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Do the private buses like DeCamp operate better? Are some bus companies better than others? If so, which ones are really good?
I would openly say that they are all about the same, mostly because so many things are out of their control. Traffic, weather, tunnel closings, these all affect all of them the same. The PABT literally leads directly into the tunnels and during rush hour has a dedicated lane but still runs late and busses can get stuck in traffic leading back into the terminal unable to actually be there in order to make their route.
It's a very crowded event happening twice a day, there are always going to be issues. A quarter million people use it a day and then get on roads used by another few million people. Even if only .01 percent get in a wreck daily that's still a number of wrecks which will cause delays.
Disagree completely that Metro North into Grand Central is any quicker or cheaper than NJ Transit...and this is coming from someone who is no fan of NJ Transit. Cost and travel times are pretty much the same. We're talking about commuting from safe suburbs with young families, where you can have a house with a yard? Yeah, you're not getting into Midtown (56th & Broadway is more Midtown than it is the Upper West Side), any faster or cheaper from Westchester. And Grand Central is just as inconvenient to 56th and Broadway, as Penn Station is. Probably more inconvenient.
From Penn Station, yes, you can take the 1 train to Columbus Circle. You can also walk 1 short block to Herald Square and take the N/R/Q/W train to 57th St. and Seventh Ave. (which is closer to 56th and Broadway, than the 1 train station at Columbus Circle).
First, there's a lot of misinformation and assumption you have there. The OP mentioned RENTING.
So toss the house and yard thought or any home value real estate ideas.
The reason Metro North is better because they don't hike their rates as crazy as NJT has and there is hardly any congestion or problems.
Tell me which service has the most congestion and delays? Metro North or NJ Transit.
The Monclair line is one of the busiest train line because of college students.
The fares depend on how far you live and in Westchester you can get less than $200/month if he rents closer like in Yonkers.
Once you get down to GCT, you walk right over to the S train which is ALWAYS going to be there and take people over to the West side to TimeSquare for the 1/9 train up to Columbus Circle.
I know many people who take the Metro North and they hardly ever have problems compare to coming into Penn Station.
For the OP, regardless what some people here will say. Your best bet is to come down to NYC and investigate these train lines during rush hour and get a real feel.
Never rule out any options until you take the real world test.
Do not forget the NY Penn Station is destined for major major delay within 10 years. There's only less than 15 years to go before they must shutdown the tunnel for extensive repairs.
Others have already chimed in, but my impressions are based on 10 years of commuting by bus. The timetables that are published are works of fiction. Most days there were "incidents" in the tunnel that would cause a backup, so your commute is very unpredictable. I was lucky to not have a hard start time, but if you do, then you'll need to budget plenty of extra time in the morning to ensure you're not late to work. Depending on the popularity of the bus line, the gates in the evening can be backed up by a few hundred fellow cranky commuters. While you might want to take the "5:30" bus home, that might mean you need to arrive before 5pm in order to guarantee you can get onboard. It took me a few years to just submit and never attempt to catch a specific bus.
I would just mention that you wait for the actual bus standing in the cramped, noisy, barely air conditioned area that stinks with gas fumes. Everyone is sweating in a summer so usually PA adds those portable AC units right in the gate area. They make a lot of noise but don't seem to cool anything.
In all fairness though, if you take a bus after 7:00 pm and it is not snowing, raining, there is no accident in Lincoln tunnel and you get a seat it is not so bad. Standing in a moving, crowded bus not designed for standing is a horrible experience, at least for me. And the worst part is that you have no idea if you get a seat when you stand in line for the bus.
I mostly take a train and find that train experience is to a large extent more pleasant. But I do take the bus occasionally when I am either near the Bus Terminal or working late. But I would not venture into the PABT between 5:00 and 6:30 pm...
So the main reason to have skepticism about grand central is because that's the only option?
Also, if I get on the train in towns like Summit, Montclair etc., am I standing on them from the get go? Same question on the PATH from JC/Newport/Weehawken?
Sorry for my ignorance having never done any of this before.
Basically. You're also stuck on the east side of town when you work on the west. You should visit sometime soon and try to get crosstown. Even with the S train it's an annoyance. You're basically adding another link in the transit chain to add time to your commute and then fail. Come down to GCT, add five minutes to get to the S and wait on it, 3 minutes to get to Times Square, another 5 minutes to get to the 1 and wait for it and you've added about fifteen minutes very quickly. Compare that to getting in on 34th or 42nd Streets already on the 1 or A lines and then only adding five minutes to get to and wait for the train. Twenty minutes a day is going add up quickly.
PATH, probably, but that's not a long trip for JC. Probably not from Summit, I can't comment on Montclair.
Also, I have a very flexible schedule and can go in early and leave early or go in late and leave late. What is the best times to be traversing trains/buses/Penn station etc.?
Yes, is the answer. If you can avoid the rush hour times then any of them should be fine. Come in early and leave before 4 and you're fine. Come in at 10 and leave at 8 and you're fine. It's the 7-9 in the morning and 5-7 at night that are the biggest issues.
So the main reason to have skepticism about grand central is because that's the only option?
Also, if I get on the train in towns like Summit, Montclair etc., am I standing on them from the get go? Same question on the PATH from JC/Newport/Weehawken?
Sorry for my ignorance having never done any of this before.
I'm in South Orange so I can't speak exactly for Montclair, but in three years I can't remember ever standing on a train going into Penn. They can be a little more crowded on the way out, but standing is still pretty rare.
I'd expect Montclair's situtation to be similar.
First, there's a lot of misinformation and assumption you have there. The OP mentioned RENTING.
So toss the house and yard thought or any home value real estate ideas.
The reason Metro North is better because they don't hike their rates as crazy as NJT has and there is hardly any congestion or problems.
Tell me which service has the most congestion and delays? Metro North or NJ Transit.
The Monclair line is one of the busiest train line because of college students.
The fares depend on how far you live and in Westchester you can get less than $200/month if he rents closer like in Yonkers.
Once you get down to GCT, you walk right over to the S train which is ALWAYS going to be there and take people over to the West side to TimeSquare for the 1/9 train up to Columbus Circle.
I know many people who take the Metro North and they hardly ever have problems compare to coming into Penn Station.
For the OP, regardless what some people here will say. Your best bet is to come down to NYC and investigate these train lines during rush hour and get a real feel.
Never rule out any options until you take the real world test.
Do not forget the NY Penn Station is destined for major major delay within 10 years. There's only less than 15 years to go before they must shutdown the tunnel for extensive repairs.
Yes, you're right on trying it out for myself. We fully intend to do that and leverage Airbnb's in different areas before committing.
This totally depends on which bus you take, so it's worth doing some research before you commit to a location (and bus line). I am lucky in that my bus runs nearly exactly on schedule and doesn't fill up until 2 minutes before departure, so I can time my evening commute pretty exactly. My backup (slightly longer ride) bus isn't much worse. I certainly realize this might not be the norm however as I see lines in the next gate over all the time.
This is quite true. I unfortunately used a very crowded bus line. Eventually, I had to abandon the morning express bus because it was always full when it arrived and I was not going to stand on the way in. (Fool me once! Ok, a handful of times...) There were days when I would have to wait for 3-5 buses to appear in order to get a seat. I started taking the local on the way home and accepted it was slower, but more predictable. I still used the express on the way home. The park and rides where the buses originated weren't much help because the parking lots would be 100% full by 7:15-7:30a. Actually, keep this in mind if you feel you might need to ride a bus. Try to find a home where you can walk to the bus. Most towns have parking ordinances near bustops in order to prevent neighborhoods from becoming parking lots.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ottoscav
Do the private buses like DeCamp operate better? Are some bus companies better than others? If so, which ones are really good?
I rode DeCamp for the first year, but it was relatively frustrating. They were much less frequent and had limited service into the evening. When I rode it, it was also much more expensive and getting tickets was inconvenient.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ottoscav
Also, I have a very flexible schedule and can go in early and leave early or go in late and leave late. What is the best times to be traversing trains/buses/Penn station etc.?
This will be your saving grace. If I took the bus after 7p, my commute was 18minutes from the time the bus pulled out of PABT and I got off. During rush hour, it would be anywhere between 1-2 hours. My bus went down Rt3, past the meadowlands, so if there is a big event (I'm looking at you U2!) that alone can add another 30minutes just to get past. When I first started the commute, we didn't have any kids and my wife worked some evenings, so it was really no big deal. I'd hang in the city, meet friends for drinks, etc and then take a bus after 7p. Once we had kids though, that equation changed and I had to get home to relive the nanny, and actually get to spend time with my kids.
I know I am coming off as doom and gloom, but until you've lived it, it's not easy to really appreciate the NJ/NY commute. If you research this forum, there are oodles of posts looking for the secret commute that is quick and easy, but unfortunately as someone mentioned, hundreds of thousands of people are trying to do this at the same time, every morning utilizing an outdated infrastructure that has been neglected for years. Everyone's situation is different, so in the end you have to figure out what works for your family. In my case, it was killing me slowly, and when the opportunity came to move to Raleigh, I jumped at it. If your job is moving you, would you have the opportunity to work from the NYC office before your move? It would probably be very beneficial for you to stay at a hotel near some of your potential towns and try these commutes in person before committing to a town. I wish you the best of luck.
Oh, one other thing that no one has mentioned yet. In many of these towns with trains, there are often waitlists for a parking permit. These waitlists are sometimes 1-2 years. That's not a typo. If you can walk, all the better.
Oh, one other thing that no one has mentioned yet. In many of these towns with trains, there are often waitlists for a parking permit. These waitlists are sometimes 1-2 years. That's not a typo. If you can walk, all the better.
Most Bergen county towns don't have waitlists but just sell the permits to all residents. So basically parking on a regular day past 7:30 am or so is impossible. I walk about 12 minute to the train and that has kept my sanity and contributed to my physical fitness...
Okay, I know you specifically said you prefer the suburbs, so I apologize for not answering that, however... given your budget and that you're looking for a rental, I wouldn't rule out living in the city. Couple reasons for that. You'll have more time to spend with your kids if you're only a walk or a subway ride away from work, and there are family-oriented neighborhoods close by. The main reason I'd suggest it though, is for the access to homeschooling resources in the city.
I homeschooled, and there are so many amazing opportunities for city kids. Here's a brief list of some of the things we did. NY Historical Society offers an art-history class. Writopia offers creative writing and essay writing classes. Asphalt Green has swimming and gymnastics classes. BookCulture offers free space for book clubs to meet and discounts on book club purchases. Bryant Park has a homeschool ice skating class in the winter. There are also two groups - one on the Upper West Side (59th St.), and one in the East Village, that have space in churches. They coordinate classes like Lego robotics, capoeira, art - basically anything a parent or kid is interested in and wants to find an instructor for. There's also a group of parents who arrange very inexpensive ski lessons, lift passes and rentals at Shawnee.
We also had one-time events like a visit to the Wild Bird Fund. After a class on birds, the kids got to hand-feed baby pigeons and a once-wild cardinal, then walk to Central Park for the release of a rehabilitated red-tailed hawk.
That said, we've been happy with our move to the 'burbs a little over two years ago, though the commute is hard on my husband. We're also still waiting on our parking permit. Yes, over two years, and still no commuter parking for us. He takes the Lakeland bus to Port Authority, and I drive him to and from the bus stop. The bus is not quite as timely as the train, provided the train is running. The handful of times he takes the train, it usually arrives within two minutes of its scheduled time. The bus varies a little more; five to ten minute differences, but it's been more reliable than I'd have thought.
edit: Our kids are enrolled in school here, and while I still do 'homeschool' math with one of them, overall we've been fairly happy with the schools here.
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