Submitted by Secret_Yesterday7625 t3_11mnx0a in providence
My husband and I just moved to River Ave (Wanskuck) from the Netherlands and feel a bit unsettled by the looks of it.
We haven't lived anywhere else in the US before so it's hard for us to judge... is this a safe neighborhood to live in/take a walk to the restaurant etc? How is taking the bus from here? Is it a safe experience?
We love taking walks so it would be a pity if that was not recommendable. Any tips? :)
your only real risk here, assuming you use common sense, is getting hit by a car.
there aren't really any spots in providence i would call unsafe to walk through, from a crime perspective. not that it doesn't happen, but overall random street crime is incredibly rare. the biggest risk you will face is bad drivers.
it's not pretty over there, but there are a ton of families in that area
It might not be the most convenient place to walk around but other than traffic safety you should be alright. I used to live around Wanskuck/Charles and liked walking up Woodward Road around Wanskuck park and beyond. Be careful at stop signs, drivers don't feel like they actually need to stop at them here.
It’s plenty safe, it’s just a little rough around the edges aesthetically. Also if you’re on the part of River Ave that’s in Wanskuck you’re probably a 15ish minute walk to Wanskuck Park, which is very pleasant (especially if you like dogs).
Cool! Thank you!!
Be careful with car traffic. Lots of distracted drivers, lots of drivers who don’t care, and lousy infrastructure all around.
There are streets that are so busy and have no crosswalks that I don’t dare walk across.
But I am on older side, so your experience may be different.
I believe this is true for the whole state (and country).
Edit: to give you perspective, wanskuck has a walk score of 70 (100 is tops) and is considered very walkable.
Welcome to Providence!
I live in Mount Pleasant and walk through Elmhurst and Smith Hill every day. In general, you'll be fine most hours of the day. I feel uncomfortable walking by myself downtown late at night, but if I lived in your area, I'd be fine walking to and from restaurants.
Use some street smarts, though. Be aware of your surroundings, and assume that drivers are not paying attention and aren't expecting to see pedestrians.
The whole area is safe, just looks pretty run down in some parts. I lived in Smith Hill right near the foxy lady and never felt in danger.
Welcome! You'll be fine, watch for cars. If you have bikes come join PVD Bike Jam..next ride is 3/24 7pm Burnside Park. Dance Party on wheels.
Since no one addressed the question re: the bus: other than subway / commuter systems in major cities, in the US public transit systems tend to be used by those who have no other choice for transportation, vs those who have a choice and choose the bus. This is not to say it’s unsafe, but if you take RIPTA you will run into some interesting characters.
I spent about a decade as an expat and it was one of the best experience of my life - whether you’re here for work or something else I hope you enjoy your time. If you get homesick try to find a local expat group - the next best thing to finding your countrymen is commiserating with a group of outsiders on the idiosyncrasies of the place you’ve landed.
I will try taking the bus and then see if we will rather take an uber instead haha! Thank you
Uber will get expensive fast, Providence has a growing amount of bike users, and adding more bike lanes. There aren't any in that area I know of, but you might find it more convenient than RIPTA for the local stuff.
I commuted on the bus for a little over a year and it was fine. Still take it to go out downtown.
Safe as in, won't get hit by a car?
Or safe as in, won't get mugged?
Bad timing of this question with River Ave being in the news today for a kid stealing a car BUT I walk around the area all the time. Just look both ways a couple times before crossing streets you got this.
>Bad timing of this question with River Ave being in the news today for a kid stealing a car
It wasn't just a stolen car. It was a CARJACKING BY A 13 YEAR OLD!!
That's the kind of stuff that goes on in Wanskuck, OP.
>It wasn't just a stolen car. It was a CARJACKING BY A 13 YEAR OLD!!
>
>That's the kind of stuff that goes on in Wanskuck, OP.
Correction: This actually happened in Elmhurst. River Ave & View Street (near Pleasant Valley Parkway). But the kid was caught on Atlas Street in Wanskuck.
I’ve been in Wanskuck technically, butcould walk to either Elmhurst or the really sketch looking areas of Wanskuck in a few minutes. I don’t walk cause the normal places I go are driving distances, I work in Mass, and if I do wanna walk I have a membership to RWP Zoo. With all that being said, if I wanted to go for a walk where I live the surrounding areas, I would.
Are you on River north of admiral? South of admiral is a really fine area.
I only drive through the part of river ave north of admiral. I don't think you'll have any problems if you do walk around. It is dumpy up there though. Go to PC and walk the track.
We live north of admiral, but i think it will be fine! Thank you!
>We live north of admiral, but i think it will be fine! Thank you!
Wanskuck isn't an area to be taking walks - especially when dark.
The people telling you that your only risk is getting hit by a car are people who are not even remotely familiar with the area.
Since you’re the local expert on crime, can you pull up some stats about the people who have been walking, minding their own business and were victims of crime in this area?
>Since you’re the local expert on crime, can you pull up some stats about the people who have been walking, minding their own business and were victims of crime in this area?
Insincere question as you are well aware that those stats don't exist for this area or any area.
So innocent walkers are regularly victims of crime and it's not being reported by our police or media?
>So innocent walkers are regularly victims of crime and it's not being reported by our police or media?
Crimes of opportunity do happen regularly in the rougher (and sometimes not so rough) areas of Providence. Nearly everybody carries a valuable phone.
The media doesn't cover that.
I used to regularly walk from Douglas ave, to downtown at night. Never had a problem. saw some sketchy people and whatnot, but was never in fear for my life. I lived on Goddard St. I wouldn't suggest a woman walk alone at night around there, but a couple walking during the day? Where exactly do you live, if you dont mind me asking...
Women walk alone on Goddard Street at night. They're called hookers.
Nobody's out on Goddard street at night. I can assure you. It was usually quiet as hell. I dont even down vote you bro. I leave that to the other people. I would just like to know where you get info from. The news, or have you lived in the area? There were 2 trap houses across from the park, but again, I brought my kids to the park all the time with no problems.
"My husband and I just moved to River Ave (Wanskuck) from the Netherlands and feel a bit unsettled by the looks of it."
Your instincts are not wrong.
I live in Elmhurst. It's safe to walk around. As mentioned above, Wanskuck Park is nice. You're also close to Providence College, I often walk my dog around the campus. If you head south on River the Pleasant Valley parkway is a nice walking spot. I'm not worried about my safety but I wish the city would invest more in repairing sidewalks and improving cleanliness with regular litter cleanup and more garbage/recycling bins. The lower income areas have a lot of litter and broken sidewalks.
Did you do any research before moving from another continent?
they're here now, who cares the circumstances they're just asking a question
Just curious and asking a question.
Of course i did, i saw that wanskuck was an ok and affordable area to live in, now i just want to inquire about walking possibilities
You’re probably the only person in history to have ever moved from the Netherlands to Wanskuck. Hope it’s working for you though and If it’s not there are many other places to try. Don’t give up on PVD!
I mean it is, just hardly a very walkable neighborhood. Especially compare to Europe.
River Ave (Wanskuck) between Admiral Street and Douglas Ave = bad
River Ave (Elmhurst) between Admiral Street and Chalkstone Ave = good
River Ave (Valley) between Chalkstone Ave and Valley Street = bad
​
Edited to add: OP, this is accurate info. It will likely get downvoted though. And not because the info isn't accurate. A bunch of weirdos on here downvote all of my posts because they (falsely) believe I'm a former banned member who caused a lot of trouble.
I think people downvote you for being a racist propagandist who adds nothing of value to this community.
You’re being downvoted bc you are saying that lower income equates to a bad neighborhood
You get downvoted because you come off as a basement dwelling fear monger. You post exclusively about crime in a relatively low population subreddit, which makes pvd look dangerous. It is not.
>You get downvoted because you come off as a basement dwelling fear monger. You post exclusively about crime in a relatively low population subreddit, which makes pvd look dangerous. It is not.
https://www.reddit.com/r/providence/comments/11el39z/moving_to_providence/jahb303/?context=3
You've been here for all of 2 months, and you think it's safe to walk alone at night in Mt Hope.
It's naive people like you that we end up reading about in the news.
And I love how you think you're "in a unique position to set some things straight."
2 months living in Providence.
The unique position was having moved from CT recently so I could directly compare utility rates and CoL. Good reading comprehension skills bud. If you think pvd is dangerous, you are clearly inexperienced in the world. Go for a stroll in Hartford or Newark and tell me with a straight face afterwards that Providence is bad
This has nothing to do with Hartford or Newark.
Walking alone at night in Mt Hope is definitely not a good idea.
>River Ave (Wanskuck) between Admiral Street and Douglas Ave = bad
>
>River Ave (Elmhurst) between Admiral Street and Chalkstone Ave = good
>
>River Ave (Valley) between Chalkstone Ave and Valley Street = bad
>
>Edited to add: OP, this is accurate info. It will likely get downvoted though. And not because the info isn't accurate. A bunch of weirdos on here downvote all of my posts because they (falsely) believe I'm a former banned member who caused a lot of trouble.
This is all very accurate. And it is unfortunate how the more accurate or helpful the post, the more it will get downvoted around here. Must be running low on "hurt feelings reports".
Hdale803 t1_jbj2vyj wrote
Elmhurst is safe, River Ave. may not be pretty but the side streets near Lasalle, PC, Smith St are all pretty safe. I would consider the area in between PC, Mount Pleasant High School and Chalkstone to be walkable during the day