Please suggest towns - the Red Line subway in MA (T-stop)

[new2forum]

Sorry I have been incredibly busy and also struggling with some problems at work, not to mention a lot of catching up on my e-mails which have piled up.

I have no intention of buying a mace or anything like that - just to clarify.

Arlington does sound nice. What are the possible ways to commute to Harvard - there is a bus of course, but is there a subway T train station in Arlington too?

Will they run around 11.30 in the night too?

[UsAll]

Go to GOOGLE MAPS (http://maps.google.com); then go to GET DIRECTIONS;, then click on the icon which represents the choice, which, when you hover your mouse over it, pops up with the icon label saying BY PUBLIC TRANSIT; then, in the "A" field (representing what geographic location you are starting your trip From), type in HARVARD SQUARE, CAMBRIDGE, MA and, in the "B" field (representing what geographic destination you are trying to travel TO), type in, for example, ARLINGTON CENTER, MASSACHUSETTS AVENUE, ARLINGTON, MA. Then, in the pull-down menu list below the "A" and "B" fields, select either "Leave Now" or "Depart at" or "Arrive by" and then click on the GET DIRECTIONS button. GOOGLE MAPS will show you a map of the route and other schedule info.

Or, better yet, from the website of the MBTA (Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority) at MBTA.COM, the bus which appears to be most applicable to getting you to & from Arlington, MA from Harvard Square (& vice versa) is the #77 BUS. Its schedule can be found at the following web page:

MBTA > Schedules & Maps > Bus > 77 - Arlington Heights - Harvard Station via Massachusetts Ave.

Print out that web page. It indicates the #77 BUS running up to 12:51 AM (after midnite). That is likely enough time to get home to Arlington from Harvard Square-onward (Massachusetts Ave., running through the heart of Harvard Square, continuing on westward or actually somewhat northwestward past Porter Square and running into Arlington, MA all the way through it (with MASSACHUSETTS AVE. serving as the main commercial road or "Main Street" business district of Arlington) and cutting across the entire stretch of Arlington, MA. Presumably, you could walk to your home location from wherever the bus stops all along Massachusetts Ave. in Arlington, MA.

For that matter (as suggested in an earlier post) you can always use a BICYCLE to ride home to Arlington (a small folding bike is likely to be the best option, but whatever bike you use is up to you). It is easy to ride from Harvard Square to Arlington (just ride up Massachsetts Ave. all the way from Harvard Square to Arlington, MA). From the Harvard Square T station area to the border of Arlington & Cambridge (where Massachusetts Ave. crosses From Cambridge into Arlington) is said by GOOGLE MAPS to be a mere 2.3 miles and they estimate that, by bicycle, it should take 13 to 17 minutes to ride to the Arlington - Cambridge border and hardly much longer to ride to any other part of Arlington that you would likely live in.

Besides ARLINGTON: If not choosing QUINCY but wanting to live closer to Harvard Square but not in Cambridge, you could just as well choose somewhere in the adjoining city of SOMERVILLE, MA (a sizable city with multiple neighborhoods and sections both near and distant to Harvard Square). The RED LINE subway has a stop in DAVIS SQUARE (a very lively, vibrant, desirable area to be) 2 stops west of Harvard Square. Or you don't even have to be living within a walk of a RED LINE T stop; you can live in many places around Somerville and easily walk to Cambridge and Harvard University from there (any hour of the day or night) . . . so then you wouldn't have to depend on subways or buses at all (although a vareity of buses go from Harvard Square and Porter Square (in Cambridge) to multiple points in Somerville, MA. NOte that ARLINGTON, MA doesn't have any train service but does have bus service; but Somerville has both Red Line subway service & bus service + other parts of Somerville also have the north-south ORANGE LINE subway service (the ORANGE LINE can take you soutbound to Downtown Crossing in downtown Boston and then you catch the RED LINE from there to go to Harvard University). The point is that you can even live in varied parts of Somerville that aren't immediately adjoining the Harvard University campus area (as you say you are concerned about running into your ex-husband) and yet still travel to the Harvard University campus by SUBWAY (Orange Line to Red Line, or Red Line from Davis Square in Somerville) or by multiple different BUSES or by BIKE. Or live closer to the HARVARD UNIVERSITY campus somewhere in Somerville, MA & just walk to & from your home (where you choose to live then depends on how far you are willing to walk).

OR within an easy walk of Davis Square (in Somerville, MA, where the RED LINE has a T stop), you can walk over the border into the city of MEDFORD, MA (near where the renowned TUFTS UNIVERSITY has their large & beautiful main campus) and live around there, It is beautiful all around there there and reasonably walkable to the greater Harvard Univeristy campus. So here (in Medford, MA) you can be 2 towns removed from Cambridge, MA and still WALK to the greater Harvard University campus from there. And these are all deemed to be nice, pleasant areas (no slums or rundown areas, et al).

So with WALKING or BIKING, you don't have to be concerned with what time-of-day it is (in terms of traveling to & from your home or to or from Harvard University) and all these mentioned areas are as decent as you can reasonably expect. A woman (or a man, for that matter) always has to be cautious anywhere she or he is in this world (whether in the nicest part of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada or in Beverly Hills, California, USA or in the middle of the Harvard University campus or anywhere else). That being said, these areas are, all-in-all, as safe as one can expect. You could even live in Medford, MA in the greater Tufts University campus area (around the greater Powderhouse Square area, for instance) and walk south down College Ave. a relatively short distance to the Davis Square Red Line T station in Somerville, MA & take the subway train either 1 stop to Porter Square (Cambridge) or 2 stops to Harvard Square (Cambridge) . . . with me not knowing what part of the Harvard University campus you will be situated in with your classes or work assignment and therefore which subway station is closest to that exact Harvard University campus location (for that matter, Harvard University has properties in the Central Square Red Line T stop area in the heart of downtown Cambridge and at points in between Harvard Square and Central Square).

So, in summary, you have more NEARBY LOCALES-to-Harvard Square (other than in Cambridge, MA itself) to choose from other than ARLINGTON, MA (which doesn't have any subway service but has bus service only). That is, as just described above, you can also consider varied parts of SOMERVILLE, MA or MEDFORD, MA and, depending on where you live in those cities, you can propsectively subway or bus or walk or bike to the Harvard University campus location(s) that you need to get to & from. For that matter, you can prospectively live just over the Cambridge border in WATERTOWN, MA (near the greater MOUNT AUBURN HOSPITAL area) and easily walk from there to the Harvard U campus (or bike it or bus it . . . but no subway service serving Watertown). It is just as easy to walk it and it is all beautiful around there and as safe as anyone can reasonably expect.

[donewithpretty]

It indicates the #77 BUS running up to 12:51 AM (after midnite).

Actually, that's the wrong direction. The last bus running from Harvard to Arlington leaves either at 1:00 a.m. (Sunday) or 1:30 a.m. the rest of the week.

77 Bus -- Outbound

[MassVt]

There ara also busses running from Harvard Square ( also a T-stop) to Watertown, as well, and only take about 5-10 minutes, so don't rule out this option.

[new2forum]

Thanks UsAll and others! A special thanks to UsAll for the detailed information.

Assume for now that I will be in Arlington and that I will be bringing my car but won't use it to commute to campus or even on a daily basis.

- If I don't get street parking or free parking and have to put my car in a garage, how expensive is a garage in that area? In my area, a garage is $25 a month. I wonder how much it will cost there.

- Rent in Cambridge : Rent in Arlington :: 100 : ?
Is one can rent an apartment in Cambridge for 100 units, will the rent in Arlington be
> 100? (i.e. more expensive)
< 100? (i.e. less expensive)

[NorthByNortheast]

Originally Posted by new2forum

Thanks UsAll and others! A special thanks to UsAll for the detailed information.

Assume for now that I will be in Arlington and that I will be bringing my car but won't use it to commute to campus or even on a daily basis.

- If I don't get street parking or free parking and have to put my car in a garage, how expensive is a garage in that area? In my area, a garage is $25 a month. I wonder how much it will cost there.

- Rent in Cambridge : Rent in Arlington :: 100 : ?
Is one can rent an apartment in Cambridge for 100 units, will the rent in Arlington be
> 100? (i.e. more expensive)
< 100? (i.e. less expensive)

Arlington does not allow on-street parking overnight, but as a result, nearly 100 percent of rental properties will include at least one off-street parking spot for you to use. Arlington is not really a "parking garage" kind of town.

Cambridge and Somerville both allow on street parking with a resident permit, which you can get for about 10 bucks by showing a copy of your lease at the parking office, but you are less likely to find off-street parking included in your rent there, and will thus have to move your car to the other side of the street every week or two for street cleaning.

I believe Medford also allows on street parking, but does not require a permit.

As far as rent goes, in general rents in Arlington are cheaper than Cambridge. The amount by which they're cheaper will vary according to how nice the place is and how far it is from public transportation in either town. A nice place in East Arlington <10 minutes walk from the end of the red line at Alewife station could run you just as much as a similar place in Cambridge that is a 20 minute walk from a red line stop, but in general Arlington is cheaper to rent in than Cambridge. Check out craigslist to get a sense of what you get.