We sent cyclists, car drivers and public transport users on typical commuting trips in the morning rush hour - and the bikers left everyone standing. In one case, riding a bike proved more than twice as fast as driving.

The commuter challenge - held in National Bike Week - used teams from Merton Cycling Campaign, Merton council and the local health authority. ‘Commuters’ set off from Raynes Park, Tooting and Wimbledon Park, and converged on the Civic Centre in Morden. There they were greeted by new Wimbledon MP Roger Casale and council leader Mike Brunt.

MCC co-ordinator Richard Evans told the multitude gathered at the finish line: We’ve just proved it. It’s faster by bike. Cyclists have arrived here ahead of car drivers and bus and train passengers, and we feel better for it too. We’ve had our daily exercise already, before we even start work.

It’s invariably faster, in today’s rush-hour traffic, to get from A to B by bike. Not only is it faster, but because we’ve chosen to use our bikes today the roads are a little less congested, less polluted, and less dangerous. We’re not only doing ourselves a favour – we’re doing everyone else a favour too.

Most commuting journeys are short and easily cyclable: three quarters of all journeys are less than five miles long. If these were done by bike, pollution would plummet, congestion would collapse, and we would have a fitter, healthier and happier population in Merton."

Our results were supported by government statistics, issued a week earlier, showing that on average a cyclist in London completes a 2.5 mile journey in just 18 minutes. The same journey takes the average car driver 33 minutes.

Hopes are rising that Wimbledon station will next year become the first in Britain to get a secure, staffed parking space for bikes - with added services like repairs and cycle rentals.

The council has put in another bid for £40,000 of government money to get the cycle station under way. We should know by December if it's been successful.

Meanwhile, welcome to Les Milsom - new station manager at the borough's top cycling destination. "I think everybody should have a bike," he says.

Fancy joining in a rally at Trafalgar Square to support the Road Traffic Reduction Bill? The Merton contingent will be assembling (with bikes!) at Wimbledon station at 1pm on Saturday September 27 and going by train to Waterloo. They'll cycle over to the square in time for the rally at 2pm. There's even talk of then riding down to Brighton to lobby the Labour conference. Call 0181-946 0912 for more details.

Merton Council is planning to build two more cycle routes by April 1998. Route 18 will go from Wimbledon to Colliers Wood (via South Park Road) and route 25 will go from Merton Park to Motspur Park, (via Whatley Avenue, Linkway and Seaforth Avenue).

If you live in the council wards these routes will pass through, then now's the time to start lobbying your local councillors to:

Route 18 will go through Trinity and Colliers Wood wards, and route 25 will go through Merton Park, Cannon Hill and West Barnes wards. Call the council on 0181-543 2222 to check which ward you're in and who your councillors are. Write to them c/o the Civic Centre, London Road, Morden, Surrey SM4 5DX. And let us know how you get on.

A warm welcome to Merton's eagerly awaited borough cycle map, featuring current and planned routes plus useful contacts, safety tips and a list of local cycle shops. It's free from libraries and bike shops, or by sending an SAE to Richard Evans at 29 Somerset Avenue, SW20 0BJ.

The council is keen to hear your views on how the map could be improved for the next edition. (See the map for who to contact.) To get the ball rolling, we asked MCC's resident architect Hugh Morgan what he thought of it. Hugh designed the influential Star map of London cycle routes, and his illustrations appear regularly in London Cyclist magazine.

It's interesting that Merton has never really used mapping to its advantage," he said. This borough has two Underground lines, two great commons and lots of interesting things going on in it, plus all the shopping centres, which are also significant to cyclists. But such destinations aren't highlighted well enough, and there should be some symbol for green areas. At the moment it's just a road map on which you can't read the road names very well. You can't really tell which road the cycle route is on because you can't read the name of the road! However, we do welcome it because it's a great step in the right direction."

...for a bit and get your pen out, because MCC News welcomes letters, anecdotes and illustrations. Tell us about your commute. Share a joke. Or send in something from the Internet. Just give John a call (see below).

Welcome to all new members flocking to MCC - 14 of whom signed up in National Bike Week alone. Our soaraway membership total is now 206.