I am fed up to the back teeth with London's lousy public transport system. No longer am I going to use the train to commute to and from London. It is a dirty, over-crowded, expensive (£4,500 per year from where I live) non-service.I am going to buy myself a motorbike and get into London that way from now on. Does anybody have any tips about parking arrangements, changing/shower facilities etc? How easy is it to park a motorbike in London? Thanks.

You can download parking bay guides from the transport for London site. Get a small ish and old bike for commuting (a 500’s fine); less likely to get nicked, more stable than moped, easy to throw around through traffic, economical, won’t mind when gets scratched in a crowded bike bayRe: shower, shouldn’t need it unless you run out of petrol… change in bogs at work. Get textiles or over suit, but make sure you’re protected. 12m of tarmac takes skin down to the bone…

Cheers mate!Just one more quick question - say, hypothetically, that I'm not able to get changed in the bogs at work (lets pretend I'm visiting a client site and need to arrive dressed in a suit already)... what would I do then?

...when you can't change, drive to work directly in a suit!! I do it every day and it doesn't really get creased that much! It's true that on the protection side you're a bit exposed but if I have to be entirely honest, if they hit you hard the only thing that can really help you is your helmet. As someone else has recommended a bike I thought I'd give my 2 cents. I'd recommend a scooter 180cc, something like a Gilera Runner, which will be very cheap to run, get you everywhere and be easy to park! Got enough space under the saddle for a basic shop and runs like a clock with little fuss!Hope that helps!

Dave's £4500/year train ticket indicates that he might not be within the 180cc Gilera sort of range. I'd go with the previous poster's recommendation of a 500cc commuter.

I've done it, day in and day out, for almost 7 years. A 60 miles daily commute ( I live in Maidenhead and work in London WC) no matter the weather.You need an adedquate bike (depending on lenght of commute) and to be properly kitted.If you spend £4500 per year on train, I would assume you need a 500cc or above. Here you have two options, either a small tourer or, if you need to wear a suit often, a big scooter. I have owned an Honda Silverwing 600cc (I have a BMW now) and that scooter offers unbelievable protection. And you can store a lot of stuff (2 full face helmets under the saddle - I used to keep my laptop bag in there). I used to go to a client site (near Heathrow Airport) and never had any major problems with wearing a suit (well, it is never perfect but neither too bad).The secret is to have the proper gear. There isn't anything that is 100% waterproof, but I would recommend you buy 2 textile suits (a 2 piece is better); one light, for the unexpected light shower (you can buy a full size one from Hein Gerike for £40-50) that you can keep stored with your bike; and a top quality one that gives you as much (rain) protection as possible. Textiles from Rukka are really good but very expensive (£600 and above).Parking in London can be tricky. I personally have a Season ticket at NCP in Leicester Sq where I pay £55 per month for my bike. Unbelievable value if you ask me considering that parking is secure (no need to lock your bike) and your bike is protected from weather.

Excellent advice guys.. thank you.I guess what is concerning me most is the feasibility of riding in wet weather, and where to get changed etc. The more I think about it, the more I'm reaching the conclusion that wearing a suit on a 500cc bike (with protective overalls etc) is simply a no-go given that I need to arrive at work looking at least reasonably smart. MC biker - where do you get changed? Toilets at work etc? Are there any places like NCP which also have somewhere to get changed? I guess what I really need is somewhere to store a suit and change of clothes in London, where I can get changed and leave my helmet/overalls etc until the evening. Even if I then have to use the tube to travel the final leg to my destination it might not be such a bad thing - what I'm really trying to obliterate is the lion's share of the rotten £4,500 season ticket I can no longer justify paying. Thanks again guys.

You can get hard or soft luggage for most bikes in which you can store your suit etc - generally they are waterproof too (worth putting your suit into a waterproof bag though even if its in luggage). Try Givi which is generally excellent.

Scooters (like the Silverwing), are definitely better for suits. I used to wear a 2 piece and even have a tie on. Due to the riding position (you are basically sitting ... like you would sit in a car) you can button up your jacket and wear a comfy (1 or 2 sizes bigger than you would normally buy) waterproof overalls. I bought a 1 piece suit from HG for £50, it is quite good if it isn't pouring down ...But if it rains, you gotta be properly kitted. I have a Rukka suit - it is very good. Problem is that when I wear it, my clothes get crumpled a bit (it has got protection and all). I do not ride a scooter anymore but I have a BMW 1200GS. To be honest, it isn't a big problem. What i do is to have a spare suit in my locker at work, so if it gets really bad I always have a change of clothes available. Well. I have't used it in 2 years.I do a reasonable amount of client work, but most of the time I get away with biz casual. So riding with my Rukka suit and business clothes underneath is no bother. Shoes can be a problem (I wear boots)... but I keep them in my top box. NCP have toilets and if you really want to you can change in there. I keep the overalls in the top box but carry my helmet with me. I love my Arai Corsair (Drudi Performance) too much. I guess, the secret is to have alternative options available to you. If the weather is bad, you either keep you bike in the garage and go by train, or you take a chance. If you take a chance you need to have the possibility of changing your clothes somewhere (office, client, etc.). And this shoudn't be a problem ... usually. As i said, I've been riding for 7 years and I do a 60 miles daily commute. On average I take the train (due to weather) 5 or 6 times per year. Sometimes, I get wet - but it is usually worse when I am on my way home. Overall, I love it and I even if it is not perfect, I will not give it up and do public transport instead.You gotta have the proper kit and it takes a bit organisation but... it is well worth

Excellent, I'm going to have to contact NCP and find out more about the toilet facilities... my ideal situation would definitely be to ride in with jeans/t-shirt under protective suit, then find somewhere to change into a work suit. I did even think about joining a gym or something... although this would only really be workable if they would give me a permanent locker and even then I would be worried that one day I'll arrive in London and find out somebody's nicked my suit.I did also think about just finding somewhere on the outskirts of London where I can drive to in the car each day, park up and then get the train... but at £5.50 per day plus train costs and probably impossible parking too, it all just gets a bit silly. Door to door on the bike would be far better if I can pull it off.

Dave, you've got to suck it and see. Your mind seems made up and there seem no major challenges so go for it, plenty of ideas here to tackle the smaller issues.'Get your motor runnin, head out on the highway, lookin for adventure....but crawling gleefully through the stationary cars and halving my commute time/cost will do!'

Looking for adventure? I was recently hit by a cross wind on my 1000cc bike on the M25 and blown from one side across 4 lanes to the other, across fast traffic. Now that was (albeit a very brief) adventure.

What do you guys think about him simply driving to a tube station in zone 2 or 3 (outside the congestion zone) and then just parking up and getting the tube in? That way he can avoid the expensive train tickets by doing most of the journey by car, but still have the convenience of being able to wear a suit into london etc

If you know of any stations where you can park... Acton used to be OK, but now it's all residents' permits (at least for some hours during the day, which prevents you from leaving the car there all day). Plus, if Dave is going to see clients directly from his home, it's not always feasible to find a park & ride arrangement since the clients may not even be in London!