Good Place to Live Between Worcester and Cambridge (Boston, Framingham: home, school)

[Joachim-oYo]

Hi!

I just took a new job with an office in Cambridge, MA and have relocated here from out of state. While working from home and not needing to go into the office, I’m currently staying with my girlfriend, who’s in medical school in Worcester. She has 3 years left to go and once the summer ends we’ll both most likely need to be going in at least 3-4 days a week (her to Worcester, and me to Cambridge).

The traffic now isn’t bad at all, but I’m nervous given that I don’t really know what to expect once people all start going back to work. Does anyone have any suggestions of where in between Worcester and Cambridge we could live (rent) that would be an amenable commute for both of us? Ideally we could have an equal commute, but if it makes more sense, I’d be happy to drive a bit further given that my work is flexible and her school isn’t as much.

Any advice would be super appreciated. Thanks!

[massnative71]

Originally Posted by Joachim-oYo

Hi!

I just took a new job with an office in Cambridge, MA and have relocated here from out of state. While working from home and not needing to go into the office, I’m currently staying with my girlfriend, who’s in medical school in Worcester. She has 3 years left to go and once the summer ends we’ll both most likely need to be going in at least 3-4 days a week (her to Worcester, and me to Cambridge).

The traffic now isn’t bad at all, but I’m nervous given that I don’t really know what to expect once people all start going back to work. Does anyone have any suggestions of where in between Worcester and Cambridge we could live (rent) that would be an amenable commute for both of us? Ideally we could have an equal commute, but if it makes more sense, I’d be happy to drive a bit further given that my work is flexible and her school isn’t as much.

Any advice would be super appreciated. Thanks!

At what time of day would each of you be commuting? That makes a world of difference.

[Joachim-oYo]

Thanks for your response massnative71! I'd be aiming to get into work (Cambridge) around 10:00 AM and would be heading back around 5 or 6, but can be flexible. For her she'd need to be in (Worcester) as early as 8:00-8:30 AM.

What time of day is the earliest I could leave to avoid the worst traffic in the morning / evening?

[BostonBornMassMade]

Budget? Generally, I'd say Framingham.

[masssachoicetts]

Framingham is a good one

[hken]

She's going to Med School and will have brutally long study hours I would think. Although Framingham is a great choice if it was a std 9-5 schedule for both, I would make her life easier and live in someplace like Shrewsbury and you take the longer commute in.

[Joachim-oYo]

Thanks everyone for the replies! Budget generally thinking $1.7k to $2.2k. Between the two of us, I definitely want to prioritize her commute over mine, but if there's an option that's amenable to both of us that'd be great.

Do you have a rough idea of what the driving commute would look like both ways from Framingham vs. Shrewsbury?

[OutdoorLover]

Framingham is a good suggestion. Southborough next door is another possibility, and it's a little closer to Worcester and less dense than Framingham if that appeals. You should be able to find something for around $2K/mo. I'd even try to live fairly close (< 1 mile) to one of the on/off ramps for Rte 9 if minimizing commuting time driving is an important goal - just getting across town to the ramp can take awhile if there's traffic.

As far as driving times, check Google Maps, or better yet, Waze - you can put in the desired travel day and time there to include traffic adjustments.

[bigfatdude]

Natick would be another good option on your budget - closer to Boston that Worcester but the traffic going into Boston is a lot worse than in the opposite direction.

[GeoffD]

Originally Posted by hken

She's going to Med School and will have brutally long study hours I would think. Although Framingham is a great choice if it was a std 9-5 schedule for both, I would make her life easier and live in someplace like Shrewsbury and you take the longer commute in.

+1 You don't want a big commute in Medical School.



It also depends on where in Cambridge. I used to work at BBN Labs near Alewife for a while years ago. That's different from a Kendall Square job.