I am trying to make it home for dinner/to work on time, too

And I don’t have a gas pedal. It takes effort to ride a bike at any speed. It takes effort to start moving and keep moving. And it also takes time that can’t be made up by pressing harder on a small metal pedal that actuates a cable that opens a valve and lets more gas and air flow into a cylinder that creates a compressed explosion that drives the wheels. My legs are my engine.

When I’m running late, the only thing that gets me home any faster is pushing harder on the pedals. And they push back. Every inch of ground covered is due to effort and energy. If I’m going up a hill, it takes more effort, and my speed will decline. A headwind (which a motorist can’t feel in an enclosed vehicular environment) also slows me down and requires more effort.

The simple fact of riding a bike is that the time your commute requires is regulated by the body’s ability to push the pedals (and this varies greatly between all of us.) The fastest (for a commuter) is usually below the speed limit, possibly as fast as 20 miles per hour, possibly as slow as 5. There’s just no easy way to push that limit and make up time.