This modern fast paced world calls for everything to be quick, faster broadband, faster processors, faster transport, fast money or even fast food.
All this extra speed comes at a price, and sometimes is a bit irrational. Owning a super-car with 3-digit power figures when top-speed limits in town are limited to 2-digit figures.
While all that power is fun to drive, you are probably not going to be more than a couple of minutes faster in your gas-guzzler. As a mater of fact, a spirited bicyclist can probably match your time on an average day with traffic.
Most commutes these days take 46minutes for 15kilometers, average a speed of 20Km/hr which is a meagerly pace to ride at for your triple digit machine. Give or take a reasonable buffer, that is still not nearly close to the efficient operating band that most vehicles are designed for today.
There are a couple of things we could do to stay close to the optimum operating bands of our machines and save a few minutes from our commutes though.
Gaping
Once you reach your ideal cruising speed, keep that bumper gap constant, switching lanes if its clear ahead of you, but stepping on the throttle isn't an option.
Before you tap the brakes look for a safe way to keep that cursing speed constant. Dropping speed and stepping on the gas again is more detrimental to your average speeds than maintaining a lower cruising speed.
The key here is to discover the cruising speed for the journey you are on, then keep the gap clean and clear and notice commute times dropping.
Riding the wake
Traffic flows in waves, and between waves you have the wake. A wake in traffic terms can be described as- the open path with least resistance created between two waves of traffic.
Ride fast/slow enough or stand in the same place in a flowing traffic stream and you will notice these waves of traffic and the wake it leaves behind.
Once you experience the peace of the wake, you can choose never be in the rut of traffic again.
Did I just stay peace? Well yes, but more than peace your being efficient and more importantly the wake gives you the factor of safety in your gaping game.
