Commute with confidence through the winter
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You're the experts! Read the latest tips and insights from our commuter profilers

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"Keep your ears warm! Headbands do make you look like a Dire Straits wannabee but who cares with toasty lobes!" Roger Maddams, Kent.

Read Roger's full profile

For further advice check out our Essential Commuter Kit  and How to Commute by Bike sections.

 

Town and City Commuting Guides

Check out our growing list of town and city cycling guides, giving you the lowdown on routes, parking, bike shops and other other essential cycling facilities.
Latest guide

Bradford - British Cycling partner city Bradford is fast developing a reputation as a pro-cycling town. Nestled in the cycle-sport heartland of West Yorkshire, the former mill-town is now working hard to become a cycling town in the fullest sense.

More town and city guides

Commute with confidence through the winter

Winter is a time when many regular riders hang up their bikes for the year. It's a time when would-be bike commuters fear to tread, which is a shame, because riding in winter is full of challenge and reward.

There’s nothing like arriving at work on a winter morning by bike, invigorated, while your car-bound colleagues have fought their way through the misery of winter rush-hour. With a common-sense approach and a few pieces of well chosen kit, you can extend your bike commuting right through to Spring.

Getting started - Are you a mile eater or a short hop commuter?

The type of journey you do has a big influence on your approach to commuting and the kit you’ll require.

 

Short Hop Commuter (up to 5 miles each way)

During winter, the short distance commuter’s major focus is staying warm, dry and safe. Gone are the days of summer when keeping cool is top priority – now, insulation and waterproofing are mega important. Good news is that you can do this in normal-looking clothes. The bike too takes a hammering in winter, so reliability, ruggedness and weatherproofing are paramount.

NEW! Winter clothing for the short hop commuter
NEW! Prepare your bike for winter
MORE: General clothing advice for the short hop commuter
MORE: Is your bike ready for a short hop commute?

     
 

Mile Eater (5 miles or more each way)

Like the short hop commuter, the long distance rider needs to keep warm, without overheating too much. Riding longer distances at speed mean that the extremities take a beating and need extra protection. There are a few tweaks you can make to your bike too, to make it more dependable without sacrificing too much efficiency.

NEW! Prepare your bike for winter
MORE: Clothing for the mile eater
MORE: The Bike: Three options for mile eating commuters

     
Riding right    
 

How to ride in winter

As well as putting extra demands on the bike and clothing, riding in the winter places extra demands on the rider too. Road conditions are more challenging and other road users’ visibility may be compromised. Read more.


 

Effective Traffic Riding for modern road conditions

On today’s roads with much higher volumes of traffic, cyclists need a whole new set of skills, in fact a completely different way of thinking, in order to ride effectively, and thereby safely. To put it simply, they need to think and behave like advanced drivers. They need to take their rightful place on the road - integrated with the rest of the traffic. In Effective Traffic Riding, we look at the fundamental principles of road positioning, filtering in traffic and dealing with roundabouts.


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British Cycling Members get more!

No matter what time of year, British Cycling’s Ride Membership helps you commute with confidence; giving you class-leading third party insurance, legal support, exclusive content and a host of benefits and discounts, helping you kit yourself out for autumn and winter for less!


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