Good route between Kitchener and Guelph, ON?

i used to bike from waterloo to guelph several times a week for a job last summer. if you live in the south of kitchener prob. the best bet is to cross the grand down south on king st. and take riverbank dr. (really nice) to the end, turn right on woolwhich then right away left on kossuth rd. all the way to 24, its busy but amazing wide shouler. that will take into guelph. if you live further north, take your chances on hw 7 just for bit to get over the grand then turn left into breslau (woolwhich rd) then left at menno st all the way to the end then left on hw 30 which takes to kossuth rd and then 24. thats the best ratio between efficiency and safety i found.

ecmoffat said:

Hey all you tri-city bikers out there. I've just gotten a new job in Guelph (specifically the corner of Governor's Road and Woodlawn) but I live in Kitchener (specifically the corner of Belmont and Glasgow near Belmont Village). I would love to be able to bike to work...

If you're driving a car, getting on Victoria and heading straight out is definitely the best route. But the thought of cycling along Highway 7 freaks me out, so much traffic and all those trucks. I've pored over the maps, but can't really come up with a good solution that doesn't add a LOT of distance to a route that's already pretty long (for me) for a work commute. Does anyone have any insight? Is Highway 7 not nearly as bad as I think? Am I crazy for even wanting to do this?

You can email me if you like, at ecmoffat at yahoo dot com. Thanks in advance. 🙂

Hello EC,

I hate to give you the bad news but, assuming you are riding a road bike, there is no easy way to bike to Guelph without going out of your way. Highway 7 is a nightmare (sane people do not bike the 7 ). Kossuth road to highway 24 is at least 15 km out of your way.
There are ways of biking to Guelph but it will take some time.

P.S....STAY OFF HIGHWAY 24! It is worse than highway 7.

Good Luck
Alpha

Alpha said:

Hello EC,

I hate to give you the bad news but, assuming you are riding a road bike, there is no easy way to bike to Guelph without going out of your way. Highway 7 is a nightmare (sane people do not bike the 7 ). Kossuth road to highway 24 is at least 15 km out of your way.
There are ways of biking to Guelph but it will take some time.

P.S....STAY OFF HIGHWAY 24! It is worse than highway 7.

Good Luck
Alpha

Thanks everyone for your thoughts. I've managed to figure out a route that will hopefully work, though I've yet to try it on the bike (stupid crappy snowy weekend weather, grr!!). It's only 7k longer than my driving route...basically I bike through town then cross the river at Bridge St, head north and then head for Guelph on the country roads that more-or-less parallel the 7 to the north. Given the location of my work (RIGHT where the 7 meets the edge of Guelph) it makes the most sense for me, I think. I've driven the route during both morning and evening rush time, and the traffic seems manageable.

But, we'll see how it goes. 😄