looking for a city between Amherst and Boston. (Worcester, Springfield: rent, school)

[beeplove]

I work in Boston (Near North End). From next year my wife is planning to enroll in Nursing school of University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Currently we live in Lynn. Our only daughter is going to start school from next year. I would like to move to somewhere between Boston and Amherst. I am willing to take the larger portion of commute hastle. I prefer to take public transportation, so does my wife. What city you guys suggest for us? Also, please tell us little about the commute to work and UMASS, Amherst.

Thanks,
Mohammad

[Parsec]

You should look in the Fitchburg area, but not necessarily Fitchburg itself unless you're looking for really cheap rent in a seedy area. Since you want to take public transportation, that works out perfectly for you -- Fitchburg to North Station (~5 min walk to your work) would be a 1.5 hour train ride. Fitchburg to Amherst would be a little over 1 hour driving. Based on those commute times, you can head west up Rt-2 if you want to decrease your wife's commute time and increase yours to get the right balance that works for you and your wife.

[Parsec]

My wife was considering going to UMass for a 1 year Masters program, but we are now leaning against it since we have an infant. If we had no children, I think we would've settled for the long commute for a year instead of having to go to local night classes for 4 years. I guess it's really up to you -- who would look after your daughter after school? If possible, can your wife go to nursing school somewhere local?

[ogre]

Realistically, it's going to be difficult to come up with something that meets all your requirements. Depending on what you mean by "public transportation" it will be difficult to find public transportation out to Amherst. At least there's nothing like a commuter rail system.

Allowing for the reality that this isn't an ideal situation, one town that might meet some of your needs is Sturbridge, which is about midway between Boston and Amherst. I believe that Peter Pan, a regional bus line, makes stops there. You could go to both Amherst and Boston on Peter Pan. However, I'm not sure how often they stop in Sturbridge, so it depends on how closely your and your wife's schedules match theirs. Also, it's not the ideal way to travel to Amherst, as it involves changing busses in Springfield, which is Peter Pan's hub. The fact that your wife could not take their busses directly to Amherst would make for a very long commute.

Another possibility would be one of the towns very close to Worcester, especially if a short drive to get to the public transportation in Worcester would work for you. From Worcester, you could take commuter rail to Boston. There's no way your wife could avoid Peter Pan. She could either take Peter from Worcester, though again with a change in Springfield, or take Amtrak to Springfield and ride with Peter from there to Amherst.

This is a tough situation you're trying to arrange. Hope this helps, and best of luck finding something that works for you.

[Parsec]

I was also trying to think of buses that go to Amherst, but like Ogre said, it's just not a realistic situation. Your wife will probably have to drive, but you have the option of the commuter rail, either from Worcester or Fitchburg. From Worcester, you will end up at South Station, which would put you further away from your work than if you left from Fitchburg and ended up at North Station. The train ride from either city will be 1.5 hours into Boston.

[Samayo]

framingham?

[ogre]

Originally Posted by Samayo

framingham?

Framingham may not be as much in the middle territory between Boston and Amherst as desired. Substantially closer to Boston than Amherst. Does have commuter rail. Peter Pan stops there too, but you'd be adding even more time to a bus trip that would already make for a very long commute even from Worcester or Sturbridge.

[Samayo]

Fitchburg thats the name i was looking for it's right along route 2

[treeomatic]

The PeterPan bus does go between Boston and Amherst several times a day (Peter Pan Bus Lines : Tickets — Fares & Schedules) $52 round trip. In Amherst it stops at the UMASS campus and Amherst center. The travel time is around 3 to 3.5 hours including a layover in Springfield for 15 minutes or so. The stops in between Amherst and Boston South Station usually include Northampton, Holyoke, Newton, Framingham (and maybe one or two others).

Amtrak has one train that goes from Boston South Station to Springfield directly (2h 15m). You need to wait for 1 hour and change train to go to Amherst. The total time is longer than the PeterPan bus ride. Not a good option.

[b52]

Originally Posted by treeomatic

The PeterPan bus does go between Boston and Amherst several times a day (Peter Pan Bus Lines : Tickets — Fares & Schedules) $52 round trip. In Amherst it stops at the UMASS campus and Amherst center. The travel time is around 3 to 3.5 hours including a layover in Springfield for 15 minutes or so. The stops in between Amherst and Boston South Station usually include Northampton, Holyoke, Newton, Framingham (and maybe one or two others).

Amtrak has one train that goes from Boston South Station to Springfield directly (2h 15m). You need to wait for 1 hour and change train to go to Amherst. The total time is longer than the PeterPan bus ride. Not a good option.

I just took the Peter Pan from South Station to Northampton which is a blink away from Amherst. I can't imagine anyone doing that as a commute and there is the $52 cost as someone has pointed out. My suggestion; take everyone's suggestion and try it out as a trial run. Then see if you could live with it on a regular basis. I think you migh rethink this.