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Davis, CA. Flat, but with lots of trees. Very bike friendly, in fact the city is "Bicycle Capital of America." Very walkable, too. Has a university in town. Good public transportation if you don't want to ride your bike - but, the buses are run by the university, and so when the students are gone, the buses don't run as often.
Amtrak stops right in downtown Davis. You can also easily get to Sacramento by bus or Amtrak, if you were to work in Sacto and live in Davis. I lived in Davis and worked in Sacto for awhile. There are express buses to Sacto and light rail in Sacto, too.
I also find Redding very walkable. I have a car, so I take my car most of the time across town to the cheaper shopping options. But, if my car ever died, I'd be fine, between walking around downtown (where I live) or taking buses. Or, I might get a bike here, too, if the car dies. I admit, I'm just lazy and spoiled with having a car.
In Davis, however, I did sell my car and just rode my bike and/or took the bus.
How about a smaller city that's not far from where you are: Eugene, Oregon.
I was going to suggest Eugene also. It's a very walkable city, and has an excellent bus system for a smaller city. However the OP wants to try elsewhere in the US, so at least Eugene gets a review here.
So, what are you looking for? You said small cities originally but now are saying you are open to big cities? If you are open to big cities why not go to DC, Boston, SF, or NYC if you are looking for good transit.
Someone mentioned a number of towns Salem and Northampton in Massachusetts. I would also like to add Gloucester, Lynn, Revere, , Chelsea, Cambridge, Somerville, Plymouth, New Bedford, Fall River, Malden, Provincetown, Medford and Melrose MA as well. I especially like Gloucester as it's far enough away from Boston to be affordable, it has a nice, walkable downtown, AND you can catch the train to Boston if you feel like getting out without a car.
I know some of those towns are very close to Boston, but I just thought I'd add them in to show the OP some of the options available.
In New York I would look along the Poughkeepsie line on Metro North. There's a town up there called Beacon that's very walkable, and much like Gloucester, MA, it has access to rail transportation that takes you to the city.
But for the OP, you mentioned Porland Maine as one of your options. I couldn't agree more. The city is small and walkable, plus you can be on a train to Boston in 2 hours.
Someone mentioned a number of towns Salem and Northampton in Massachusetts. I would also like to add Gloucester, Lynn, Revere, , Chelsea, Cambridge, Somerville, Plymouth, New Bedford, Fall River, Malden, Provincetown, Medford and Melrose MA as well. I especially like Gloucester as it's far enough away from Boston to be affordable, it has a nice, walkable downtown, AND you can catch the train to Boston if you feel like getting out without a car.
I know some of those towns are very close to Boston, but I just thought I'd add them in to show the OP some of the options available.
In New York I would look along the Poughkeepsie line on Metro North. There's a town up there called Beacon that's very walkable, and much like Gloucester, MA, it has access to rail transportation that takes you to the city.
But for the OP, you mentioned Porland Maine as one of your options. I couldn't agree more. The city is small and walkable, plus you can be on a train to Boston in 2 hours.
If one lives south of Boston in Eastern Mass. Then they really need a vehicle. Unless one is just going to take a train into Boston, which many of us don't have a need for very often. Then a car is mandatory. There just isn't much in the way of public transit in any of these many towns. At least none that would be considered timely and efficient. Combine the long winters and the snow, and the lack of sidewalks in many towns. Then that need for a vehicle only becomes all the more mandatory.
I think many people would think that living in such an urban area as Eastern Mass is, that transit would be good. It's not and I have a relative that just this week is finding that out. He can't drive for 6 months at least because of a newly diagnosed medical condition. All of us will have to drive him where he needs to go, because of this lack of transit in the region.
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