Submitted by upstonksonly t3_125alpr in boston
Moving to Boston and going to live in West End. Price for a parking spot is $450/month which is insane. How good is the T and public transit and will I regret not having a car?
Comments
paxmomma t1_je3f669 wrote
Sell the car. Both commutes are short walks. The T is falling apart, but Boston is extremely walkable.
InOrbit3532 t1_je3g32g wrote
Wife and I moved to the North End last year and sold our cars for that reason. Can't pay Boston rent and also pay an extra $500 a month for a parking spot. I can scooter to work and my wife has a five minute walk to MGH. Coming from California, I thought we would be miserable without a car. Fortunately Boston is really easy to get around without a car. Bike lanes are actually pretty good here (not perfect), and public transit gets you most places easily. There's been a lot of gripes about long waits on the T and frequent shutdowns, but it hasn't been completely untenable.
upstonksonly OP t1_je3gfj2 wrote
Good to know! Thank you!
Wonka_Stompa t1_je3qp0i wrote
Something to consider: For less than $450/mo you could easily rent a car for a few days a month when you need it (for a costco run or something). Plus, you wouldn’t have to maintain it, pay taxes on it, or futz with the RMV, and it’d always be a new car.
batdesk t1_je4a8kh wrote
$450/month also goes pretty far for rideshare/taxi as well. This was my math when my household went down to 1 car (one of us still needed it for work).
WitnessEntire t1_je4gnia wrote
Agree. Before we got our car, we walked + T + ubered and it was less than a parking spot ($400/mo at the commercial street garage)
camt91 t1_je3gdhz wrote
Can I interest you in a public transit system that is both literally and figuratively on fire?
mpjjpm t1_je4fqrq wrote
West End is a great place to live without a car. Walkable to both MGH and downtown for commuting. Multiple grocery stores within easy walking distance. Plenty of restaurants and entertainment within walking distance. The T is fine if you aren’t dependent on it to get to work on time, and West End is close to stops for all four lines, so you have alternatives when needed. I lived in West End without a car for four years, and my only complaint is the lack of “community” because most residents are only there for a few years during residency/fellowship at MGH.
A1utra t1_je50car wrote
What’s considered walkable for Boston? I’m gonna be doing my PhD there in the fall and will spend much of my time over near mass gen, but then a few days a week I’ll have courses over at the navy yard which looks like it’s about 1.5mi away, so trying to gauge if by Boston standards this is pretty reasonable and safe to walk, especially in the evenings, or if that really needs to involve a car
mpjjpm t1_je522gs wrote
That isn’t the most pleasant walk, but it’s a reasonable distance and safe. Biggest danger there is crossing the street at Washington and Chelsea. But! MGH has a shuttle service between the hospital and Navy Yard, which might work as primary or backup transportation depending on your schedule.
A1utra t1_je5xxum wrote
This is helpful to know! I’ll see if I can find the shuttle schedule! Is it not pleasant because of some of the crossings or something else that makes it unpleasant?
mpjjpm t1_je65amn wrote
The most direct route is through Paul Revere and North Point parks, which is pleasant. Getting from MGH to the parks requires a walk along Storrow for a few blocks. Then from the parks to the Navy Yard is along Chelsea. The crossings can be bad, and it’s also just a lot of barren sidewalk next to heavy traffic.
1998_2009_2016 t1_je5aqun wrote
Safety isn't a concern, it's more how long you want to spend walking - plenty of people have no problem walking an hour from downtown back to Central Square after the bars close, if it's a nice enough night.
One mile is usually the cutoff where it's not particularly reasonable, so either you commit to somewhat unreasonable but doable walking, or you get a bike. Definitely don't need a car for a 1.5 mile commute.
f1Ynoeld3TRCRaw t1_je58g8k wrote
people in Boston are delusional about walking. the person you're replying to just said 1.5 MILES away is a reasonable distance away. NO ITS NOT. people here will tell you Boston is the most walkable city and that you don't need a car while you're literally riding shotgun in their car.
ReporterOther2179 t1_je5swaz wrote
My weekday sanity walk is 3.5 to 4 miles depending on which loop. The four mile is an hour ten if I stop to smell the roses. A 1.5 mile with a destination and a deadline would be twenty five minutes, and me a moderately healthy pudgy 70 year old.
f1Ynoeld3TRCRaw t1_je5vwg6 wrote
you're literally the delusional person im talking about... you claim Boston is a walking city but also enjoys going on 4 mile sanity walks. not everyone likes that and selling Boston as a walking city just because you're used to walking 4 miles at a time is just ridiculous.
ReporterOther2179 t1_je5x5i1 wrote
I don’t require that everybody like that. Can you conceive that many people do like that. And accept that civilly?
[deleted] t1_je6xyqc wrote
[removed]
Stronkowski t1_je632t0 wrote
If you can't walk 1.5 miles you must have a health issue...
ieat_sprinkles t1_je3e5ag wrote
cries in Boston public transit
michael_scarn_21 t1_je3cprk wrote
The T is a fucking disgrace lately but without knowing what your commute would be it's hard to give advice.
upstonksonly OP t1_je3deg7 wrote
I’ll work downtown and girlfriend works at Mass Gen
mattorio t1_je3e4ze wrote
Even if the T sucks, it's not that far to walk. I'd just do car share when you need it, save a bunch of money. You can walk to whole foods too
TotallyErratic t1_je3ew1v wrote
That's close enough to walk. And orange, red, and green all run through West End. They cant all be broken~~~
Pinwurm t1_je3mmgr wrote
From West End, you can both walk to work.
The T is uniquely bad lately due to Slow Zones (track inspection) that would conclude by May. Afterwords, it’ll be a hodgepodge. Blue will be great, Orange and Green will be okay, and Red will continue to suck until CCRC delivers more trains… and who knows when that’ll happen. All is faster than driving in rush hour.
charons-voyage t1_je4brxc wrote
It’s way faster to drive at peak rush hour than it is to take the red line lately. Sad.
pollogary t1_je4egpl wrote
You definitely don’t need a car with that commute!
blue_orchard t1_je4mqxy wrote
MGH has discounts for Charlie Cards, ZipCar, and rental cars. Maybe Blue Bikes now too. Your workplace will most likely have discounts as well.
upstonksonly OP t1_je3ghyl wrote
Who wants to buy my car? Haha
PapalStates t1_je6dv18 wrote
Great time to sell.
toluxury t1_je3xxg5 wrote
I sold my car the second I moved to Boston. Actually moved to the West End! Moved a few years later to beacon hill and bought a car because I was eligible for resident street parking. Sold the car in 3 months. Parking is a nightmare if you’re not paying for a garage. Sell the car and get a Zipcar membership. Also lots of rental car companies for multi day trips.
Critical_Box_9723 t1_je3ih1m wrote
Yeah the T is a hot mess express, but sounds like you can walk to work!!
jujubee516 t1_je3non2 wrote
Truthfully, public transit isn't that reliable anymore. My partner and I have been driving a lot more because of that and I'm so glad we have a car. I'd recommend living somewhere with free street parking if you haven't committed to where you're living yet. It'll be nice for getting groceries, getting out of the city for day trips or outdoor excursions... I also know someone who lives in West end and parks over in Charlestown cause it's a lot cheaper.
iamaslan t1_je3kmnh wrote
I’d recommend signing up for Blue bikes. I also have a scooter and will use one of the other to get to work depending on my mood. If it’s really snowy I’ll walk or WFH, but I like going to the office and it’s easy to get around the city.
what_do_you_meme69 t1_je4ye84 wrote
I will echo a few comments here and what I have told colleagues who have moved from out of the region to the Boston area - if you are not going to be driving back to where you came from or to see family, I’d suggest no car. The T is bad right now, but you can bike or walk most places in the city. The T takes you right to the airport (in my experience the blue line is the best line of the T). It alleviates the headache. If you really need a car you can rent one for far less than the cost of parking your car. The only reason I have mine is I have family who live in New England that is not very accessible by Bus/Train.
repo_code t1_je3gb8d wrote
You'll want a good bicycle.
CharlesRiverMutant t1_je3ov1p wrote
Whether you need a car or not depends entirely on where you live and what your needs are. In your case, you probably want to sell it, since both of you will be able to walk to work and to many shops and have easy T access--which sucks right now, but not as much as driving does. The argument for keeping the car is that you might want to do some large shopping trips, or trips to places that are annoying or impossible to get to via T (e.g. Ikea, Costco, or a weekend in western mass or Maine or even the Cape). But given how expensive parking is, and how convenient the rest of your transit needs are, it probably isn't worth keeping the car just for those.
WitnessEntire t1_je4gjxn wrote
Depends where you need to get to. The T isn't great these days, but traffic is pretty bad. If you don't need to drive a lot, I'd sell the car.
WitnessEntire t1_je4gumn wrote
If you are downtown and the partner is MGH, you will be fine. We've lived in the North End for 20 years and commute 15 min each way walking to work. If I need to get around the city, I walk or take the T. I only drive to get out of the city. Before we got a car, I did zipcar, which was $$$. Now if I need an SUV or something I rent last minute at Logan Airport and it's pretty affordable. Last week I rented a hybrid SUV and the cost was $130 for two days plus $12 in gas (I drove 200 miles on 1/3 of a tank)
mrkro3434 t1_je4ok18 wrote
Depends on if you intend on getting out of the city to explore the surrounding area frequently. I bought a car, but lived in Brighton and didn't have to pay for parking.
But regarding getting out and exploring, my parents live in southern New Hampshire, so to get to see them it meant walking to and waiting for a 57 bus, to go to Kenmore, to wait for the T, to get to park street, to then transfer to another train (or walk, in similar time) to South Station, to then wait for a Boston express bus, that would then drive to Nashua, to then get picked up by a family member to then drive to their house.
door to door could be 2 1/2 - 3 hours easily.
After I bought a car, that became a 35-40 minute door to door time. So if you plan on getting out of the city and value your time, keep the car.
SocaWarriors t1_je5foge wrote
Unless you're super active and pack the car up for the blue hills every weekend or have a goal to explore more than just the downtown area sell it. You have everything you need in walking distance.
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pollogary t1_je4ec1g wrote
I don’t have a car. I can walk or use the T to get most places, supplemented by an occasional Uber ride. I rent a car on the rare occasion I need one. There are city location car rentals that are open on weekends (unlike a lot of other non airport car rentals, in my experience). Zipcar also works but I find myself using it so rarely that I’m most likely cancelling my membership.
Lambert513 t1_je4hcpm wrote
get a bike!
CoffeeCat262 t1_je55gn7 wrote
Sell your car, your commutes are great for a walk and a car here would just be a hassle for something you’d rarely use. Rent one for weekend trips or whatever
f1Ynoeld3TRCRaw t1_je57lxd wrote
keep the car. people who say Boston is a walking city are delusional. the city is unwalkable for months out of the year just from weather alone. both winter and summer and unbearably cold/hot respectively. the transit system is falling apart and won't be fixed any time soon. grocery stores are also notoriously bad in new England. I go to 3 or 4 different stores just to get all my groceries and doing that on foot is awful since Boston is, like I said earlier, unwalkable most of the year.
slouchingtoepiphany t1_je5if97 wrote
If you're uncomfortable about making the decision, place your car in storage for 3 months somewhere cheap (outside of Boston). At the end of those three months, you can decide whether you can live without it or not (or sooner, if you find that you really need it).
shulapip t1_je7hnat wrote
Keep your car. Find a different spot.
Itchy-Marionberry-62 t1_je8onpq wrote
Most of the spaces are 350 a month in my West End building and there are many of them for rent. A car would be nice if you travel a lot. Look under property listings.
Schemati t1_jef5o1y wrote
A bike and a heated jacket would be as much as your car spot for a month or 2 and depending on how long your commute is could just be a quality heated jacket
bunk_debunk t1_je4rugy wrote
Get a bike or rent a Blue one.
bestfriendsforever87 t1_je5vgkf wrote
Keep the car. People will say you don't need a car in Boston but this isn't true anymore. You're better off driving than taking the T. It's safer to drive in Boston than to take the T. I'd personally take the hit and pay $500 a month to not ride on that sorry excuse for a transit system. After all is said and done, you'll realize that living in Boston isn't worth the time and money and you'll figure out that living in the suburbs is a much better way to go. The place is just not the same anymore.
reaper527 t1_je3cczs wrote
upstonksonly OP t1_je3dgvx wrote
Fuck
vis1onary t1_je3n0pf wrote
It is not that bad. It's all relative. People here are used to a walkable city and the T. Recently it's been slowed heavily because they're inspecting tracks and fixing stuff so let's hope that it's solved sooner rather than later. But the public transit in this city is still one of the best in any North American city.. not a high bar by any means but it's still very good. I came here from Toronto and the transit here is a godsend compared to there, really wanted to bring my car but there is no need at all in Boston. Having a car is more of a headache than not having one here
A1utra t1_je50kiq wrote
So are the delays I’ve been seeing so people talk about not typical and this should generally resolve after inspections etc? I was worried that I was seeing such consistent comments about delays, and don’t wanna select a place to live where I basically have to allow 2 hours to commute in case of a delay for an hour ride on the T
reaper527 t1_je5kdgh wrote
> But the public transit in this city is still one of the best in any North American city..
small sample size, but it's by far the worst of all the public transit systems i've used. (boston, los angeles, nyc/nj, dc/nova, miami as far as usa goes, then internationally just japan)
vanthefunkmeister t1_je3f20r wrote
The T sucks. so does driving. Welcome to Boston