Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > California > Sacramento
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
Reply Start New Thread
 
Old 04-18-2008, 01:07 PM
 
Location: Happiness is found inside your smile :)
3,176 posts, read 14,678,752 times
Reputation: 1313

Advertisements

Back in the day - when I first moved to Sac in 1996. I lived in Midtown, and at the time did not own a car. So I stepped onto Light Rail. Yuck. I never stepped on it alone ever again. I even had a boyfriend who after a few dozen times riding to come out and see me, decided that riding it was not worth it to see me...and wanted me to do all the driving - I dumped him promptly. (Not to mention my self respect)

Anyway

So I'm THINKING that if I live in Folsom to take advantage of light rail into Rancho Cordova (50 corridor)

Is it still sketchy? Or is because of it being Folsom and nicer there - a cleaner, safer alternative?

Right now is Seattle, because 80% of people take mass transit, I pay $60 a year to commute by bus, which is 15 minutes from my home to work - yup, you see correct - $60, that's it. So I need to now budget in commuting in Sacramento as part of my cost of living change.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 04-18-2008, 01:59 PM
 
Location: Sacramento, CA
132 posts, read 536,642 times
Reputation: 42
I just asked someone, and she says it's still on the sketchy side. She will still see derelicts occasionally ride the rail, but it's not as bad as Meadowview.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 04-18-2008, 02:55 PM
 
8,680 posts, read 17,236,454 times
Reputation: 4685
My first question is: What did you see on Light Rail that made you say "yuck"? It's tough to assess whether it's still there if you don't identify what it is.

$60 a year? Hm, they must have a well-subsidized public transit program. Sacramento's RT monthly pass costs $80 a month.

80% of people take mass transit? That seems like an awful lot...in Sacramento it's more like 1-5%.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 04-18-2008, 03:22 PM
 
Location: Happiness is found inside your smile :)
3,176 posts, read 14,678,752 times
Reputation: 1313
Mass Transit is big big up here - they are all stuck on "being green up here" people bike ride miles and miles to work in the rain and cold year round - people take ferries...buses

Anyway yup $60 for the year but it's subsidized by my work - I think a monthly pass is $45 if I actually paid for it myself

My husband gets his bus passes paid 100%.

Oh and I didn't ever feel safe on Light Rail. It was probably the people, sorry to say. But of course we were Midtown/Downtown. Um the light rail seemed dirty and the light rail stations looked like I could get mugged. Felt like the only reason people took light rails or the buses in Sacramento were the ones that did not have a car. Unlike here where most everyone takes it instead of their car - for enviromental reasons (oh and that it's $15 a day to park downtown!)

Here everyone is a business person wearing suits and ties to work, so I wonder if it's the same for the Folsom area light rail.

I must say I'm looking forward to driving in my car again. I really dislike taking thebus but that's because it's cold here. WHen I left Sac - gas was $1.79...easier to commute then...so I'm looking into Light Rail
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 04-18-2008, 08:16 PM
 
8,680 posts, read 17,236,454 times
Reputation: 4685
I ride the Gold Line a couple times a week, usually from Sac State to midtown, and it's a pretty broad cross-section of humanity. There's plenty of green consciousness everywhere these days, especially with gas at $4 a gallon, and light rail ridership is higher than ever. More suits during the rush hours, fewer at other times.

I've never felt unsafe on light rail, started riding it in 1987 when it opened and pretty much never stopped. I use it more lately, since I'm going to Sac State and a bus pass is included in the cost of tuition (while parking costs $5 a day!)

If you're going from Folsom to Rancho, that's pretty much the quiet end of the light rail line in any case--most folks get on at the stops from roughly Sunrise to 65th Street.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 04-19-2008, 10:34 AM
 
Location: San Diego (Unv Heights)
815 posts, read 2,693,772 times
Reputation: 632
Quote:
Originally Posted by wburg View Post
My first question is: What did you see on Light Rail that made you say "yuck"? It's tough to assess whether it's still there if you don't identify what it is.

$60 a year? Hm, they must have a well-subsidized public transit program. Sacramento's RT monthly pass costs $80 a month.

80% of people take mass transit? That seems like an awful lot...in Sacramento it's more like 1-5%.

Seattle is the polar opposite compared to Sac when it comes to mass transit. The downtown and surrounding layout of Seattle is much better designed and isn't all sprawled out like Sacramento. It seemed like the majority of city dwellers there used mass transit or the Flex-Car option if they really needed a car for a short amount of time. When I lived in there I didn't have a car and managed quite well with Seattle's public transport. I couldn't imagine being car-less in Sacramento. How else would I escape the city on the weekends?
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 04-19-2008, 11:21 AM
 
Location: Happiness is found inside your smile :)
3,176 posts, read 14,678,752 times
Reputation: 1313
I wouldn't be carless - I'm just trying to cut my expenses on my commute

But there is a part of me that wants my car to get to errands for lunch breaks- so I'll have to think about it - maybe take light rail a couple times first to assess it
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 04-19-2008, 11:28 AM
 
8,680 posts, read 17,236,454 times
Reputation: 4685
Quote:
Originally Posted by cityx View Post
Seattle is the polar opposite compared to Sac when it comes to mass transit. The downtown and surrounding layout of Seattle is much better designed and isn't all sprawled out like Sacramento. It seemed like the majority of city dwellers there used mass transit or the Flex-Car option if they really needed a car for a short amount of time. When I lived in there I didn't have a car and managed quite well with Seattle's public transport. I couldn't imagine being car-less in Sacramento. How else would I escape the city on the weekends?
Really? Seattle's population density is about the same as Sacramento's (about 5000 people per square mile) and Sacramento's downtown layout certainly isn't sprawled out. I'd imagine that Seattle's position in a hilly area along the coast makes it a bit harder to sprawl out than Sacramento on its flat river valley. I'd definitely appreciate a reference to someplace that uses the 80% statistic, though, because that's a phenomenal number (I don't think even Chicago or New York approach 80%) and if it's true it would be worthwhile to see what Seattle's doing that can be duplicated elsewhere!

Escaping Sacramento without a car can be done via the Capitol Corridor trains, which run west to San Francisco and east to Reno, or the San Joaquin trains which run south and connect to buses to Los Angeles in Bakersfield. Of course, there isn't all that much need to escape Sacramento on the weekends unless you want to get away from all the nightclubs and cultural events downtown.

I go car-less most days of the week, except on days when I have to do things that can't be done on public transit, like carrying cargo. It's not that hard here, as long as you live and work in the central city.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 04-19-2008, 02:26 PM
 
Location: San Diego (Unv Heights)
815 posts, read 2,693,772 times
Reputation: 632
Default ....in the eye of the beholder

From my perspective, the downtown region in Seattle had more to offer as far as employment opportunities, nightlife, shopping, entertainment, and overall culture, therefore creating less of a need or desire to venture out of the greater downtown area and into the suburbs. Because of this, mass transit was could easily navigate a person to whatever they needed to do on any given day. I have no idea what the statistics are between the two cities, but anyone that visits Seattle would quickly realise that the downtown area and the surrounding neighborhoods rely heavily on public transportation.
Quite honestly, in my opinion, this isn't really the case in Sacramento. One requires a vehicle to be able to attempt to access similar options in this region. Midtown Sacramento is quaint and pleasant, don't get me wrong, but one has to admit that the amount of cultural stimulation pales in comparison to other cities similar in size.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 04-19-2008, 03:12 PM
 
Location: Happiness is found inside your smile :)
3,176 posts, read 14,678,752 times
Reputation: 1313
Well I will not be comparing Sac Midtown to Seattle Downtown, because if I go out in Downtown Seattle I use a cab, and Sac (at night) I used a car. Two totally different spots (And I like Midtown WAY better)

So this was for the Folsom part of the Goldline, because if I still lived in Midtown I'd use my bike to get around the EastSac/Midtown/Land Park areas - I wouldn't even consider the light rail - Midtown is walkable
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:


Settings
X
Data:
Loading data...
Based on 2000-2020 data
Loading data...

123
Hide US histogram


Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > California > Sacramento
Similar Threads

All times are GMT -6.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top