Job in El Segundo, fam in OC: Long Beach or Redondo Beach? (Torrance: apartment, to rent)

[blind spot]

Originally Posted by OpenSky

Why would you do that when the Blue Line connects with the Green Line in Willowbrook ?

Because I used to live in La Habra and I'm totally unfamiliar with the blue line, haha. So for me getting to El Segundo was green line all the way. Bad advice I guess. Sorry OP! I was thinking it might be better than transferring lines...in case you miss your train or something, idk.

[HSP1161]

Originally Posted by crazy carrie

Because I used to live in La Habra and I'm totally unfamiliar with the blue line, haha. So for me getting to El Segundo was green line all the way. Bad advice I guess. Sorry OP! I was thinking it might be better than transferring lines...in case you miss your train or something, idk.

No, not at all!

Thanks for your input. Can you share how the green line was for you when you took it? Was it consistent? Crowded? Predictable?

Thanks!

[blind spot]

Well, you definitely want to compare how long it will take to go to the blue line, then transfer to green line vs driving to norwalk. For me, it was about a half hr drive to the train station and then an hour ride from Norwalk into El Segundo. However, sometimes driving there on the 105 took longer than that (and it was never less than 90 minutes) so I was totally good with the train!

It got fairly crowded, but since I was the first stop, I always had a seat. I don't remember it being so bad you couldn't move though. It always showed up on time when I was riding it. Mind you this was during regular commute hours...so most of the people riding it were commuters. The one thing I did notice was the parking lot filled up pretty quick. I had to get there by 7:15 or so to get a spot, and it was way in the back. So keep that in mind if you go with that option.

[HSP1161]

Originally Posted by mayorhaggar

I think the green line runs every 8 minutes during rush hour, and it can get kind of unreliable depending on how behind they are. Plus often you'll pull into Willowbrook on the blue line and run upstairs just as the green line is leaving, so you have to wait 5-15 minutes for the next train. It's not an easy connection since neither line really runs often enough, and the trains really crowded.

I had to ride the green and blue for a temp job earlier this year from downtown Long Beach to LAX and generally it was just a pain in the butt, I'd say the commute was about an hour on most days, maybe about 50 minutes. Also the people who ride on the green and blue are pretty ghetto, so be prepared for that. They never bothered me but if you're easily spooked you might be uncomfortable.

Incredibly helpful. Thanks for sharing the experience.

Here's the word from Metro for my situation (Los Altos area to the El Segundo Station)... in short, starting the trip further north on the blue shaves off a few minutes. That, your LAX connection and the slop between the transfer might account for the ~15 minute difference between metro's estimate and your experience?

Trip Details
You are traveling on Tuesday and Leaving at 08:30AM . Fare class: Regular. Max walk: 1 Mile. Mode: ANY.

Tip: Click on a location to view on the map.
Starting at WILLOW ST STATION

Ride Metro Rail Blue Line [LOS ANGELES] heading north
From: WILLOW STATION
Lv: 08:32AM To: WILLOWBROOK STATION
Ar: 08:47AM
Pay $1.50, Monthly Pass: $75.00, (EZ Pass accepted)

Ride Metro Rail Green Line [MARINE REDONDO STATION] heading west
From: WILLOWBROOK STATION
Lv: 08:51AM To: EL SEGUNDO STATION
Ar: 09:09AM
Pay $1.50, Monthly Pass: $75.00, (EZ Pass accepted)
Ending at EL SEGUNDO STATION

Additional Information
Total cash fare = $3.00
Trip time is about 37 minutes.
Trip distance is about 18.28 miles.

Regardless, I'd seriously rather relax on a train for 40-50 minutes than fight traffic in the south bay for a half hour. Carpool lane is also an option in lieu of public transit.

Originally Posted by crazy carrie

I'm in agreement with those who say live closer to your job as opposed to family and friends (and either way, both locations are close to OC. Weekend traffic on the 405 isn't that bad).

We scouted the areas and drive again this past weekend, this time from OC (rather than our current locale from the north). Redondo is easily 20 minutes off the 405. So it's a solid hour+ from our OC friends/family.

The other aspect that's becoming clear (to the "move fatigue" point) is we don't want to reboot our circle of friends. I'll test out the Long Beach commute (carpool, public transit) in a couple of weeks once the holidays are over.

Thanks everyone for the counsel and perspective, from all sides!

[Chowhound]

Originally Posted by OpenSky

With two little ones and a move-fatigued wife, we're trying to figure out where to plant. We like areas with character, that are walkable/bikeable and safe.

The job is in El Segundo near the green line station, but our sphere of family and friends are in OC.

We love Long Beach (specifically Los Altos and Belmont Heights) but are terrified of the commute to ES.

Manhattan Beach is too expensive, Hermosa is too dense, PV is too remote, can't handle the airport proximity to ES. That leaves RB.

Last weekend we looked at south Redondo in the "Avenues" area. It's nice, but we're concerned that it is rather deep in the south bay. I've heard horror stories navigating between the two cities. On Sunday, it took 20 minutes to go 7 miles -- and that was no traffic! My cousin lives in ES and commutes to RB - she says it's consistently 30 mins per day. Furthermore, getting to/from OC would be a bear and we visit our friends/family many times a month.

So we're taking a closer look at Long Beach. Am I fooling myself if I think blue line/green line tango would reduce the 405 headache? Or a car with a carpool sticker?

I commute from LB to RB damn near every day.... if you're complaing about that drive... maybe LA isn't for you, cause it's not that bad... course I go to work really early, if you are on the 405/110 interchange anytime after 6:30 your pretty screwed.

That being said, I'd shoot for torrance or RB to save yourself as little commute headaches a possible.

[HarryKerryJr]

Yeah, if you choose to drive to Green Line terminus at Norwalk, your biggest battle may be the parking because it may be all gone by before 7AM. Can anyone who currently parks at Norwalk Green Line for morning rush tell us when all the parking gets sucked up?

[Dustyroad70]

I lived in Long Beach and Redondo Beach in the early to mid 90's. I would pick Redondo Beach to try and raise a family, regardles of the travel. It was a fairly clean, safe place with a nice mild climate. My preference would be Hermosa Beach if you were single and wanted to just enjoy life.

[HSP1161]

An update on our situation--

1) We chose Belmont Heights in Long Beach and LOVE the area. Family-friendly but still walkable to the beach and shopping/dining on 2nd. Plus the only dog beach in LA county ("Rosie's") is a short jaunt away.

2) The commute has been fine. 35 minutes in the morning, 45 in the evening - add or subtract 10 minutes based on traffic. I'm working 8am - 5:30pm so that's with stop-and-go traffic. I've found that the 110 and 710 offer some relief if 405 is stopped up. After three months, I've not had one day over an hour - and that includes some SOLID RED traffic days and holiday weekends.

3) Many of my peers live in RB and PV. Their commutes average 30 minutes from ES; one co-worker described it as "the most frustrating 10 miles you can imagine." That said, RB and PV are extremely nice communities. It's just that the South Bay feels like it is in its own orbit from the rest of the southland, much like the SFV or south OC. We simply don't have a significant circle of family or friends in the south bay; otherwise it would be more attractive to us.

4) We love the access to both LA and OC that Long Beach affords. Everything feels so accessible; over spring break we took the kids to museum row in LA, Disneyland and visited friends in Irvine. Each trip averaged 30 minutes each way.

5) My estimates for blue line to green line on Metro were dead on; it's about 35-40 minutes from station to station. My issue is getting to the blue line station from Belmont takes about 20 minutes on surface streets. So time-wise, not a tremendous savings. It's a very helpful option to have, though, for days when I want an alternate car-free commute (flight out later in the day, spouse meetup, car getting serviced, etc).

[silverkris]

Glad it's worked out for you!

[mayorhaggar]

Yeah that is cool that you're liking LB, it's definitely a pretty underrated city. I'm surprised the commute is so decent.