Cleveland public transportation??? (Lorain, Maple Heights, Rocky River: home, closing, taxis)

[Traveler87]

Originally Posted by Cle440

Andrew61 made some good points but is only half way right.

Like I said, it is entirely possible to get by in Cleveland without a car, but it really depends on what neighborhood you live in. If you can use the rapid, buses, and a bike it should be pretty easy. However in most areas you should have a car. My suggestion is to use the Public Transportation as long as its convenient and keep a car, because you will probably need it a lot of times.

Yes, that is true. Like I stated before, my friend from Omaha lives in Cleveland, and he and his girlfriend have been without a car since they moved here. They moved into the Ohio City area, and have had no problems getting around the city and to the suburbs. I don't think you can classify it as poor or dissabled. Many people in Milwaukee are actually jealous of Cleveland due to the fact that we have a rapid transit, and they are wondering when one will get in the works for them.

We had a conference up in Milwaukee, they started talking about Cleveland's Euclid Corridor Project, and many from Milwaukee starting getting upset, being happy for Cleveland that our RT was expanding, but they were sitting there getting nothing. I think cities need to focus on getting better transit systems, it is a big way of movement in the future.

[BelieveInCleve]

Ohio City is probably one of the easiest places in the Cleveland area to get by without a car. Like I said, it all depends on where you live. If you live in Ohio City, Cudell, Westpark, Downtown, East Cleveland..., Shaker Heights, and any area near a rapid stop then it should be easier to get by without a car.

[Iraqvet]

I know this question is pretty much off topic but I wanted to know how long the waiting period is for receiving tags for your car after registering it in Ohio. I know in the state I'm in now, you receive them the same day you register your vehicle. I just wanted to know if it is the same in Ohio. Thanks and sorry for the interruption.

[TheProf]

You're right, CLE, Ohio City is probably the most non-downtown neighborhood that has the best transit service. You've got the Red Line rapid with direct service to downtown, the airport and Univ. Circle and a bunch of bus lines going in every direction, including the popular Community Circulator to Tremont and Steelyards Commons. On top of that, 3 bus routes offer 24-hour service. Plus Ohio City is actually walking distance from downtown... Shaker Square is probably 2nd best, although it is 6 miles away and, though buses supplement the outstanding Rapid service, there are no 24-hour routes serving the area, which means a $15 cab ride if you miss the last one.

Andrew61, it seems you took a negative read of the excellent Cleveland Magazine article (should I be surprised?)... I saw a man realizing he could not only survive, even thrive, living on a public transit system he'd thumbed his life at all his life, it actually made him a better person in the process.

[BelieveInCleve]

If you get the book "Car Free in Cleveland" its pretty helpful with this topic. Its kind of outdated though (Its from 2001 I think), but still the rapid is pretty much all the same and the bus routes for the most part are probably the same. Maybe they will make a new version of the book, or maybe they already did. It says in the book that using all public transportation (along with biking) can save you over $3,000 a year on average. Probably more now since gas prices are so high as is everything else.

[TheProf]

The very fact, Cle440, there exists a book entitled "Car Free in Cleveland" should tell people something: that enough knowledgeable people believe the City's public transit is good enough to where being car free is a viable option. That in itself should be mud in the eye to all the naysayers that continue to carp that Cleveland's "too spread out" and that you "must have a car" to survive and/or not have your friends look down their noses at you.

[Traveler87]

Originally Posted by TheProf

The very fact, Cle440, there exists a book entitled "Car Free in Cleveland" should tell people something: that enough knowledgeable people believe the City's public transit is good enough to where being car free is a viable option. That in itself should be mud in the eye to all the naysayers that continue to carp that Cleveland's "too spread out" and that you "must have a car" to survive and/or not have your friends look down their noses at you.

Thank you, I agree. I don't think many people have a good idea of how complex Cleveland's PT is.

[E Rocc]

Unless you live downtown, very close to downtown, or near a rapid station, I'd strongly recommend having a car. RTA is extremely downtown-centric, and to get from point to point within the region you need to go downtown, go near downtown, or budget a lot of time.

I'd also say that a single guy in Cleveland who does not have a car is very likely to stay that way.

[BelieveInCleve]

Originally Posted by E Rocc

Unless you live downtown, very close to downtown, or near a rapid station, I'd strongly recommend having a car. RTA is extremely downtown-centric, and to get from point to point within the region you need to go downtown, go near downtown, or budget a lot of time.

I'd also say that a single guy in Cleveland who does not have a car is very likely to stay that way.

Yeah, but that makes sense though. Most of the attractions in the city of Cleveland are located downtown or next to downtown (University Circle too).

[theguv]

There's always Cleveland based City Wheels (car sharing service) for when you need a car, w/o the hassles of having to own one! Currently, they only serve Univ Circle, but will be expanding into Clv Hts and downtown this summer.