Driving to Providence from Newton (Boston, Braintree: apartment complex, rental, condo)

[movinginjune]

Hi all! I have posted before regarding my move to Boston in June and appreciate all the input. My husband will be driving to Providence (has a car) and I will be driving (but not opposed to public transportation) to Boston everyday during rush hour. We originally thought about looking in Milton/Braintree and have not ruled it out but would like to add Newton to our list. There seems to be a few condo options and rental options that would suit our needs and budget in Newton. Can anyone provide information on what the commute would be like for me and, in particular, my husband? Will he be hitting a lot of traffic on his way out or in?? I would hate to add on traffic time to his already long commute. Thank you!

[ontheroad]

I haven't done that commute in ages, but if I am not mistaken you will run into some extra traffic on Newton roads not necessarily the highway.

You may want to do a few dry runs to see which is best.

My average commute going with the traffic (Providence to Boston, 93, ext 18) or Providence to Newton varied from under one hour, and on rough days and nights more than 1-1/2hrs.

Boston to Providence or Newton to Providence at 6pm was occasionally even more of a challenge especially on Fridays, holidays and bad weather.

On at least a half dozen or more occasions I opted to stay in Boston rather than do the commute and/or stay in Providence and not go to Newton.

[movinginjune]

Thank you ontheroad...sounds like a challenge. Wish we could do a dry run or two but from Ohio it may be a bit difficult!

[ontheroad]

Well, if you are near Cleveland, do a dry run from there to one of the suburbs approximately 50-60 miles away. Although Boston and Cleveland are not the same, I manage(d) to get lost in them both, although in Cleveland I was driving blind at night and was totally unfamiliar with the city. Something about the night skies in Cleveland remind me of Boston.

Good luck, movinginjune.

Originally Posted by movinginjune

Thank you ontheroad...sounds like a challenge. Wish we could do a dry run or two but from Ohio it may be a bit difficult!

[trionetriathlon]

Originally Posted by movinginjune

Hi all! I have posted before regarding my move to Boston in June and appreciate all the input. My husband will be driving to Providence (has a car) and I will be driving (but not opposed to public transportation) to Boston everyday during rush hour. We originally thought about looking in Milton/Braintree and have not ruled it out but would like to add Newton to our list. There seems to be a few condo options and rental options that would suit our needs and budget in Newton. Can anyone provide information on what the commute would be like for me and, in particular, my husband? Will he be hitting a lot of traffic on his way out or in?? I would hate to add on traffic time to his already long commute. Thank you!

I would recommend Milton, as long as you will be taking public transportation. The ride/traffic into Boston is quite awful in the AM. Try to find a home nearer to the highway (my sis lives in Milton and travels to Prov everyday; it takes her 45 minutes). Newton might be okay as well, but add about 15 minutes to the commute (sis lived in Newton before she moved to Milton). Hope this helps!

[movinginjune]

Both you and your sister have been very helpful trionetriathlon. How "awful" is the commute from Milton into Boston? I will be traveling anywhere from 6:30-8 in the am and coming home 5-6pm.

[xS☺B☺s]

Originally Posted by movinginjune

Both you and your sister have been very helpful trionetriathlon. How "awful" is the commute from Milton into Boston? I will be traveling anywhere from 6:30-8 in the am and coming home 5-6pm.

Depends on exactly where you're going in Boston. Milton has several options to drive (138, 28, 128, 93). If you're going to Longwood (30 minutes) you can take 138 and never hit the highway. If you're going to the west end, you have to add a half hour.

Newton to PVD will be about an hour.

Factor in 30 minutes to 1 hour for insane traffic jams on 128. Subtract that by dialing 511 and avoiding the jam.

Late at night with no traffic I could go from downtown Boston to my driveway in PVD in 43 minutes.

[movinginjune]

I will be heading to MGH...any estimates on commute via car from Milton (and Newton)? 511 may just be a new friend for both my husband and I.

[xS☺B☺s]

Originally Posted by movinginjune

I will be heading to MGH...any estimates on commute via car from Milton (and Newton)? 511 may just be a new friend for both my husband and I.

I work at MGH too. Welcome to The General! MGH is on the north side of town. I'd say about 45 minutes average. If you're a 7am nurse then you might make it in 30 minutes since the 9-5er's aren't jammed up on I-93. The other good news is you have other options besides 93N. In bad weather you can drive right up through the middle of the city via Blue Hill Avenue. It takes a little longer than 93 (unless 93 is a parking lot, which is often) bute i prefer slower traffic on a brightly lit street in bad weather or when I'm tired. For fun you could also go up Washington or Dot Ave. Last but not least, there is a commuter rail station with a 5 dollar parking station. Employee parking at MGH is off campus and you take a shuttle to get to it. Evening shift and night shift can park on campus though (after 5 I think). Parking at any nearby public parking garage in the West End (that's where MGH is) is upwards to $40 for eight hours.

[jlyang]

Hi,
I have some thoughts; I have lived in the Boston area a long time. Coming from Ohio, you will be shocked at how heavy traffic around here can be...

1. I would NOT try driving from the Braintree area to Boston during rush hour. You'd have to take I93 North which seems to crawl along at 5-10 mph once you get within 5-7 miles (or longer) of downtown Boston. It could easily be 1 hour 15 minutes to get from Braintree to MGH during rush hour. Likewise, driving out of Boston to Braintree/Milton during rush hour, the first 5 miles could easily take over an hour.
On the other hand, if you take public transportation, MBTA.com > Official Website for Greater Boston's Public Transportation System, check the subway Red Line, you can get into MGH fairly quickly. From Braintree it's probably a 15-20 minute ride to MGH. Be aware that the other Red Line train, the one that goes through Milton, runs through the highest-crime inner-city areas of Boston, and it can be a scary ride on that line.
Driving from Braintree to Providence could take a while too, since there's likely heavy traffic to get from Braintree, heading West, to I-95 South.


2. The drive from Newton to Providence is probably 40 minutes once you hit I-95. Half the battle will be traffic on local roads to get to I-95. Generally speaking, traffic along the "reverse commute" from Boston to Providence is not too bad. Anyways, Newton to Providence is a tiring but doable commute.

Driving from Newton to MGH during rush hour is probably 25-40 minutes, depending upon traffic and where you live in Newton. My friend who commutes from Newton to MGH makes it in 20 minutes if she leaves home at 6:40am. Commuting via public transportation from Newton to MGH could take a while too. If you can take a commuter train, then you'd go into South Station and then switch to the Red Line subway to get to MGH. If you take the subway/trolley from Newton, then you need to ride for about 30 minutes to get to "Park Street," then add about another 10 minutes to take the Red Line to get to MGH.

Other towns to look at:
1. Sharon is equidistant between Boston and Providence. They have opened a new apartment complex there, Avalon Sharon. I looked at those units last week and they seem pretty nice! From there, it would be a 25 minute drive to Providence. From there to MGH, it would be hard to drive due to traffic. Via public transportation, it would be 30 minutes on a commuter train from Sharon to South Station in Boston, then add 10 minutes to take the Red Line subway to MGH.
2. Canton, MA also has commuter trains running into South Station and is about a 30 minute drive to Providence.
3. Needham is the town south of Newton. It is off of I-95 so would be a shorter drive to Providence. There are commuter trains running from Needham to South Station; it's a 30-40 minute ride. Needham is a very nice town with a cute downtown that has a lot of shops. It is expensive, though, and there's not a lot of rental options there either.

Anyways, hope this helps. To sum things up: the reverse commute to Providence isn't that bad. Driving into Boston during rush hour is always very time consuming-- so, if you do drive into Boston during rush hour, you either have to budget a lot of time, or be willing to leave home earlier in the morning to beat traffic.

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Originally Posted by movinginjune

Hi all! I have posted before regarding my move to Boston in June and appreciate all the input. My husband will be driving to Providence (has a car) and I will be driving (but not opposed to public transportation) to Boston everyday during rush hour. We originally thought about looking in Milton/Braintree and have not ruled it out but would like to add Newton to our list. There seems to be a few condo options and rental options that would suit our needs and budget in Newton. Can anyone provide information on what the commute would be like for me and, in particular, my husband? Will he be hitting a lot of traffic on his way out or in?? I would hate to add on traffic time to his already long commute. Thank you!