Live in East Bay or commute from S.F. to East Bay daily? (San Francisco: pros and cons)

[bubbacanoe]

Hi there,
I'm from the midwest and have just taken a job in Emeryville and am now considering where to live. I've got housing in Berkeley at the moment, but will need to get a place within the next month. It makes sense to consider staying in the East Bay, but I would really like to experience San Francisco by living in the heart of it. I'm trying to consider the pros and cons of each option, such as cost and time, especially if my job will require me driving to work occasionally for projects. Just looking for any insight and any costs/problems I should be aware of. Any insight is greatly appreciated. Thanks!

[ElGato1972]

I work in Emeryville as well. While I personally live in Alameda, many of my coworkers live in SF. If you want to drive, you're going against traffic, so it's not bad at all. If you plan to take BART, there is a free shuttle called the Emery Go Round that picks people up at the MacArthur BART station and shuttles them to Emeryville. Several of my coworkers sometimes combine BART and bicycles as well.

As far as cost goes, the Bay Bridge is $4 going into SF, and BART will cost you something like $7 round trip, so when you add in gas, it's pretty close to even.

Hope that helps, and welcome to the area.

[bubbacanoe]

Thanks so much for the insight and the welcome. It's much appreciated as well as helpful.