commuting from Danville/San Ramon to Redwood Shores and Menlo Park

[jade408]

I am at my max commute time going from Oakland to San Mateo. I can leave a little later and it takes 45 minutes. Can't even fathom adding on the 40 extra minutes from Danville/San Ramon. There are no alternate routes either. Going north or south of San Mateo is a no go for me. I guess foster city would work, but that is it.

[roadwarrior101]

Originally Posted by silverkris

Again, unless one of you works in the East Bay, it really makes little sense to get a house in the 680 corridor when both of you work in the Peninsula.

You might get more house for your money in San Ramon or Danville but if you're going to spending an awful lot of time commuting you will have little time to enjoy that. IMO trading off a smaller dwelling for an easier and less stressful commute is acceptable, you might feel differently. I'd suggest Belmont, San Carlos or Foster City as communities you may want to consider which have decent schools.

As for alternative routes up and down the Peninsula - if 101 is down you can take 280, and vice versa. It's less so once you're committed to a bridge crossing.

Its a bit more complicated than this. Maybe this person realizes that they're complexly priced out of the peninsula market. You end up paying through the teeth to have some small fixer upper with a huge mortgage. Also, in most cases, the schools on the peninsula are not nearly as good as those in Danville/San Ramon. Some elementary schools are comparable, but definitely not high school. The exception to this is in Palo Alto, but now we're talking $2-3M (at least) for something decent.

Also, if you live in the south peninsula and commute further up, its shorter in distance, but possibly not in time. Taking 101 through Mountain View/Palo Alto is no walk in the park.

Maybe this person can telecommute a couple days per week? Maybe they have a company shuttle, which makes it much more tolerable. Maybe they can carpool? Maybe they just want to live somewhere that is more family friendly and better positions them long-term. Lots of variables here and I don't think you can unequivocally say that its a better option to be living on the peninsula.

[thecooler]

Given prices/commutes, have you considered Pacifica? I believe the schools are good, its significantly more affordable then most of the peninsula, and lower crime, and you'll have a commute, but no bridges and multiple hwy options (101, skyline blvd and 280). I live in northern Pacifica and my commute to Redwood shores is anywhere between 25 minutes to 1 hour depending on traffic/time i leave home/work. Yes, it can be foggy, but it doesn't bother me except a few weeks in the summer, its actually a tad warmer here in winter then the most of the bay area.

[cornblitz]

Guys, the original post was from 2007.