It is oftentimes hard for people to contemplate riding a bicycle to work, and because of this, WABA sponsors a Bike to Work Day every year. This year it will be on Friday, May 16th.
Join thousands of area commuters for a celebration of bicycling as a clean, fun and healthy way to get to work! Meet up with your neighbors at one of 26 pit stops all over the region, ride into the city with experienced commuter convoys and meet your colleagues at Freedom Plaza. Washington Area Bicyclist Association and Commuter Connections invite you to try bicycling to work as an alternative to solo driving. Help the Washington region become a better place to ride. Bike to Work Day is a FREE event and open to all area commuters. Free Bike to Work Day t-shirts are available to the first 7,000 registrants.
If you are concerned about the distance involved, one way to get started is to drive part of the way, park and then ride your bicycle the rest of the way. As you develop the endurance and confidence to ride your route, you can make it longer until you reach a point where you ride the entire route by bicycle.
I rode to work for the first time last year. For me I am fortunate in that we have showers and lockers at the office (Fairfax County code for office buildings now requires this). So all I needed to do was work out the route, and buy a pannier (a pack that clips to the bike) in which I can carry my work clothes. If you are just starting, it is probably easier to carry work clothes into the office on a drive-to-work day.
The only downside for me is that my route is 19 miles each way (I should say that the safest route is 19 miles - shorter routes exist that wouldn't be as fun or safe), but the flip side of it is that I don't need any expensive gym memberships :-).