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atl is not easily livable with a car, at least if you want to access the city... liveable? sure...in certain areas... you can't say chicago nyc sf then throw atlanta in to that "easy" grouping...they are on a MUCH different level. While you could *manage* without one, it would still behoove you to have one. Where as in Chicago or NYC it can be a downright ANNOYANCE to own a car... major difference.
I certainly could not honestly recommend atlanta to a person on city data asking where it would be easy to live without a car.
Although I wouldn't put Atlanta high on a list of cities in which to live without a car, I do have friends that are doing it. They are either living in Midtown or Decatur, except for one. He lives in the Cheshire Bridge Rd. area, which does indeed have everything you need within walking distance, great access to MARTA and a good measure of pedestrians. However, all of these people have to resort to a cab from time to time.
atl is not easily livable with a car, at least if you want to access the city... liveable? sure...in certain areas... you can't say chicago nyc sf then throw atlanta in to that "easy" grouping...they are on a MUCH different level. While you could *manage* without one, it would still behoove you to have one. Where as in Chicago or NYC it can be a downright ANNOYANCE to own a car... major difference.
I certainly could not honestly recommend atlanta to a person on city data asking where it would be easy to live without a car.
This guy thinks Atlanta is just like New York and Chicago though. I've seen him post in other threads. Atlanta is "just as urban" in his book. LOL. And if you disagree you are 1) misinformed, and 2) are just hating on the Atl. It's all about definitions with him so don't bother. Atlanta is "livable without a car" because he knows some people who are indeed "living without a car." Doesn't matter that they can't access 80% of their own city and 97% of their own metro area!
This guy thinks Atlanta is just like New York and Chicago though. I've seen him post in other threads. Atlanta is "just as urban" in his book. LOL. And if you disagree you are 1) misinformed, and 2) are just hating on the Atl. It's all about definitions with him so don't bother. Atlanta is "livable without a car" because he knows some people who are indeed "living without a car." Doesn't matter that they can't access 80% of their own city and 97% of their own metro area!
Who, grapico? I read his posts all the time, and his assessments of Atlanta always seem pretty fair (and informed) to me...including the one that you reference.
I say cities that are livable without a car are better cities. I don't have a car, therefore, those cities are better for me. Cities in which you must have a car are hard places to live, not to mention stressful.
Especially since Portland has direct light rail service to the airport from downtown. If I ever moved back to Portland I probably would have a car only because I have family living in different parts of the city, but I wouldn't need one. Seattle, too, I believe either already has light rail service to SEA-TAC airport or at least plans to in the near future. And if you think about it, if you can get into and out of the city (airport) without needing a car, then pretty much all bases are covered.
I am not thrilled about the commuter rail only being during peak hours. If the link expansions are being approved, that is more than I can say for some cities.
Because I have no experience with Seattle, Portland, or Baltimore (among others), I won't hazard a guess on them. But in my opinion based on my experience:
Tier 1
NYC and Chicago
Both have lines that run 24 hours (in NYC, all of them do). And both do a great job of extending to virtually every corner of the city and the suburbs.
Tier 2
Washington, D.C., Boston and Philadelphia
Public transit in these cities covers the lay of the land (both within city limits and beyond) effectively. But they stop running much earlier than NYC and Chicago. This means if you’re out late, you have to resort to cabs, which are obviously more expensive than trains and busses.
Tier 3
SF
Within the city, the bus system rocks. And the city is compact enough that walking is easy (albeit, with the steep hills, sometimes exhausting) That said the San Francisco Bay Area is massive and there are significant stretches throughout the Bay where public transportation (especially rail) is more limited or a hassle. Caltrain runs about once per hour for example.
Tier 4
Atlanta
Public transportation covers most major places in the city and conveniently has a station located in the airport. The subway has twice as many stations (38) and covers twice as many miles as the next closest rail system. ATL is less compact than SF, D.C. or Boston, though, so while it covers a lot of ground, there are many desirable places it doesn’t go. (The Zoo, Ponce and South Buckhead). More importantly, it doesn’t go many places in the suburbs, including two counties in which the populations will probably well exceed 1 million people by the end of the next decade (Cobb and Gwinnett.)
Well any city is doable without a car, it just depends on how much convenience you are willing to sacrifice.
On the west coast, San Francisco is probably your best bet for a car-less lifestyle - not having a car there would barely affect your quality of life. Portland would be the west's 2nd bet but neither San Fran nor Portland have it as easy as the older northeast cities.
I would argue that not having a car in SF would IMPROVE your quality of life. The cost of owning, insuring and garaging your car is significant in a place like SF. All of that money would be turned into disposable income!
Who, grapico? I read his posts all the time, and his assessments of Atlanta always seem pretty fair (and informed) to me...including the one that you reference.
No, DeaconJ, the person grapico was responding to.
Who, grapico? I read his posts all the time, and his assessments of Atlanta always seem pretty fair (and informed) to me...including the one that you reference.
He's talking about me...some people just seem to think they know more than they do. Just because I am firm in my knowledge that it's easy to live in certain areas of Atlanta without a car, he's saying I think that Atlanta is on the level of NYC. What a GREAT assessment! He's a psychic!
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