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A car is convenient for getting outside the downtown area but not necessary. The public transit system here is mostly hub and spoke, with downtown being the hub, so you can get to most areas in the county via bus. Uber and Lyft are prevalent here and you can catch them easily. There are a couple smaller markets walkable from downtown for most groceries. Anything larger and you would take a bus or other transit options. The nearest Wegmans is just about 2 miles. It's a nice walk through some of the best areas Rochester has to offer, and then I would catch a ride back. Entertainment and restaurant options are more prevalent and walkable.
Reddit has good Rochester forum where you would likely get more replies. Good luck.
Pretty much. I lived in Downtown Rochester without a car and it was difficult. Moving from New York City to Rochester is going to be a huge adjustment. We're not a one horse town with zero options, but RTS is no MTA (they don't even belong in the same discussion, truthfully) and unfortunately we lack the urban culture that allows for a viable car-free lifestyle.
I moved out of downtown just a few years ago. When I was there I would walk from my apartment to the transit center daily, wait anywhere from 5-20 minutes for the bus to take me to my job in the suburbs. Then I'd sit on that bus for a good 40 minutes. Same thing back home. All in all, using public transit turned a 15 minute drive to an hour long journey. Unfortunately, most jobs exist in the suburbs of Rochester rather than the urban core. The us runs less frequently after 8:00 and stops at 1:00am. If you can find a decent job downtown, jump on it, but they are far and few between and are mostly limited to legal and government positions.
Grocery shopping was alright. We do have Hart's, which I love, but they are small, pricier and sometimes you have to go to Wegmans for certain things. The closest one is on East Avenue practically in Brighton, so you'll have to lug groceries around and time your shopping around the bus schedule, which is not as frequent as it should be. Restaurant and entertainment options are better. There are dozens of walkable spots to eat, many bars, clubs, museums, theaters, etc. downtown or very close to it. For a Saturday night out, you'll definitely be good. Again though, I have to point out that Rochester does not support urban retail very well. As an example, we have a newly redeveloped mixed use building called Tower280 that opened in 2015, yet three years later it still only has one retail tenant. Other popular and successful chains such as Tim Horron's and Moe's have closed within the last few years and their storefronts remain vacant. Others like Subway and some independent spots have adjusted their hours so they close earlier. Most places downtown close around 5:00pm or even lunchtime, unless it's next door to a club. We have virtually zero options downtown for shopping so trips to clothing/department/hardware stores will require a trek to the suburbs.
As the poster above me noted, we now have Uber/Lyft which make travel without a car far more convenient, but it's also expensive. The bus is a buck. Ridesharing can run you anywhere from $5-$20 depending on the distance.
My recommendation would be if you can drive, do it. It will make life insanely more convenient and you'll have better opportunities around here with a car. I wish we had a culture more like New York City's, and we're working on improving out urbanity, we're just not there yet.
Pretty much. I lived in Downtown Rochester without a car and it was difficult. Moving from New York City to Rochester is going to be a huge adjustment. We're not a one horse town with zero options, but RTS is no MTA (they don't even belong in the same discussion, truthfully) and unfortunately we lack the urban culture that allows for a viable car-free lifestyle.
I moved out of downtown just a few years ago. When I was there I would walk from my apartment to the transit center daily, wait anywhere from 5-20 minutes for the bus to take me to my job in the suburbs. Then I'd sit on that bus for a good 40 minutes. Same thing back home. All in all, using public transit turned a 15 minute drive to an hour long journey. Unfortunately, most jobs exist in the suburbs of Rochester rather than the urban core. The us runs less frequently after 8:00 and stops at 1:00am. If you can find a decent job downtown, jump on it, but they are far and few between and are mostly limited to legal and government positions.
Grocery shopping was alright. We do have Hart's, which I love, but they are small, pricier and sometimes you have to go to Wegmans for certain things. The closest one is on East Avenue practically in Brighton, so you'll have to lug groceries around and time your shopping around the bus schedule, which is not as frequent as it should be. Restaurant and entertainment options are better. There are dozens of walkable spots to eat, many bars, clubs, museums, theaters, etc. downtown or very close to it. For a Saturday night out, you'll definitely be good. Again though, I have to point out that Rochester does not support urban retail very well. As an example, we have a newly redeveloped mixed use building called Tower280 that opened in 2015, yet three years later it still only has one retail tenant. Other popular and successful chains such as Tim Horron's and Moe's have closed within the last few years and their storefronts remain vacant. Others like Subway and some independent spots have adjusted their hours so they close earlier. Most places downtown close around 5:00pm or even lunchtime, unless it's next door to a club. We have virtually zero options downtown for shopping so trips to clothing/department/hardware stores will require a trek to the suburbs.
As the poster above me noted, we now have Uber/Lyft which make travel without a car far more convenient, but it's also expensive. The bus is a buck. Ridesharing can run you anywhere from $5-$20 depending on the distance.
My recommendation would be if you can drive, do it. It will make life insanely more convenient and you'll have better opportunities around here with a car. I wish we had a culture more like New York City's, and we're working on improving out urbanity, we're just not there yet.
Just throwing it out there, but if the OP worked at say Harris Communications or Hickey Freeman in other parts of the city, about how long of a bus ride would that be to places like those two from Downtown?
Just curious, Leo, will you be looking for work, or do you already have a job lined up, or not work? BTW, having a car and living downtown is not the same issue as NYC. Many people do, maybe most people.
Just throwing it out there, but if the OP worked at say Harris Communications or Hickey Freeman in other parts of the city, about how long of a bus ride would that be to places like those two from Downtown?
That would be much more doable. I'd say no more than 10-15 minutes per trip depending on how many stops/traffic/weather. The only problem would be waiting if they work into the evening hours, but I wouldn't mind it nearly as much as commuting to the suburbs.
Just throwing it out there, but if the OP worked at say Harris Communications or Hickey Freeman in other parts of the city, about how long of a bus ride would that be to places like those two from Downtown?
In either one of those instances, choosing where to locate downtown is the key. They're building about 200 units next to the George Eastman Museum, right down the street from Harris. Gleasons too. You could walk to either one of those places. The same with Hickey Freeman. Just live on, or near Clinton downtown and take local bus.
In either one of those instances, choosing where to locate downtown is the key. They're building about 200 units next to the George Eastman Museum, right down the street from Harris. Gleasons too. You could walk to either one of those places. The same with Hickey Freeman. Just live on, or near Clinton downtown and take local bus.
Yeah, that makes sense. Same with say someone that works at the Hillside facility on Mustard Street would be better off living somewhere along/near East Main.
Yes and no....depends where you're going to be working and what your needs are. It's doable, but definitely very challenging, especially during the winter, when it's brutally cold outside for waiting for buses and walking can be a tad tricky when it's snowed heavily. I get by, but I have to rely on Uber quiet a bit and online grocery delivery (either Wegmans, Harts or Walmart), which can get expensive. As others have mentioned, the nearest Wegmans will be the one on East Avenue, but there are also regular buses to the Pittsford Wegmans too, which is much bigger. You kind of have to plan your grocery shopping around the weather, if you're without a car and don't want to keep shelling out for delivery. There are quite a few small convenience-type stores though, especially on Monroe Avenue and some of them do sell limited produce.
You're going to find it difficult compared to big cities like NYC....there's obviously no subway here, but the bus system is OK and I find it to be pretty punctual and cheap. Plus, having an app like the RIT-RTS bus app and using Google Maps really helps with the schedules / figuring out how to get around navigating the bus system. I've had good experiences with Uber and Lyft here too.
Lastly, as for going anywhere beyond Rochester, you can get to NYC and Toronto via Amtrak, Greyhound and Megabus pretty cheaply.
Other popular and successful chains such as Tim Horron's and Moe's have closed within the last few years and their storefronts remain vacant.
You have a Tim Hortons location that's closed? That's unheard of here in Buffalo, heh. I doubt there's the same sort of region-wide affinity for Tim Hortons in Rochester that there is in Buffalo, though.
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