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Finding a parking place has little to do with living in Manhattan, since there are hordes of people who drive into work every day all over Manhattan island. People who work night shifts drive in (they work in hospitals, hotels, apartment buildings, etc.) and take any spot they can. But they don't live in Manhattan.
And households aren't all that small in Manhattan. Growing up I was part of a household of six in Manhattan.
It's safe to say that the price of realestate and rentals has gone up dramatically since you were a "kid".
National people have less kids than years ago, I'm sure NYC is no different. Manhattan is far less family friendly than years past. I'm talking in terms of realestate and rental prices, not crime.
Nobody can deny the fact that atleast 1/4 households in Manhattan have atleast 1 car.
A parking garage does not more than help avoid a couple of hundred dollars in fines, which MUST be paid, or your car will be towed, and it's such fun to retrieve a car from the impound lot that I am surprised that it hasn't caught on as the hip thing to do around town.
LOL. That reminds me of the time my car was towed (I lived in Williamsburg/Bushwick), went downtown to pay the fines, only to find that I had to travel all the way to Staten Island to get my car. Never mind the fact that the tickets were for being parked at a bus stop in Queens in the middle of the day when I was usually at work in Manhattan.
I think part of it is a hustle because they figure the working stiff doesn't have time to take a day off from work to deal with the hassle, so he'll just pay whatever bogus fines they give him.
I think ViralMD is right on this one. The figure is something like 25% of households that own passenger vehicles in Manhattan. Note - that is households, not individuals, so the number of individuals owning vehicles in Manhattan must be far lower than 25%. In my mind, that is "very few" especially considering what the rate is for the rest of the nation.
So?
The average household size in Manhattan is well below the average household size for the rest of the country. The number of households with only one person is also well above the average for the rest of the country. And FYI, the 25% statistic only tells you how many cars are REGISTERED in Manattan. About half the car owners I know have cars registered out of state (New Jersey, Connecticut, and even Florida, Georgia, Texas).
And none of that matters anyway. If you want a car... get one. You don't necessarily NEED a car in Manhattan, just like nobody NEEDS designer shoes or NEEDS to eat out at nice restaurants or NEEDS a luxury apartment. A car is a luxury, and a luxury that I'm willing to pay for.
A reason why lots of NYCers are so provincial is because they have no cars and are slaves to public transit. As a transplant, I've seen more of New York City than the majority of my native NY friends which is just sad. I love Manhattan... dearly, but its so fun to explore different places on the weekends, and "escape" to these beautiful towns in the region on occasion.
I've been all through Connecticut, Massachusetts, Upstate NY, The Hamptons, driven to DC, Philadelphia, Boston, Marthas Vinyard, and a few other places which I would never know about if I was carless.
OK, I understand you are saying that you think it is incorrect to say "very few" people in Manhattan own cars.
Why post about this if "none of that matters anyway"? I don't get your logic to get picky about something someone says and then say it doesn't matter anyway.
Quote:
Originally Posted by CDGJFK
So?
The average household size in Manhattan is well below the average household size for the rest of the country. The number of households with only one person is also well above the average for the rest of the country. And FYI, the 25% statistic only tells you how many cars are REGISTERED in Manattan. About half the car owners I know have cars registered out of state (New Jersey, Connecticut, and even Florida, Georgia, Texas).
And none of that matters anyway. If you want a car... get one. You don't necessarily NEED a car in Manhattan, just like nobody NEEDS designer shoes or NEEDS to eat out at nice restaurants or NEEDS a luxury apartment. A car is a luxury, and a luxury that I'm willing to pay for.
A reason why lots of NYCers are so provincial is because they have no cars and are slaves to public transit. As a transplant, I've seen more of New York City than the majority of my native NY friends which is just sad. I love Manhattan... dearly, but its so fun to explore different places on the weekends, and "escape" to these beautiful towns in the region on occasion.
I've been all through Connecticut, Massachusetts, Upstate NY, The Hamptons, driven to DC, Philadelphia, Boston, Marthas Vinyard, and a few other places which I would never know about if I was carless.
I was supposed to be moving to NYC (Brooklyn) area after I finished college in 2011 but I decided I wanted to move sooner, so I made my official moving day in July of 2010.
My dad just bought me a new car like a month ago, and I know having a car in NYC can be very hectic.
So can anyone please tell me the pros and cons of having a car/vehicle in NYC?
Also, I will be asking a lot of questions about NYC so please I hope I won't be getting on any of you guys nerves.
Congratulations on your new car! But welcome to hell. Was born and grew up in NYC all my life. Never rushed to get my drivers license or purchase a car because in this city having a car is more of a nuisance then it is a benefit and with all of the transportation options here why bother with the hassles of a car?
Well in 2006 I finally decided to get my drivers license and decided to purchase a car (don't know what in the world I was thinking, oh yeah was working towards a relocation to South Carolina but that is another disaster story).
The pros of NYC car ownership:
Will not have to stand in the cold weather and snow during the winter.
Can drive to shopping destinations (New Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode Island etc.) that are outside of NYC.
The cons of car ownership in NYC:
Finding a parking spot is always difficult, use to have to sit in my car sometimes for a couple of hours until a parking space opened up.
Have to move the car from side to side so sanitation can clean the street otherwise risk getting a ticket.
The insurance cost for a new driver with a new car in NYC can cost thousands of $$$ a year for coverage.
During the winter when there is snow having to literally dig your car out of the parking space. Then when you return back home problems finding a spot again.
Car theft and break- ins make it impossible to trust leaving anything of value (navigation system, stereo etc.) in the car.
As you can see the cons far outnumber the pros! I own a home in South Carolina and decided to leave my car in the garage when I moved back to NYC.....now I only use the car when I go there for visits. If I do happen to need a car for something then I will just rent one. Just too many headaches having a car on a day to day basis here....now if you are someone who owns a home in NY and it has a garage then that is a different story.
How much on average does a garage cost in Forest Hills? I am planning on moving with my car there as well in the near future. Thanks!
Quote:
Originally Posted by babadi
I live in Forest Hills with a car, and previously I was in Astoria with a car. Aside from the fact that getting a parking spot on the street is often difficult (especially on alternate side days) what never quite occurred to us is the amount of damage, accidental and deliberate, you wind up with. We had the side-view mirror knocked off by a truck, a tail light smashed by somebody pulling out of the spot behind us, and more miscellaneous dings and scratches than I can count. We now have a garage spot and it really does make life much easier, but then 2 weeks ago I drove to Woodside and had somebody steal a piece of trim right off the side of the car. Having a car in the outer boroughs can be tremendously useful, but if you're the type who obsesses over every little scratch, you could go bankrupt fixing the thing.
I had a car in Queens for a while. The biggest pain was parking it. When I lived in Maspeth it was pretty hard to park, but when I moved to the upper Ditmars area of Astoria, it was pretty easy. I really only used it when going to do errands around Queens. I ended up giving the car to my sister because at the time I was saving for a wedding and wanted to save the money. It kind of stunk in a way, since I played in a hockey league at the new ice rink in Long Island city. It was only like 2 miles from my apartment but took 45 minutes to get there (a bus and 2 subways, then a 5 minute walk). When my husband drove me, it would take like 10 minutes.
I ended up losing patience for the bus and roller bladed wherever I needed to go in the immediate area. I got exercise, it was fun, and also a lot faster. If you have a bike or roller blades, I recommend using them. Roller blades are a bit harder, since you need to carry your shoes and put your skates in a backpack once you get to the store. That can get annoying after a while.
That is interesting. Is it safe to bike in Queens or Brooklyn?
But my dad will be paying for my insurance, he will also be taking care of my parking fees and a garage if I get an apartment with one.
I just need to be worrying about the sanitation thing, I really don't understand it, so can someone ANYONE explain it further?
And the only reason I want to have a car in NYC is to travel back home to Michigan to see my family. Other than that I'll be fine with taking the Path, a taxi, bus, or walking.
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