The commute from NH to downtown Boston (Manchester, Nashua: sales, lease)

[leedspaddy]

Hi folks, I would really appreciate it if someone who lives in and around Nashua and works in Boston perhaps could share with me their commute experience so that I know what I am letting myself in for.

From what I am finding out, there is no train that passes nearby to nashua that goes into Boston so I am presuming that NH commuters drive to a T-station in Northern Mass to get into Boston or drive the whole way.

I would love to hear people's commute stories because I really need to get an idea of the consequences of moving to NH before we do it. Thanks for your time

[BF66389]

I drove from my home (leaving 6:30am) to the Riverside T station (3 to 128) and arrived at 1 Beacon street by 8am (getting off at I forget which station on the green line)...

The route I took was NOT the best route to take, at all...there are MUCH better options.

I also drive to/from the airport frequently...heading back around ~5pm...it takes me maybe an hour and 15 at the longest from the airport (93 to 128 to 3 north)

Getting to the airport, I got there in under an hour and 15 leaving at 5:45am (driving)...

I haven't headed to the airport at say- 7:30 or anything since I usually catch early flights.

I'm going to guess that the *best* bet is to either take the bus from Nashua (drops off at south station) or to drive to one of the stations near 93 south (take 3 south to 128). Also get up early and avoid the most traffic (or go in late).

Heading home doesn't seem to be nearly as bad except during those rare big accidents or huge storms.

Sorry I couldn't be more help. I'm from Arlington VA though, so remember what my idea of "traffic" is; I worked 6 miles away and it was a 20-25 minute drive...now I work 35 miles away and its a 35-50 minute drive (most days).

[leedspaddy]

Originally Posted by BF66389

I drove from my home (leaving 6:30am) to the Riverside T station (3 to 128) and arrived at 1 Beacon street by 8am (getting off at I forget which station on the green line)...

The route I took was NOT the best route to take, at all...there are MUCH better options.

I also drive to/from the airport frequently...heading back around ~5pm...it takes me maybe an hour and 15 at the longest from the airport (93 to 128 to 3 north)

Getting to the airport, I got there in under an hour and 15 leaving at 5:45am (driving)...

I haven't headed to the airport at say- 7:30 or anything since I usually catch early flights.

I'm going to guess that the *best* bet is to either take the bus from Nashua (drops off at south station) or to drive to one of the stations near 93 south (take 3 south to 128). Also get up early and avoid the most traffic (or go in late).

Heading home doesn't seem to be nearly as bad except during those rare big accidents or huge storms.

Sorry I couldn't be more help. I'm from Arlington VA though, so remember what my idea of "traffic" is; I worked 6 miles away and it was a 20-25 minute drive...now I work 35 miles away and its a 35-50 minute drive (most days).

Thanks for the reply. I currently work in Baltimore and commute from PA and it usually takes an hour to an hour 15 so I am use to pretty much any sort of commute. What I am trying to do though is cut down the mileage on my car by taking public transport..........an option that isn't available where I am now in PA. From what I hear, NH appears to be cheaper to live than MA but I don't know whether the COL even outs between NH and MA when you factor in commute costs etc.

[NH2008]

A friend told me yesterday that her husband commutes from Hollis to Boston every day by car. (Hollis borders Nashua so it's slightly further away.) She said if he leaves by 6:30 a.m. at the latest it takes an hour to get there; after 6:30, 1.5 hours. If he leaves Boston by 4 pm it takes an hour to get home, if he leaves between 4:01 and 7 pm it takes 1.5++.

[BF66389]

Originally Posted by leedspaddy

From what I hear, NH appears to be cheaper to live than MA but I don't know whether the COL even outs between NH and MA when you factor in commute costs etc.

This is a hard one because it really depends how you are comparing apples to apples or not.

For example- if you want the same condition/size/property home in MA (apples to apples with where you would live in NH) then you'd end up the same distance from Boston (generally) but with sales tax, (I'll ignore income tax since you'll pay it since you work in MA), higher car insurance, higher home insurance, and worse schools, etc... All while the commute balances out.

Not saying MA doesn't have some awesome areas to live, but it isn't as fiscally conservative as NH and is more densely populated and therefore costs more...

Now- if you are okay trading property/size for a closer commute...that's a different story... all depends on what you want and as far as commute costs- how efficient your vehicle is.

[dognh]

Nashua to Boston. In one words -- sucks.

The issue is not living in NH, it's working in Boston. If you can not find a job in your field in NH, then I would would search in Mass, but outside of Boston. There are hundreds of companies along the 495 and 128 belt which would make your commute a little easier.

Also, I would find the job first, that would narrow your housing search - Nashua, Manchester and the seacoast all enter mass from different highways.

[leedspaddy]

Originally Posted by dognh

Nashua to Boston. In one words -- sucks.

The issue is not living in NH, it's working in Boston. If you can not find a job in your field in NH, then I would would search in Mass, but outside of Boston. There are hundreds of companies along the 495 and 128 belt which would make your commute a little easier.

Also, I would find the job first, that would narrow your housing search - Nashua, Manchester and the seacoast all enter mass from different highways.

Under normal circumstances, finding the job first is the right thing to do but we don't have that luxury. Our current landlord has informed us that he is not renewing our lease because he wants to try and sell the house.........he's nuts but its his house. So the plan is to find somewhere to rent in NH now (instead of renting here in PA for another year) for my wife and kids and for me to stay down here doing my job until I can secure work in Boston. If I had a choice I would much rather work in NH than commute to Boston but I have to be realistic.............it is where the jobs are. The purpose of my original posting was to get an idea of the worst possible commute I could face and using Nashua as an example seemed to be the best choice to give me an idea of the commute ..................If I had a choice I would love to get a job in Portsmouth and be by the coast than have to go into Mass!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[notdancingqueen]

Leedspaddy, I commute into Boston 2x a week. I live in the Sunapee area of NH.

I drive about 15 miles into MA to the Anderson-Woburn commuter rail station and take the train to North Station from there. Occasionally I drive all the way in.

Drive/train -- anywhere from an hour and 40 minutes to 2 hours depending on what I leave. For best results you want to be at the NH/MA border by about 6:30.

Drive all the way -- if I leave by 5:15am or after 8:30am it take me 90 minutes flat, door to door.

I, too, would prefer a longer train ride and a shorter drive. As such, I am slowing checking out other options like driving to Billerica (93 to Rt 3) and taking the train from there.

I don't do this every day, and I moved her from DC so my tolerance for traffic and longer commutes are higher than normal. Sure I'd prefer a shorter commute but it wasn't in the cards for a variety of reasons.

Good luck - Jackie

[dognh]

Originally Posted by leedspaddy

Under normal circumstances, finding the job first is the right thing to do but we don't have that luxury. Our current landlord has informed us that he is not renewing our lease because he wants to try and sell the house.........he's nuts but its his house. So the plan is to find somewhere to rent in NH now (instead of renting here in PA for another year) for my wife and kids and for me to stay down here doing my job until I can secure work in Boston. If I had a choice I would much rather work in NH than commute to Boston but I have to be realistic.............it is where the jobs are. The purpose of my original posting was to get an idea of the worst possible commute I could face and using Nashua as an example seemed to be the best choice to give me an idea of the commute ..................If I had a choice I would love to get a job in Portsmouth and be by the coast than have to go into Mass!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Point taken.

Then I would consider the Manchester or Seacoast are over Nashua.

The Nashua commute is by far the worst, because the road itself (Rt 3) is two lanes and congested for a good portion of the ride, then you get on 128 which is also a nightmare, then 93.

From the Manchester area you are only dealing with 93 which is wider than 2 lanes once you enter Mass.

From the seacoast the first part of your commute is 95 which is wide and has little traffic up to danvers (less population) From there you jump on Rt 1 which is slow, but you are within 10 miles by then.

[leedspaddy]

Originally Posted by dognh

Point taken.

Then I would consider the Manchester or Seacoast are over Nashua.

The Nashua commute is by far the worst, because the road itself (Rt 3) is two lanes and congested for a good portion of the ride, then you get on 128 which is also a nightmare, then 93.

From the Manchester area you are only dealing with 93 which is wider than 2 lanes once you enter Mass.

From the seacoast the first part of your commute is 95 which is wide and has little traffic up to danvers (less population) From there you jump on Rt 1 which is slow, but you are within 10 miles by then.

So just to clarify what you said.............living near Manchester or the coast would be a significantly better commute even though they are further away from Boston than Nashua in terms of miles??

From what everyone has said it seems that it would be best to avoid getting a job downtown Boston if possible...........now someone mentioned that there are a lot of areas surrounding Boston where I can also look for work.........can anyone give me a few examples of these towns/cities with a lot of companies?