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[deleted] t1_j8a2mnw wrote

Full disclosure, I do have a car that I share with a friend of mine in the area. I start the engine every two weeks to make sure the battery doesn't die and actually use the car myself maybe once a month. Not a wise financial decision on my part, I know. I do like getting out of the city to the mountains to hike in the warmer months.

If you check my post/comment history, you'll see I'm active in a lot of transit- and city-related subs. I'm a big transit advocate and use the T almost daily is some form or another (bus, tram, subway) and also use the T commuter rail and Amtrak for weekend getaways or vacations. I try my best to support the T by actually riding it and to defend it on the internet based on my own experiences with other cities' transit systems (it's not easy being a keyboard warrior lol), but they're making it really difficult these days.

For example, my parents came to visit this weekend. Last night, we got tickets for a concert at the House of Blues over in Fenway. It took us nearly two hours to get from my apartment to the venue using the Green Line because of the closure between North Station and Government Center, where the T offered a shuttle bus between these stations instead. The bus took almost 25 minutes to go from North Station to Gov Center with traffic; walking between these two stations would have taken 15 minutes. Everyone on the bus was livid. We got to Government Center and packed like sardines into the tram and finally got to the Kenmore stop, having missed our dinner reservations. I was embarrassed that my parents had to put up with this experience. This felt like something out of 1930s Belarus or something. You bet your behind we took Uber back to my apartment after the show (a 16-min car ride).

Sorry for the long-winded answer. Maybe I am a hypocrite for having a car here, but my apartment had off-street parking included in the rent, so I said what the hell and brought my car with me. But honestly, I don't think it'll be a concern for me too much longer as I'm looking for jobs back in NJ now.

Edit: Forgot to add-- I noticed the shitty road conditions here on my bike moreso than in my car.

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