompton.