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If I lived in cook and douglous campus in rutgers new brunswick, when I walked to college av in rutgers at night, how dangerous it is?
Dangerous. Don't do it. I went to Rutgers and lived on Cook/Douglass for 3 years and then off campus for my last year. I never had any real problems, but I never walked around by myself late at night and stuck to George Street if I absolutely had to go somewhere. The worst way to walk would be on Suydam Street, because it goes right into the middle of the city, and crosses French Street, which is REALLY bad at night... one of my roommates saw a guy get jumped and beaten while she was waiting at a stoplight there after dark.
If you're a Rutgers student, there is no reason to walk... the shuttle (aka Drunk Bus) will take you anywhere you need to go at anytime, and the regular buses run from campus to campus until about 2 AM.
That being said, Rutgers was an awesome place to spend my undergrad. In the daytime, it's perfectly ok to walk around between Cook and College Ave, and you'll find some awesome authentic Mexican restaurants and cool stores in there. However, like any other urban area, be cautious, and don't needlessly put yourself in danger. While I loved my neighbors off-campus and generally liked the area (in the daytime), my roommate's car was broken into 5 feet from our front door and we always put down our shades and bolted all the doors. You can never take too many precautions for your own safety.
Which are you shooting for, 1 hour train ride or 1 hour door-to-door?
I, for one (maybe I'm the only one), don't think New Brunswick is a very bad place at all. Yes there are lower income people there. Yes there is a large Oaxacan immigrant population (legal status questionable at best). Yes it has had problems with crime (much better now than it used to be though). Yes there is a HUGE college student population (can be a good and bad thing). But it's affordable, it's urban, it has lots of restaurants and bars, it has theaters, it has nice parks, it has excellent train service on the Northeast Corridor Line, and there's a wide range of housing choices (from old run-down multi-family houses to well-kept houses and high-rise condos). Like any urban area you just have to select wisely. I was a grad student at Rutgers and I loved New Brunswick. It's not for everyone, though. Check it out before dismissing it.
If you prefer something more suburban or more of a cutesy boutiquey Main Street town then you should look elsewhere.
Since you mentioned: "It's not for everyone, though", what were the downsides that you faced?
These areas are fine...
North of Hamilton by St. Peter's Hospital
East of Louis between French and Hamilton
Everything between Huntington St and Easton Ave
If you are going to be South of 27/Albany, don't go further south than the Heldrich Center which is Morris and George.
These are not only the safest areas, they are also a short walk to the train.
Is the area around the rental apartment complexes safe? Areas such as Highland at Plaza Square etc?
New Brunswick is New Brunswick, you take the good with the bad. I suggest getting to know the area, visit during the day and at night, just like everyone is telling you, its a college town, I went to RU and never felt threatened, but also knew not to venture in certain areas and they usually present themself to you, avoid certain parts of George Street, Remsen Ave, some areas of French St, etc....there are some nice apartments along 18, but the traffic can be a royal pain during rush hour, check out Piscataway or Somerset which is a town over, if driving is possible for you, I know a lot of people who rented off campus and loved it. Good luck!
New Brunswick is New Brunswick, you take the good with the bad. I suggest getting to know the area, visit during the day and at night, just like everyone is telling you, its a college town, I went to RU and never felt threatened, but also knew not to venture in certain areas and they usually present themself to you, avoid certain parts of George Street, Remsen Ave, some areas of French St, etc....there are some nice apartments along 18, but the traffic can be a royal pain during rush hour, check out Piscataway or Somerset which is a town over, if driving is possible for you, I know a lot of people who rented off campus and loved it. Good luck!
there are many better choices to live than NB, if you like the area Highland Park is a nice town that is adjacent to NB and offers a much safer place to live.
new brunswick is ghetto the only parts ar nice are the ones by the rutgers campus other than that the crime is high i think u should think about your move thay fixed the place up after the projects were torn but its still a crime infested area
The OP never been to NB and appears to not know anything about it. With that being said, there is no way I would recommend moving there. Never...It is very foolish to live in a very suspectible area to begin with. Even worse, live there without knowing anything about it.
After reading all this posts, it appears the only 'safe' area is on campus which you wont be. Anywhere else you are taking a risk.
Skip NB..Check out highland Park instead. You wont regret it.
Wow, there must not be a lot of women on this board, because don't forget the serial rapes! Can't forget that! Everyone has mentioned crime, but it is way more than just "muggings." The serial rapes were a big deal when I was living there, and it wasn't just confined to the "bad areas." The whole place is a bad area, with some upscale restaurants dotting the crime and grime here and there.
I would never live in New Brunswick by choice; whoever pointed out that the clean-cut residents are not there by choice is dead-on. I would advise kids to not even attend Rutgers because of it (a good enough school, but I am certainly sorry I went). A lot of college cities have bad sections, sure, but the only thing that makes NB worth being a college town is the train to NY.
Other people have mentioned places outside NB, and I'd take their advice. The Society Hill area is more upscale and removed from the Hell.
Ok, and I also went to RU and lived in NB. What this poster just wrote sounds like it was written by someone living in a padded room.
OP, you could probably do better for your budget if there is nothing specifically drawing you to NB. You probably should look into Jersey City or other places in Hudson County, if you want one hour door-to-door. New Brunswick is one hour on the train to get into the city.
You still have homeless hanging out at the train station which is what? A stone's throw from La Fontana (an excellent upscale and $$ restaurant)? And two blocks from campus?
Walk a few blocks in the wrong direction from the "cleaned up" section and you're really taking a risk...
I own a business and our employee base consists of about 90% RU students. The closer to College Ave you are the safer it always was and supposedly still is. Kids don't want to live too far off campus anymore b/c it's not as safe as it used to be - there's a glut of rentals and when landlords can't fill their apts with college students they turn them section 8 and they aren't always the best neighbors. And who wants to live near a house filled with college kids when you have to get up in the morning and go to work?
One of my employees got jumped on Suydam street the other night. He was walking home from one of the college bars. 4 spanish speaking men took him flat on his face and stole everything he had which included most of his weekly pay.
Another employee crashed his bike into a parked car and seriously injured himself (during the school year) avoiding a woman (non student) who was running after a car and SHOOTING at it with a gun. This took place in broad daylight and within feet of one of the well known college bars. I think this happened on Louis street.
College parties get "townies" crashing them all the time looking for problems.
I would never suggest someone move to NB.
Again, nothing you just described would characterize my experience living there. Especially the "townie" comment.
I see the last post on here was in early 2009. Any changes since then? Things getting better, stagnating, etc? We're looking at an apartment about three blocks South of the New Brunswick NJ Transit station. We're a young, able-bodied couple used to living in the working-class areas of NYC, so we're city-aware. We like New Brunswick's urban environment, the access to restaurants and businesses, etc, but it's not worth it if we're going to be paranoid about break-ins, or if we're going to be in danger of getting mugged every time we walk to the train.
Any more thoughts?
Last edited by symbot; 11-03-2011 at 11:01 AM..
Reason: Adding a little more info
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