# £ per mile for your bike



## rugby bloke (5 Aug 2019)

Its coming up to a year since I bought my Giant Defy, in this time I have covered just over 2800 miles. I paid £1300 for the bike so that breaks down to 46p per mile. This strikes me as a pretty low figure which I'm happy with and shows how cheap cycling is.

However I know there are forum members out there who ride considerably longer distances and have managed to pick up much cheaper bikes, so some of you must have ridiculously low £/mile numbers ... Who can post the lowest figure ?


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## KneesUp (5 Aug 2019)

46p a mile sounds a heck of a lot - but it assumes your bike has a value of £0 and has had no maintenance costs.


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## Cycleops (5 Aug 2019)

rugby bloke said:


> However I know there are forum members out there who ride considerably longer distances and have managed to pick up much cheaper bikes, so some of you must have ridiculously low £/mile numbers ... Who can post the lowest figure ?


I'm betting on @SkipdiverJohn


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## EltonFrog (5 Aug 2019)

Cycleops said:


> I'm betting on @SkipdiverJohn



Bikes pay him to be ridden.


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## rugby bloke (5 Aug 2019)

KneesUp said:


> 46p a mile sounds a heck of a lot - but it assumes your bike has a value of £0 and has had no maintenance costs.


This is based on a really simple calculation of cost or purchase divided by miles ridden. I did not take into account maintenance, which has been pretty minimal thankfully (a couple of bottles of tubeless sealent and a bike service) or the current value of the bike - which I would not know without doing a bit of research.
Just a bit of fun to be honest ...


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## Dogtrousers (5 Aug 2019)

I couldn't put a figure on it. 

Thing is, I have frittered away so much money on stuff like rims, wheelbuilding, cables, tyres, brake blocks, chains, cassettes, saddles, accessories like pumps etc. and even a complete refit of gearing and so on. I don't keep records of that. 

If I use just the purchase figure then my Spa is currently running at about 8p/km or 13p/mile and dropping. But factor in my ridiculous bike junk spending habits ...


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## Andy in Germany (5 Aug 2019)

rugby bloke said:


> Its coming up to a year since I bought my Giant Defy, in this time I have covered just over 2800 miles. I paid £1300 for the bike so that breaks down to 46p per mile. This strikes me as a pretty low figure which I'm happy with and shows how cheap cycling is.



If I knew how many miles I'd ridden in the last 20 years on my 300 GBP bike I'd probably come up with fractions of a penny. 



Dogtrousers said:


> If I use just the purchase figure then my Spa is currently running at about 8p/km or 13p/mile and dropping. But factor in my ridiculous bike junk spending habits ...



If you factor in maintenance, It'd suggest we also need to factor in costs saved by using a bike instead of a car or public transport.

At what point can I claim to my wife that I'm making a profit on every mile cycled and therefore should be encouraged to 1: Ride more and 2: Get all those nice shiny bike related things I've been wanting?


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## glasgowcyclist (5 Aug 2019)

My previous commuter (Trek 850) took me ~65,000 miles over 15 years from an initial cost of £400, so that's 0.006p per mile.
That doesn't include the 5 years of mental mountainbiking I did with it all over Scotland before I converted it for road use in 2000.

I still have it...


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## KneesUp (5 Aug 2019)

Andy in Germany said:


> If I knew how many miles I'd ridden in the last 20 years on my 300 GBP bike I'd probably come up with fractions of a penny. If you factor in maintenance, It'd suggest we also need to factor in costs saved by using a bike instead of a car or public transport.
> 
> At what point can I claim to my wife that I'm making a profit on every mile cycled and therefore should be encouraged to 1: Ride more and 2: Get all those nice shiny bike related things I've been wanting?



I'd say you should count all the direct costs - purchase, parts, maintenance and offset the value of the bike. I don't really see why you would factor in the costs saved by not using another form of transport though? If I offset my cycling against the cost of having a chauffeured limo to work, it's be very cheap indeed. But then if the cost of the limo took into account the cost of using a helicopter instead, it wouldn't be much ...


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## Andy in Germany (5 Aug 2019)

glasgowcyclist said:


> My previous commuter (Trek 850) took me ~65,000 miles over 15 years from an initial cost of £400, so that's 0.006p per mile.
> That doesn't include the 5 years of mental mountainbiking I did with it all over Scotland before I converted it for road use in 2000.
> 
> I still have it...
> ...



Looking pretty spiffy considering it's age and heavy usage.


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## Andy in Germany (5 Aug 2019)

KneesUp said:


> I'd say you should count all the direct costs - purchase, parts, maintenance and offset the value of the bike. I don't really see why you would factor in the costs saved by not using another form of transport though? If I offset my cycling against the cost of having a chauffeured limo to work, it's be very cheap indeed. But then if the cost of the limo took into account the cost of using a helicopter instead, it wouldn't be much ...



In my case it is because the bike is specifically a substitute for a car, and I also buy a season ticket only for the central zone of Stuttgart, despite living further out of the city, and cycle to the tram stop on the zone boundary instead of taking the bus, so I save about 2€ a day on that too...

I also cycle to the local big town for shopping and appointments instead of travelling by bus, and after I've cycled the 200m back up the hill I reckon I'm due some kind or reward...


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## gavroche (5 Aug 2019)

Doesn't apply to me as I don't use my bike to save money but for pleasure only.


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## Andy in Germany (5 Aug 2019)

gavroche said:


> Doesn't apply to me as I don't use my bike to save money but for pleasure only.



Ssh. If people realise how much fun I'm having on 'essential journeys' my argument doesn't work any more...


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## KneesUp (5 Aug 2019)

gavroche said:


> Doesn't apply to me as I don't use my bike to save money but for pleasure only.


That's how I use whisky, fudge and books, but they still have a cost :-)


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## biggs682 (5 Aug 2019)

My old Marin Bear Valley that i bought as nos in 1994 for £250 is still going strong and is used on very regular basis and i dread to think what sort of miles it has covered over those years


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## glasgowcyclist (5 Aug 2019)

Andy in Germany said:


> Looking pretty spiffy considering it's age and heavy usage.



Thanks, those shots were taken in2013. I've recently stripped the bike for a full rebuild, and cleaning up some minor pitting under the BB etc.


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## MichaelW2 (5 Aug 2019)

My 11 year old commuter bike has done around 40,000.
Purchase price + upgrades + spare parts total around £1500.
1500/40,000=0.0375 or thrippence per mile.

For comparison, an annual bus ticket for my Fine City is £650.
11 of those is £7150 which at similar milleage is 18 pence/mile.


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## cosmicbike (5 Aug 2019)

I have no idea. The commuter I guess saves the most, a Boardman CX for £700 in 2014 which has 14,000 miles on now. Costs in tyres/chains etc, but saves a fortune in diesel and car park charges. Mind you, feeding the engine isn't cheap.....


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## numbnuts (5 Aug 2019)

Cost = priceless
everything else there's Mastercard


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## AuroraSaab (5 Aug 2019)

When your bike is also your hobby you have surely saved even more as you might have spent the money on another hobby, like drinking or loose women (or loose men). 

When I add up what we have spent on our Saab restoration it is now likely in excess of what we could have bought one in better condition for, but as doing it up is a hobby I don't mind so much.


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## Slow But Determined (5 Aug 2019)

You need to factor in the extortionate price some cafes charge for coffee with fancy names!!


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## Hicky (5 Aug 2019)

How about the time saved by commuting by bike vs car....I save half an hour....ps my bike cost is 35p per mile atm and dropping based on purchase price alone.


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## rugby bloke (5 Aug 2019)

Slow But Determined said:


> You need to factor in the extortionate price some cafes charge for coffee with fancy names!!


True, I have without doubt substantially increased by coffee and cake in take over the last 12 months !


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## sleuthey (5 Aug 2019)

KneesUp said:


> 46p a mile sounds a heck of a lot - but it assumes your bike has a value of £0 and has had no maintenance costs.


It is. That's because the OP has used his purchase cost not the depreciation. Say the bike could be sold for half what it was when new, the correct sum would be
(£1300-£650)/2800=£0.23 per mile.

This assumes no maintenance or overheads.


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## slowmotion (5 Aug 2019)

When riding 4000 miles per year, I reckoned it was costing me about 8p per mile, excluding the capital cost of the bike. A surprisingly large proportion of that was for wear and tear on pretty basic cycle clothing.


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## MichaelW2 (5 Aug 2019)

sleuthey said:


> It is. That's because the OP has used his purchase cost not the depreciation. Say the bike could be sold for half what it was when new, the correct sum would be
> (£1300-£650)/2800=£0.23 per mile.
> 
> This assumes no maintenance or overheads.



From an accountancy/stocktaking point of view how long does a bike take to depreciate to zero? Do you always count a resale value?


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## Sixmile (5 Aug 2019)

Just by what I've logged on strava and not taking into account the current value of the bike or the maintenance...

Specialized Crosstrail £475 - 6081miles = 12.8ppm (app. 5 years old)
Boardman URB approx £520 - 561miles 92ppm (app. 3 months old)
Voodoo Fat Bike £200 - 850miles = 23ppm (11 months old)
Cube Peloton £420 - 5734miles = 7ppm (3 years old)


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## Ming the Merciless (5 Aug 2019)

Shouldn't this be £ per smile?


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## Sixmile (5 Aug 2019)

MichaelW2 said:


> From an accountancy/stocktaking point of view how long does a bike take to depreciate to zero? Do you always count a resale value?



Going by the cycle to work scheme, the bike has nil value after 5 years.


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## sleuthey (5 Aug 2019)

MichaelW2 said:


> From an accountancy/stocktaking point of view how long does a bike take to depreciate to zero? Do you always count a resale value?


I would guess for push bikes the "reducing balance" method applies rather than the "straight line" method so the depreciation would be exponential thus the value will never reach zero. Eg £1000 bike worth 500 after a year, 250 after 2 years, 125 and so on. Then in 20 years it gets chucked in a skip as it's value is less than repair cost. This is just a wet finger in the air.


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## Bazzer (5 Aug 2019)

My Cannondale cost me £800 4 years ago and I have probably covered >20,000 miles on it, so that is coming out at £0.04p per mile. But that figure will increase slightly when consumables are added in.
My Raleigh on the other hand cost me around £100 in 1986. I have no idea of the mileage I have covered on that bike, but even if consumables are taken into account the figure is fractions of pence.


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## lane (5 Aug 2019)

I would divide the purchase price by ESTIMATED mileage over lifetime of the bike. So my bike cost £2k and I expect to get between 30k miles and 40k miles out of it that works out at 5p a mile. The bike might be able to do more than that or not but I probably won't. Add on £100 per year parts / maintenance and it's costing me 10p a mile. That doesn't include the cost of clothes, shoes, helmets etc which would push the cost up a bit.


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## HLaB (5 Aug 2019)

I'll check out the exact figures later but my current Triban 500 including the two chains and cassettes has cost me less than 14p per mile.


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## Andy in Germany (5 Aug 2019)

YukonBoy said:


> Shouldn't this be £ per smile?



Good point, ant therefore improved mental health, better concentration if you're commuting, better health, better quality if life...

That's the problem here: my bike may theoretically be worthless after 20 years (but she's not going in a skip...) but the intangible benefits are impossible to factor in.

This is my excuse not to bother with the maths required to work this out...

Also, isn't a car considered all but worthless after two decades?


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## tom73 (5 Aug 2019)

I've not added things up since now having 3 bikes to pick from. Need to have a good look at what miles and what bike. 
But really I don't care the fun I've had over the last year and a bit is priceless.


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## SkipdiverJohn (5 Aug 2019)

Cycleops said:


> I'm betting on @SkipdiverJohn





CarlP said:


> Bikes pay him to be ridden.



If you're talking about my worthless hack bikes, which is what I do most of my mileage on, I reckon they cost me less than 2p a mile to run. You have to remember, essentially I don't buy anything like tyres or tubes for these bikes. They get run on what was already on them when acquired, or get fitted with used tyres/tubes/anything else that have been taken off other secondhand or donor bikes and saved for future use. Whilst they don't quite pay me to ride them, they are a pretty cheap form of transport, and getting cheaper all the time as the miles mount up but the spending doesn't.
My "good" bikes, i.e. better than skip rescue quality and not bashed up cosmetically, are not quite so cheap as I have actually spent money on things like Schwalbe tyres (only when on special offer of course!), but the tyre spend has still exceeded the original cost of the bike in each case. Obviously the more miles I do, the lower it will get, but currently 10p/mile per "good" bike is probably not far off the mark.


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## Shearwater Missile (5 Aug 2019)

I have never worked it out because in my way of thinking, whatever the cost is, it is a pretty cheap mode of transport for one thing. Also, as for exercise, keeping fit and pure enjoyment what would be cheaper ? ( OK then, walking or running). Imagine the cost of gym membership, golf membership and so on and so on. I have never worked out the cost of running the car either. It is what it is and no I don`t run a Rolls Royce ! I enjoy cycling more than driving, it has to be said.


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## Ming the Merciless (5 Aug 2019)

Some people know the price of everything , and the value of nothing.


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## lane (5 Aug 2019)

Really although I gave an estimated cost per mile upthread - when I purchased my bike I based it on the frame being guranteed by 10 years which gave me a maximum cost of £200 per year but hopefully nearer £100 which really is very little in the scheme of things and well worth it to me based on the pleasure it gives me.


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## HLaB (5 Aug 2019)

HLaB said:


> I'll check out the exact figures later but my current Triban 500 including the two chains and cassettes has cost me less than 14p per mile.


The Triban commuter has cost me under 12p per mile.
The previous commuter circa 12p per mile too.
My last leisure bike must have cost me circa 5p per mile.
The current leisure bike has cost me a relatively massive £1 per mile


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## Pumpkin the robot (5 Aug 2019)

I paid £1500 for my Wilier GT in 2013. It has done circa 32k miles. In 2014 I had an accident and the bike was written off. In the insurance claim against the driver I was awarded £3k for the bike, so even with all the parts I have changed on it, I think I owe the bike money!
I was going to send the bike away to have it ultrasound tested, but both places I sent pics to were 99% sure it would be fine. It has done about 25 thousand miles since, so I guess it was unharmed in the crash.


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## Soltydog (5 Aug 2019)

rugby bloke said:


> Its coming up to a year since I bought my Giant Defy, in this time I have covered just over 2800 miles. I paid £1300 for the bike so that breaks down to 46p per mile. This strikes me as a pretty low figure which I'm happy with and shows how cheap cycling is.



Sounds cheap enough to me  
My Enigma is about a year old now & I've covered almost 5k miles on it, but 'ownership per mile costs' are around twice yours  However, looking at the figures I've had my Van Nic for over 3 years & that has cost me about 12p per mile (excluding new wheels, saddles, stem, tyres, chains, chainset, cassettes, seatposts, pedals, bar tape etc ) 
You can't put a price on happiness & you can't take £££ with you when you leave


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## SkipdiverJohn (5 Aug 2019)

Soltydog said:


> You can't put a price on happiness & you can't take £££ with you when you leave



You're making the assumption that there is a strong relationship between the amount you spend on a bike and the amount of enjoyment it gives you. I don't find that really to be the case to any great extent. So long as a bike is not mechanically maladjusted and therefore noticeably unpleasant to ride, the places I ride, the roads, the weather, and the occurrence or non-occurrence of aggro with other road users have by far the biggest influence on the enjoyment factor compared with the bike itself. I was out on my cheapo Apollo MTB hack bike on Sunday, which has all the most basic quality Shimano stuff on it and I run it on my stock of random old knobbly MTB tyres. It's functional but somewhat unrefined, but nonetheless my planned two hour morning ride turned into nearly 3 hours for the simple reason I was enjoying it and not feeling overly tired. The only improvement riding one of my good bikes instead would have given me would be a slicker gear change, so a pretty marginal difference overall.


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## Soltydog (5 Aug 2019)

SkipdiverJohn said:


> You're making the assumption that there is a strong relationship between the amount you spend on a bike and the amount of enjoyment it gives you.



I'm not making any assumptions, I'm speaking purely from my experiences  
Have you ever rode on a modern Ti bike? I'm sure you would find it far more comfortable & enjoyable than any Apollo bike  
I'm in a fortunate position in life to have a considerable amount of 'disposable' income & much of my free time is spent cycling, so that is where I spend most money. I have several bikes, the cheapest of which was £45, & whilst it is nice to ride, there is no comparison with my more expensive bikes. Admittedly there is a point where money spent does not increase enjoyment pro rata, but that is down to the individual & to a certain extent the bikes in question


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## classic33 (5 Aug 2019)

£200 bike, over 10,000 miles a year for two years.


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## presta (6 Aug 2019)

I once did this for walking, cycling, and driving. I've lost the figures now, it was a long while ago, but as I recall the costs were surprisingly similar, if you're talking about multi-day journeys, the cost of accommodation makes driving the cheapest.


glasgowcyclist said:


> My previous commuter (Trek 850) took me ~65,000 miles over 15 years from an initial cost of £400, so that's 0.006p per mile.


Food alone will cost you about 2-4p/mile.


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## classic33 (6 Aug 2019)

presta said:


> I once did this for walking, cycling, and driving. I've lost the figures now, it was a long while ago, but as I recall the costs were surprisingly similar, if you're talking about multi-day journeys, the cost of accommodation makes driving the cheapest.
> 
> Food alone will cost you about 2-4p/mile.


Drivers don't eat!


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## Shut Up Legs (6 Aug 2019)

I've probably spent at least $1000AU on whatever bike I'm regularly using for commuting each year, but that's due to wear on the parts, because I consistently average over 14,000km/year, which works out to be roughly 7c/km, or 4p/mile.


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## raleighnut (6 Aug 2019)

Another one who has never counted the costs, life's too short.


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## glasgowcyclist (6 Aug 2019)

presta said:


> I once did this for walking, cycling, and driving. I've lost the figures now, it was a long while ago, but as I recall the costs were surprisingly similar, if you're talking about multi-day journeys, the cost of accommodation makes driving the cheapest.
> 
> Food alone will cost you about 2-4p/mile.




I don't eat any more to cycle to work than I do to drive or get the bus.

I haven't taken into account maintenance, shoes, gloves, lights etc either because the criterion set by the OP was simply bike cost ÷ miles travelled.



rugby bloke said:


> This is based on a really simple calculation of cost or purchase divided by miles ridden.


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## rugby bloke (6 Aug 2019)

As I have already said, this was just meant to be a bit of fun, on the basis that some people ride big miles on a yearly basis. It was not meant to be any sort of accounting process as I don't have the time or the head space to dig out all the relevant numbers. Nor was it meant to imply that cycling does not have a value in its own right. To be honest, this is my main motivation, I cycle because I love cycling, regardless of any financial consideration.


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## MichaelW2 (6 Aug 2019)

Hicky said:


> How about the time saved by commuting by bike vs car....I save half an hour....ps my bike cost is 35p per mile atm and dropping based on purchase price alone.



One calculation I saw factored to time spent working to pay for your transport as time spent travelling. Suddenly bikes were a whole lot quicker than cars.


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## Hicky (6 Aug 2019)

MichaelW2 said:


> One calculation I saw factored to time spent working to pay for your transport as time spent travelling. Suddenly bikes were a whole lot quicker than cars.



Yep, apart from being free to travel I'm quicker by bike and its a whole lot better for me in both health and mental well being.


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## Rooster1 (6 Aug 2019)

My Giant Defy has 24,519 miles and cost me £800.00 so thats £0.03 which is pretty cool.


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## nickyboy (6 Aug 2019)

Cost of fuel for cycling, once you're doing reasonable miles, is a big part

Say in an hour you burn 500 cals (can be more, can be less depending) and you cycle maybe 13 miles. If you hadn't cycled you would have burned about 200 cals. So that's an extra 300 cals or 23 cals/mile

How much does it cost to buy those calories?

A jelly baby is helpfully, 22 cals so let's assume it's a jelly baby per mile. Tesco sells jelly babies at £0.78/100g and there are, apparently, 16 jelly babies per 100g. So the cost is 4.9p per jelly baby. So it is 4.9p per mile (if you eat jelly babies)


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## Andy in Germany (6 Aug 2019)

nickyboy said:


> Cost of fuel for cycling, once you're doing reasonable miles, is a big part
> 
> Say in an hour you burn 500 cals (can be more, can be less depending) and you cycle maybe 13 miles. If you hadn't cycled you would have burned about 200 cals. So that's an extra 300 cals or 23 cals/mile
> 
> ...



Does this mean I get to eat more Jelly Babies?


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## si_c (6 Aug 2019)

My Felt (RIP) did around 15k miles, and cost me about £600 once the cycle to work scheme discounts were factored in. It got abused, and I reckon I probably spent around the same again in chains, cassettes, and other consumables over the course of it's two year life, so it cost me around 8p per mile.


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## vickster (6 Aug 2019)

Rooster1 said:


> My Giant Defy has 24,519 miles and cost me £800.00 so thats £0.03 which is pretty cool.


You've done no maintenance in 24k miles?


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## MichaelW2 (6 Aug 2019)

nickyboy said:


> Cost of fuel for cycling, once you're doing reasonable miles, is a big part
> 
> Say in an hour you burn 500 cals (can be more, can be less depending) and you cycle maybe 13 miles. If you hadn't cycled you would have burned about 200 cals. So that's an extra 300 cals or 23 cals/mile
> 
> ...



I cycle 2x6 miles to work. I dont seem to eat much more than before I cycle commuted ( many years ago) or when I make alternative arrangements.
As for the cost, porridge or wholemeal toast is a marginal expense. I dont snack at all and have a can of soup for lunch.

I think the body response to excercise and food is less linear than we imagine.


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## Crackle (6 Aug 2019)

My mtn bike is easily the most expensive on a cost per mile basis and my road bike the cheapest.


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## Rooster1 (6 Aug 2019)

_


vickster said:



You've done no maintenance in 24k miles? 

Click to expand...


Not much, just new groupset, + x3 new front chainset, x3 sets of wheels, x10 sets of tyres, new seatpost (broke it on the Ride 100), new saddles x 2, x2 headset, x10 bottom brackets, brake pads etc. Lots of cassettes ...

( I think only the frame is original)_


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## vickster (6 Aug 2019)

So your spend isn’t really £800 then (unless you’re a thief)


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## nickyboy (6 Aug 2019)

MichaelW2 said:


> I cycle 2x6 miles to work. I dont seem to eat much more than before I cycle commuted ( many years ago) or when I make alternative arrangements.
> As for the cost, porridge or wholemeal toast is a marginal expense. I dont snack at all and have a can of soup for lunch.
> 
> I think the body response to excercise and food is less linear than we imagine.


Those who know me will have realised that my jelly baby analysis wasn't entirely serious

However, fuelling the cycling ain't free, one way or another


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## Shearwater Missile (6 Aug 2019)

I did a quick reccy on my Claude butler Roubaix bought in 2010. 14425 miles £500 cost price of bike (actually cheaper as on CTW scheme) I have spent another £400 on new wheelset, tyres, seatpost,bars, stems, saddles and cables etc etc. All in all 6p per mile but it really is less than that. First time I have worked it out but you can`t put a price on it in terms of satisfaction and keeping fit terms. I will have to work out the same for the Vitus, it will be higher as it has done less miles and was more expensive.
The Vitus comes in at over 19p a mile but that will come down as I do more miles I am sure. Both of my bikes I service myself so at least there are no other costs other than wear and tear.
At the end of the day enjoyment is priceless !


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## si_c (6 Aug 2019)

nickyboy said:


> However, fuelling the cycling ain't free, one way or another



I used to work on the basis for commuting that I was spending about 8p er mile on fuel depending on my fuel mix. Usually some combination of pork and cake.


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## MichaelW2 (6 Aug 2019)

si_c said:


> I used to work on the basis for commuting that I was spending about 8p er mile on fuel depending on my fuel mix. Usually some combination of pork and cake.


Porkcake, isn't that a delicacy in Louisiana?


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## si_c (6 Aug 2019)

MichaelW2 said:


> Porkcake, isn't that a delicacy in Louisiana?


I dunno about that. But I wasn't implying that the two should be eaten in combination, rather in succession, as in sausage roll followed by jaffa cake.


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## pjd57 (6 Aug 2019)

Bought a CX bike 2 years ago for around £450.
I've done over 5,000 miles on it.
Not sure of an exact figure as I still use my hybrid occasionally.

I've had my money's worth out it.


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## Edwardoka (7 Aug 2019)

I initially thought my triban would be in with a shout, but it isn't anywhere near the lowest, 2,940.5 miles for £425. 
My 2011 Focus is much more expensive to maintain but if we're ignoring maintenance costs, 9,331.8 miles for £850 isn't bad. If you add maintenance costs over 8 years it's silly money.

However, I'm probably close to the top, barring silly high-end specialist gear, as a second hand Kaffenback gravel bike cost me £450 up front and while I don't have an exact figure, it was more than £1,000 to convert it to a proper touring bike + dynamo + electrics + panniers etc. And it got nicked after about 1,500 miles.


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## vickster (7 Aug 2019)

Dogtrousers said:


> Ahem


That’s what the OP said, not the later poster...
You can’t quote a cost per mile on a 24k bike without including maintenance surely


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## Crackle (7 Aug 2019)

Well in these times, i reckon what's more interesting is the carbon figures per mile and here, by sheer coincidence, is an article about it

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2010/jun/08/carbon-footprint-cycling

*65g CO2e: powered by bananas*
*90g CO2e: powered by cereals with milk *
*200g CO2e: powered by bacon *
*260g CO2e: powered by cheeseburgers *
*2800g CO2e: powered by air-freighted asparagus*
_
Is cycling a carbon-friendly thing to do? Emphatically yes! Powered by biscuits, bananas or breakfast cereal, the bike is nearly 10 times more carbon-efficient than the most efficient of petrol cars.

by taking my car off the road in rush hour, I cut everyone else's queuing time as well, and reduce the emissions they belch out while they wait. It's a little-known fact that a car on a congested road can produce as much as three times the amount of CO2 as the same car travelling at a steady speed.
_
Disappointingly, no jelly baby comparisons


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## Crackle (7 Aug 2019)

Oh and that refreshing beer after the ride......

*300g CO2e: locally brewed cask ale at the pub 
500g CO2e: local bottled beer from a shop or foreign beer in a pub 
900g CO2e: bottled beer from the shop, extensively transported*


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## Edwardoka (7 Aug 2019)

Crackle said:


> Oh and that refreshing beer after the ride......
> 
> *300g CO2e: locally brewed cask ale at the pub *
> *500g CO2e: local bottled beer from a shop or foreign beer in a pub *
> *900g CO2e: bottled beer from the shop, extensively transported*


That's nothing compared to the CH4e the morning after.


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## Ming the Merciless (7 Aug 2019)

Next up, what's your methane footprint?


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## Crackle (7 Aug 2019)

YukonBoy said:


> Next up, what's your methane footprint?


well funnily enough, up to two thirds of us don't produce methane at all, we need the proper flora in our guts and some of us simply don't have it. Cows on the other hand produce 100-400 litres of methane per day. Which when you think about it, is a staggering amount. Luckily they don't ride bikes.


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## Crackle (7 Aug 2019)

In summary, as a cyclist, you want to power yourself with animals that don't eat grass for the most minimal impact, chickens and pigs are good, Coows and sheeples are bad.


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## nickyboy (7 Aug 2019)

Crackle said:


> In summary, as a cyclist, you want to power yourself with animals that don't eat grass for the most minimal impact, chickens and pigs are good, Coows and sheeples are bad.


So a full English is spot on providing I take my tea black?


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## Crackle (7 Aug 2019)

nickyboy said:


> So a full English is spot on providing I take my tea black?


I've long held that a full English is good for anything and indeed my Strava pictures tend to back me up.

Of course you could try oat milk but not Almond milk because that takes a lot of water to produce.


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## C R (7 Aug 2019)

nickyboy said:


> So a full English is spot on providing I take my tea black?


And no beans, but that should go without saying.


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## tyred (7 Aug 2019)

I find the cost of cycling is directly proportional to the number of pubs and cafes that I will be passing on my route.

I seem to recall that Albert Einstein devised some formulae for calculating this.


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## SkipdiverJohn (7 Aug 2019)

Crackle said:


> Oh and that refreshing beer after the ride......
> 
> *300g CO2e: locally brewed cask ale at the pub *
> *500g CO2e: local bottled beer from a shop or foreign beer in a pub *
> *900g CO2e: bottled beer from the shop, extensively transported*



So as an ale drinker, that entitles me to have 3 pints of proper beer instead of only one bottle of fizzy lager! 
That must also be the first time I've ever found myself agreeing with anything in _The Grauniad_!


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## presta (12 Aug 2019)

glasgowcyclist said:


> I don't eat any more to cycle to work than I do to drive or get the bus.


You must be, otherwise you'd lose weight.


> I haven't taken into account maintenance, shoes, gloves, lights etc either because the criterion set by the OP was simply bike cost ÷ miles travelled.


That might be his criterion, but it's not a sensible basis for a realistic comparison of the costs.


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## glasgowcyclist (12 Aug 2019)

presta said:


> You must be, otherwise you'd lose weight.



I'm not eating any differently. My breakfasts are routinely predictable, as are my lunches and dinners, and they do not vary by transport method.



presta said:


> That might be his criterion, but it's not a sensible basis for a realistic comparison of the costs.



It's just a bit of fun, not a science thesis.


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## presta (12 Aug 2019)

glasgowcyclist said:


> I'm not eating any differently. My breakfasts are routinely predictable, as are my lunches and dinners, and they do not vary by transport method.


This is just the converse of the fat people who insist they don't eat too much, none of us are exempt from the laws of thermodynamics. Cycling typically burns about 300-400 kcal/her, the calorific value of body fat is 7800kcal/kg, so you can expect to lose around a kilogram of fat for every 20 hours or so of cycling unless you're replacing the energy you use. If you were commuting cycle-bus-cycle-bus alternately, then you could eat the same each day and be depleting your energy reserves on cycle days, whilst replenishing them on bus days, but this doesn't mean you're getting something for nothing, you're still eating more than you would if you were on the bus every day.


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## glasgowcyclist (12 Aug 2019)

presta said:


> This is just the converse of the fat people who insist they don't eat too much, none of us are exempt from the laws of thermodynamics. Cycling typically burns about 300-400 kcal/her, the calorific value of body fat is 7800kcal/kg, so you can expect to lose around a kilogram of fat for every 20 hours or so of cycling unless you're replacing the energy you use. If you were commuting cycle-bus-cycle-bus alternately, then you could eat the same each day and be depleting your energy reserves on cycle days, whilst replenishing them on bus days, but this doesn't mean you're getting something for nothing, you're still eating more than you would if you were on the bus every day.




What extra food am I eating when I'm cycling to work?


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## presta (12 Aug 2019)

What do you expect me to say to a question like that?
Cycling burns more energy than sitting on a bus, that energy has to come from somewhere. Either you're depleting your fat reserves, or you're eating more to replace what you've used. This is not controversial, it's the most basic physics: energy doesn't just come from nowhere. What makes you think you're not eating more, most people don't have any idea whatsoever how many calories they're eating.


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## glasgowcyclist (12 Aug 2019)

presta said:


> What do you expect me to say to a question like that?



The obvious answer would be: "I don't know".



presta said:


> Either you're depleting your fat reserves, or you're eating more to replace what you've used.



Like I've said all along, I'm not eating any differently based on my choice of transport. 
I've never suggested that the energy was free.


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## All uphill (12 Aug 2019)

If I ignore the cost of tools, respray, replacement parts, waterproof clothing and coffee my cycling is almost free!

If I include those costs it's just inexpensive. 

If I take into account mental and physical health benefits it's the bargain of the century.


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## presta (12 Aug 2019)

glasgowcyclist said:


> Like I've said all along, I'm not eating any differently based on my choice of transport.


If you think you can cycle without using any energy, why don't you publish your evidence on here.


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## DaveReading (12 Aug 2019)

presta said:


> If you think you can cycle without using any energy, why don't you publish your evidence on here.



We've already established that GC isn't saying that.


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## presta (12 Aug 2019)

DaveReading said:


> We've already established that GC isn't saying that.


That's exactly what he's claiming. He keeps telling me he needs no extra food when he cycles.


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## Saluki (12 Aug 2019)

Not including all the coffee and cake costs, my bikes are as follows:

Planet X roadie. Cost £1019.00 27.1p per mile
Planet X CX cost £590 is at 9p per mile
DB Cycles (Dronfield) £150at 16.6p per mile - only goes out in the dry
29er £120 at £2.14 as I haven’t ridden it much.
Croix de Fer was £981.10 after discount so now at £1.08 a mile


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## DaveReading (12 Aug 2019)

presta said:


> That's exactly what he's claiming. He keeps telling me he needs no extra food when he cycles.



Where does he say that? He simply states (presumably truthfully) that he doesn't eat any more on the days that he cycles.

He makes no claim, as far as I can see, about the amount of energy expended being the same, only that his food intake doesn't vary.

You yourself acknowledged that he would simply end up a bit more depleted on a cycling day if he ate the same, and he hasn't denied that.


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## classic33 (12 Aug 2019)

presta said:


> What do you expect me to say to a question like that?
> Cycling burns more energy than sitting on a bus, that energy has to come from somewhere. Either you're depleting your fat reserves, or you're eating more to replace what you've used. This is not controversial, it's the most basic physics: energy doesn't just come from nowhere. What makes you think you're not eating more, most people don't have any idea whatsoever how many calories they're eating.


I ate less when cycling to/from work than when I was using bus, train and a short walk to complete the same trip(home to work).

Other meals stayed the same, aside from times. Trains never always showed up/left at the same time.

It was original outlay versus miles done that was put in the opening post. Not much else.


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## MrBeanz (13 Aug 2019)

I've paid about $5,000 for my bikes but over 150,000 miles. 

I'm figuring about 3 cents per mile!


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## glasgowcyclist (13 Aug 2019)

Look, to my statement that "I don't eat any more to cycle to work than I do to drive or get the bus" your answer was


presta said:


> You must be, otherwise you'd lose weight.



You don't know my eating routine, and believe me it is very routine, so you're not in a position to state I'm eating differently. I know that energy is not free and will come from what calories I've taken in, you seem to think I'm saying that's not true.



presta said:


> If you think you can cycle without using any energy, why don't you publish your evidence on here.



I've never said that!



presta said:


> That's exactly what he's claiming. He keeps telling me he needs no extra food when he cycles.



I've never said that either!



presta said:


> Either you're depleting your fat reserves, or...



Bingo!

I keep telling you my food intake doesn't vary by transport. What's happening is my food intake is not being reduced on those days where I don't cycle, so I'm overeating on car/public transport days. This explains why I am overweight and, over the past 5+ months of not cycling, I have put on even more weight. You've focused on the calorie intake/output element whereas I've been emphasising my unchanged (unhealthy) eating habits.

I'll admit that your initial _"You must be"_ niggled me because it felt like you were calling me a liar. I apologise for carrying on such a petty argument with you just to prove a point, I was being a grumpy dick and should know better. And I'm sorry to the OP for dragging his thread down too.


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## Ming the Merciless (13 Aug 2019)

tyred said:


> I find the cost of cycling is directly proportional to the number of pubs and cafes that I will be passing on my route.
> 
> I seem to recall that Albert Einstein devised some formulae for calculating this.



E = P X C ^ 2


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## Ming the Merciless (13 Aug 2019)

A heavier person burns more calories just existing. If in some quantum fluke you got the bus everyday and also cycled every day. The one on the bus would increase in weight till they reached an equilibrium. The one cycling would decrease in weight till they reached an equilibrium. They would both be eating the same.

You would be in a quantum state of being thin and fat at the same time.


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