Speed machine: Richard Allen with the Giant SCR 4.0

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Cycling to work has boomed in Britain over the past five years and the trend looks set to continue.

While the Chinese are ditching their bicycles and belatedly discovering the joys of motoring, it seems that the Brits are returning to the idea that two-wheeled, self-propelled transport offers the best means of getting to work.

But gone are the days when everyone rode either a racing bike or a sit-up-and-beg special with a basket on the front.

Technology has bred a huge range of bikes and accessories to suit every possible need.

Our man Richard Allen has been commuting five miles across London by bike for the past two years - and was in the market for a new bike - so we put him on three modern commuting options to find out which suited him best.

Road bike
Having ridden a clapped-out old mountain bike (my wife's) with faulty gears and rusted parts for two years, this sleek machine took me into a whole new cycling world.

Whereas before I struggled to stay up with the rest of the commuter pack, sometimes being left behind at traffic lights by the overweight and elderly, I could now burn anyone off the road.

Giant's SCR 4.0 is built for speed. Almost everything about it seems designed to ensure that a few more nanoseconds are shaved off the rider's journey time.

The drop handlebars bring the riding position well forward, transmitting maximum power through the legs.

The frame is light enough to trot upstairs with on your shoulder (one small part of my journey), the alloy wheels are ultra-narrow, the tyres almost bald and the toe clips mean you can pull the pedals up as well as pushing them down - extracting more power from the machine.

And the 16 gears are closely spaced, allowing the rider to make constant subtle adjustments.

For those who love speed, this is great. But not everyone wants a sports car. There are drawbacks, although none of them major.

For a start, all this lightness feels, and probably is to an extent, fragile. If you suddenly want to go off road to avoid some heavy traffic you will think twice about it, fearing a rough ride or even a buckled wheel.

And a poor road surface makes for uncomfortable riding. You feel every manhole cover and pothole right up through the aluminium frame and into your arms and pelvis. I found that I remembered every section of newly-laid tarmac on my route and looked forward to it longingly.

The other main issue is safety. This bike is well-made and stable but the riding position is so far forward that when you stretch that extra couple of inches to reach the brakes, your torso is almost horizontal.

This is not the ideal position if you are negotiating busy traffic. You can't see around you and other road-users are less likely to see you. And you are putting so much weight on your hands that it is hard to make instant steering adjustments.

In summary: it's great to drive a Ferrari but would you want to commute in it?

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