I've lived at my apartment and commuted to the same place of work for 2 years now. My commute has always taken me along 86th, north/south on Ditch Rd., and then 96th from Ditch all the way to College Ave.


Overall, it's some pretty busy roadway, includes some elevation with overpasses (not that I'm against elevation, but having to climb and spin-out on descent on my way to work can overwork the ol' sweat glands, and no one likes to sit next to a foot-smelling bike commuter in an office meeting), and most treacherously, includes the fluster-cluck of an intersection at 96th and Meridian.

I had tried 91st when I first moved to Indy a few years ago since I saw it on a safe routes map, but quickly wondered how it was rated as "safe" since the shoulder was soft to say the least, the pavement was chossy, and it was generally a narrow road.

They'd evidently repaved it at some point, and it'd gone pretty well unnoticed by me until this morning when I decided to try the 91st St. route again. Much better.

The road is still narrow and lacking a shoulder, but simply improving the pavement makes a huge difference--previously, if you wanted to ride the white line to allow traffic to pass, you would be best served owning a mountain bike--this is no longer the case. The elevation is much more relaxed, and the 91st & Meridian intersection is much calmer than 96th & Meridian. For those who still aren't all too comfortable claiming your rights to the road, it might be a little tight for you, but overall, it was a much calmer and more relaxed ride to work, simply due to some new pavement.

Moral of the story: shake up your routine on occasion and enjoy a new route to work. You might find a few new streets can make your morning or afternoon a lot less drab than it might come to be after a couple years of riding the same route.