An email dropped into my inbox this week, saying: "These cities are the WORST for commuters." The city I live in was included on the list. Cardiff was among the five worst places to be a commuter in Britain, apparently.
The other four were Edinburgh, Manchester, Plymouth and Liverpool. The email said a huge percentage of people in these cities found commuting "extremely stressful". Long journey times, delayed or cancelled trains and cost were the biggest issues.
But the timing of this email couldn't have been better — because the day before it arrived, I'd been so taken aback by the scene I found myself in on my own commute that I had to stop, get off my bike and take a picture. But, in truth, this special moment wasn't just a random one-off. My commute is often the best part of my day.
Most days as I pedal along, I think about how lucky I am as I glide through fields, parkland and beside a river, passing early morning dog walkers and runners as I go, all of us sharing in this wonderful space that I hope they all realise how lucky we are to have. And, after all that, I emerge into the city to one of the world's best stadiums towering over me. And then it's the office.
It really couldn't be better. There is an enormous green space at the heart of Cardiff - it stretches from Cardiff Castle in the south for nearly five miles, to a nature reserve in the very north of the city, by which point you're practically in the countryside. It's twice as long as New York's Central Park.
I.
