Advice on where to live if wife works in Boston and husband is in Newport RI (Taunton: daycare, schools)

[smarks68]

Hi,

My husband's in the Navy and is working at Newport RI. I found a job in Boston near South Station. I was planning on taking the commuter rail into the city. We want to live close to one of the commuter stations but still have an hour or less commute for my husband going into Newport RI. I'm looking at the Providence or Middleborough line. Any suggestions on towns/cities we should consider? We have a son but he'll be going into daycare so we don't need to worry about schools just yet.

Cities that we're considering just looking at Google and the commute:
Easton
Mansfield
Raynham
Taunton
Berkley
Lakeville
Bridegwater
Seekonk

I've heard that Taunton has a lot of crime. Is it as bad as it sounds? Any advice would be much appreciated.

[CaseyB]

Some parts of Taunton seem okay, but overall I'd prefer to live elsewhere.

Mansfield would be good but I'd worry about that commute to Newport. I would think it would be over an hour.

This is tough because you want to be a reasonable distance to your son's daycare from work.

[Whatsnext75]

Is the job in south station really worth it? That sounds like a heck of a situation. The commuter rail can be a pain in arse especially in the winter, it's not always reliable. Having a child in daycare I'd want to be close to the daycare and not have to take my child on the train, etc.

I think sometimes people think in planning commutes that it'll be fine and not be a big deal, but it can get really daunting and cant add hours onto your day. I dont even live that far away from my job (live in southie work in cambridge) and sometimes I want to find a different job because my commute can be horrendous.

[Dm84]

You're in a tough spot. I would focus on the Middleboro line. Even then at least one of you will have a commute of over an hour each way. Newport is not easy to get to quickly from much of MA.

[massnative71]

Seekonk is probably the easiest commute to Newport (by just a little), and from there you can catch the train from South Attleboro. I'd give the edge to the Providence line for speed and frequency.

[Dm84]

Originally Posted by massnative71

Seekonk is probably the easiest commute to Newport (by just a little), and from there you can catch the train from South Attleboro. I'd give the edge to the Providence line for speed and frequency.

Under ideal circumstances the ride to South Station from South Attleboro is 1 hour from the time you board the train. Driving from Seekonk to the station, parking etc will add at least 20 minutes.

Also, the Providence line is very prone to delays and they are more frequent the further down the line you go. Whatever schedule is posted on mbta.com should only be used as a rough guideline. In real life each ride is at least 10 minutes longer than they advertise.

[massnative71]

Originally Posted by Dm84

Under ideal circumstances the ride to South Station from South Attleboro is 1 hour from the time you board the train. Driving from Seekonk to the station, parking etc will add at least 20 minutes.

Also, the Providence line is very prone to delays and they are more frequent the further down the line you go. Whatever schedule is posted on mbta.com should only be used as a rough guideline. In real life each ride is at least 10 minutes longer than they advertise.

I thought it was more like 55 minutes. I thought the Middleboro Line was slow with lots of issues as well?

[Dm84]

Originally Posted by massnative71

I thought it was more like 55 minutes. I thought the Middleboro Line was slow with lots of issues as well?

It depends on the individual train you are riding on. Some Providence line trains skip stops depending on the time of day. One that is making every single stop could take almost 1 hour 20 minutes from South Attleboro to South Station, assuming no delays.

Yes, the Middleboro line is slow but on the Providence line commuter rail trains are frequently delayed to give priority to Amtrak trains, which isn't an issue on the Middleboro line.

The Middleboro line is also directly on Route 24 which gives a somewhat less congested ride to Newport, although the last few miles are on a local road with traffic lights.

Again, this isn't an ideal situation to be facing because Newport is in a difficult part of RI to reach.

[dpm1]

Which job is more critical to your household? If you husband I would lean to being closer there if yours I would lean to closer to boston. That is a difficult space difference.

[ocngypz]

It's quicker to get to Newport from Mansfield than Middleboro. I've done both drives 100's of times over the years.

So Mansfield would be my first choice. Easier parking at the train station too.

Taunton..............yuck.