New in Los Angeles.....scared about two issues (Pasadena, Santa Monica: insurance, credit)

[rishi85]

Hello everyone,
I have always loved Los angeles(I am a cinephile and its the heart of entertainment) but I have some serious queries to ask for and hopefully I will have some guidance.Next year I will be shiffting to either one of the cities(depends on me).....NYC or LA!!! and I need some serious consideration.

I love everything potrayed about LA and this is where it triumps over NYC atleast for me-lifestyle and attitude.I have heard from everyone that LA is more casual,Laid-back and people are generally very friendly(although that can be said about just about any city)...Its so my type.
I am into scriptwriting so that should'nt be an issue at all but the biggest reason I am worrying and the reason NYC is still my choice is because of -TRANSPORTATION.

I mean I need honest opinions about how to go about it.
Should I forget about LA if I cant drive?
I dont know how to because all my life I have used public transportation,cycled or walked and prefer all of those over drivin anyday.

Does LA have a redefined public transport system like NEW YORK..You know buses and subways for daily commute?
What about cycling?Can I cycle all over Los angeles like I do in Toronto or NYC?

Is it essential to own and know how to drive just to live because everyone seems to say so....Please guide

Thanks a ton.
Rishi

[EscapeCalifornia]

Learn to drive.

[uptown_urbanist]

I don't drive, don't have a license, and never had. I successfully lived in LA for more than three years. It CAN be done. There are buses, commuter trains, light rail lines, and a subway line. I don't bike and it doesn't seem a very friendly biking city, although some people do it. The public transportation system is nowhere near as good as NYC's, but it's also far better than many people give it credit for. The trick is living in a walkable, public transit-friendly neighborhood. There are a lot of them out there once you start looking.

Some people in LA have to drive because of their job, and it is more likely, at least in some jobs, that you will be expected to drive and own a car. Still, many people don't, so you wouldn't be the only person in LA not to do so. I never did, and have no regrets.

I lived first in Hollywood, which is a very urban neighborhood. It's on the Red Line (subway), and is well connected with many different bus routes. I could walk to almost everything I needed, and easily hop on the subway or bus when necessary. We later moved to South Pasadena, a city in the San Gabriel Valley on the Gold Line (light rail) and while it was more unusual to be a non-driver there (in Hollywood a lot of people don't own cars), I still got by just fine walking places and taking the bus or the Gold Line. Where it gets harder is if your friends are scattered all over the place and you have to commute a long time at weird hours just to go see them; I sometimes solved that problem by inviting them to come over to visit me. There are cabs, but they tend to be expensive; on the other hand, you could use them once in awhile and figure that you'd be spending that same money on insurance, parking (possibly), gas, etc. if you owned a car.

So, in short, while it's nice to have the option of being able to drive in LA, it's not a necessity for everyone. Have you visited before, and, if so, how did you get around then? If you haven't visited, then you really should try to make a trip out to LA - the reality of the city is very different than what many people expect (in my case I expected the worst and was surprised to discover that I LOVED it), and you'll have a better sense of whether or not you'd be happy living in LA, and with depending on public transportation.

[BRinSM]

could you get by without driving? yes. would it be fun? no. there are hundreds of thousands, if not millions of people who live without cars in LA, but they are nearly all extremely poor. other choose not to drive, but they create a lifestyle where driving is not mandatory. for someone who comes here from elsewhere and will need to look to others for employment and other opportunities, it won't be nearly as easy. LA is a great place, but if you have days where you have to be in santa monica in the morning, then head over to burbank for an afternoon meeting (which isn't uncommon if you are doing contract work in the movie industry), you will need a car. knowing that, nyc will almost certainly be a better option for you if driving is not an option. good luck either way!

[Dark of the Moon]

Honestly, you can't go by "what you have heard" -- you need to visit a city for yourself to see if it's a fit for you. As Uptown says, you can get around without a car, but it's not always easy. Mass transit here is adequate, but doesn't begin to compare to that of NYC.

You can ride your bike but, again unlike NYC, the city is very spread out, so that won't be practical for long distances.

[Lumerian Feast]

While it's not absolutely necessary to have a car -- just as it's not absolutely necessary to have legs -- it's much, much better to have one. Personally, I wouldn't live in LA without a car. Some days I have multiple things to do in different parts of LA. Having to use mass transit would make it impossible for me to take care of my business.

You can't really "cycle all over Los Angeles" -- LA is frickin' HUGE. Many neighborhoods are very bike-able, and you can bike from certain neighborhoods to others. But if you need to go from, say, Santa Monica to Silver Lake, forget it. Unless you want to show up all hot and sweaty and exhausted.

Public transportation, while existent, is not very good; a trip that takes 20 minutes in a car can sometimes take hours via mass transit -- though this depends on what mass transit you live near and where you're going. If everything you need just happens to be located along the very limited Metro line, congratulations.

You really need to visit and see how you like it. Stay in a neighborhood where you could realistically live. See how long it would take you to get to places of work. (Keep in mind, if you're a screenwriter, you'll probably have some other job to make money until you hit it big. If you've already hit it big, ignore all this advice and hire a driver. ) If it doesn't work for you, you can write screenplays from NYC, just as many others do.

[uptown_urbanist]

Originally Posted by Lumerian Feast

Public transportation, while existent, is not very good; a trip that takes 20 minutes in a car can sometimes take hours via mass transit -- though this depends on what mass transit you live near and where you're going. If everything you need just happens to be located along the very limited Metro line, congratulations.

I was just going to write "sometimes a trip that takes an hour by car can take 15 minutes by public transportation," with that very Metro line in mind. Going without a car in LA will make you think about how you arrange life in a different way than it would if you did have a car, but I think that's true everywhere. If you have made it this far in life without driving you probably are already used to thinking about things like that.

I would recommend living along the Red Line, though; it really is convenient and will make it much easier to enjoy life in LA without a car.

[bhcompy]

LA has decent public transport, but you're essentially creating a bubble around yourself and will be walling off major portions of the basin(and mountains and desert) that provide many of the activities LA has to offer if you limit yourself to public transport and bikes only.

Most people that try to rely off public transport with no car that I know also get motorcycles, simply because of what I mentioned above. It also sucks when you mooch off your friends for a ride all the time. In NYC, it's alright for all your friends to jump in a cab or take the subway, but that isn't life here. They'll ask you to meet them at the Promenade, the Grove, the Block, etc and you'll be left sorting through rail and bus connections trying to figure a way to get there.

[timelesschild]

Given that you are talking about working in the entertainment industry, I'm going to say that you should think very seriously about buying, and using, a car. This topic has been covered extensively in this forum, and while I am a huge fan of public transportation, the entertainment industry is one in which you will need (NEED) a car.

[jackie100]

I wouldn't be able to live without my car... I don't live in L.A but O.C.. but nevertheless... I always wondered how do people buy tons of groceries/goods etc if they have to carry it all? What if you want to visit a ton of stores and have like 10 different bags? To be honest I'm a bit lazy and I already get irritated having to carry bags from my car to my house, let alone on the bus or on the street... etc I would die.

I live by myself, but I still buy loads of crap from the grocery store, Target, or other stores... I wouldn't be able to haul of that on a bus or carry it from the bus stop to the house... Of course one can always buy on-line and have it delivered etc. I just wouldn't be able to live without a car.