In lay-persons terms, the tax man is giving you a gift!  And that doesn’t happen that often, if at all!  So why look a gift-horse in the mouth?

In fact, what they are giving you is an added-value opportunity to also save a small fortune in fuel costs and free parking for the rest of your working life!

Nearly 3/4 of commute to work journeys are less than 5 miles, yet most people prefer to jump into their car for these short journeys and suffer the pain of traffic jams and congestion which leads to stress, and in some cases, depression.

Replacing your car commutes for these easy distances will hardly cause you to raise a sweat, except for when you’re out shopping ‘til you drop stocking up your wardrobe, courtesy of savings gifted to you by the tax man!

How it all adds up for ‘Jane’

Following “Jane’s” story from earlier, so delighted was she with her beautiful new shiny bike that she replaced 50% of her commute to work journeys per working year (130 days) from car to bicycle.

Fuel savings = 8.1 pence per mile x 10 miles x 130 days = £105.30

Parking savings = £10 per day x 130 days =  £1,300

Savings on bike costs through C2W = £143.32

Jane’s total savings over 6 months = £1,548.62!

If that’s not caught your attention, read on!

As a cyclist:

1. ★you live on average at least two years longer than non-cyclists;
   

2. ★your fitness levels are equivalent to being ten years younger - so forget the nip and tuck, think pedal and push!;
   

3. ★you discover a sense of freedom and independence you’ve never before dreamt possible;
   

4. ★you beat the traffic jams since during rush hour, a bicycle is twice as fast as a car;
   

5. ★you do an activity without it costing the earth.
   

Dispelling the myths

You may come up with every excuse under the sun for not cycling, but we have a hunch that we’ve got an answer for every single one you do!   

Listed opposite are some of the most commonly cited reasons for why people stay away from cycling in their droves.

And with a bit of help from Tim Grahl and Carlton Reid and their brilliant free e-book “Bike to Work”, we’ve collectively got an answer!