West Chester, Center City or Mainline? (cars, money, drive)

[CHIP72]

One other thing I'll note about Ardmore, Haverford, Bryn Mawr, and the Mainline towns just east of Villanova is they are also near the SEPTA Route 100 (also called the P&W by some locals). This is a light rail-like line that runs in the southern end of many of the Main Line towns up to Villanova; it crosses the SEPTA R5 near the Radnor stations, just west of the Blue Route (I-476). Living near the Route 100 in a town along the Main Line could be a viable alternative because the Route 100 has a couple stops at the southern edge of Villanova's campus. Your husband would likely need to cross US 30 (Lancaster Avenue) to get to where he's going, but I suspect many college students cross that road, so it wouldn't be a real problem.

The Route 100 ties in with the Market-Frankford Line at the 69th Street Terminal and the MFL goes right through Center City below Market Street.

[leighland]

Originally Posted by CHIP72

One other thing I'll note about Ardmore, Haverford, Bryn Mawr, and the Mainline towns just east of Villanova is they are also near the SEPTA Route 100 (also called the P&W by some locals).

I have a friend who lives in Ardmore off Haverford Rd and takes the 100 to Nova everyday- Its a great line. But I hear the 69th station is really sketchy and not a good idea to be there at night.

[CHIP72]

Originally Posted by leighland

I have a friend who lives in Ardmore off Haverford Rd and takes the 100 to Nova everyday- Its a great line. But I hear the 69th station is really sketchy and not a good idea to be there at night.

The 69th Street Terminal area is interesting; it looks a little rough but is also one of the Philadelphia area's primary, "traditional" commercial hubs outside Center City (the Tower Theater is located a block or so from the Terminal). The station itself is a bit worn but also has some commercial retail properties inside (most of which are closed late in the evening). I've actually been in the station at night once or twice and not had a problem, but the fairly low number of people there at night (I'm talking like 9 PM) can make someone not regularly at the station a little uneasy.

The benefit of using the Route 100/MFL to/from Center City compared to the R5 is the MFL and Route 100 run much more frequently. On the other hand, one current negative is with the work being done on the MFL stations in west Philadelphia (a couple of them are temporarily closed), SEPTA often runs substitute busing between about 40th Street and the 69th Street Terminal on weekends.

[ViolaNova]

Looks as if West Chester has no train; is that true?

Would living further out be beneficial in any way (Malvern, Paoli, Wayne)?

[CHIP72]

Originally Posted by ViolaNova

Looks as if West Chester has no train; is that true?

Would living further out be beneficial in any way (Malvern, Paoli, Wayne)?

Correct. There used to be train service to West Chester but that was discontinued a number of years back. (From what I've heard there have been some rumblings about bringing train service back to West Chester at some point but nothing concrete has even been up for formal consideration to my knowledge.)

The Main Line towns west of the Blue Route are generally nice too, but my impression is they don't quite have as much of an active vibe as the towns east of Blue Route. (Admittedly, I have not really driven through those towns; I've only passed by them on the Amtrak Keystone trains and on the US 202 bypass.) Based on what you mentioned initially, I think the Main Line college towns inside the Blue Route would be a better bet for what you are looking for, but you'd still find at least some of what you are looking for in Main Line towns west of the Blue Route.

If your husband doesn't have a problem making a fairly short trip to/from work via car (about 10 miles one-way), I'd suggest Media as a possibility. (Swarthmore, which is just east of Media, may also be a possibility but I've never walked around/driven through Swarthmore; this town is the home of the very highly regarded Swarthmore College.) I've only been in Media proper once (walked around), but it looked like a very nice town to me. The SEPTA Route 101 trolley runs right through the center of town, and the town is also along the SEPTA R3 Media/Elwyn route. (It is probably about 1/2 mile or a little less between the 2 lines, and the R3 station is down in a valley relative to the center of town where the trolley line is.) Like the previously mentioned Route 100, the Route 101 connects with the Market-Frankford Line at 69th Street Terminal (and the MFL passes through Center City Philadelphia), and like all SEPTA Regional Rail lines (well, all but one), the R3 stops at all 3 Center City Regional Rail hubs (30th Street Station, Suburban Station, and Market East Station). Media is close to the Blue Route (I-476), and it would be a straight shot north on the Blue Route to US 30 and Villanova University (which itself is only 1-2 miles from the Blue Route). The Blue Route has a lane drop in both directions south of the West Chester Pike (PA Route 3), so whatever commuting problems your husband may have between Media/Swarthmore and Villanova would likely be in the evening.

[ananyasavur]

My husband and I moved in West Chester in Sept 2007 after searching for rental properties all around town (and more)! What drew us to WC was the quality of life -West Chester has a vibrant, fantastic downtown, super restaurants ([SIZE=-1]www.wcdish.com[/SIZE]) and plenty of cultural activities (film festivals/parades/food festivals). Proximity to Exton is great too - for Mall shopping. The apartments are new here, and very well maintained. However what bothers me is no train or buses :-( and 1 hour drive to Philly city centre.
I would agree with Chip72 - Media is a good option. Plenty of restaurants, small downtown with a theatre to boast of, Malls. Close to train station/Center city(10miles)/Airport. However, we didnt find any neat rental properties around. There are a lot of single family homes there, and very few apartments/rentals.
The Mainline (Ardmore/Bryn Mawr/Haverford etc) is mainly by Lancaster Av-Rt 30 and is great in terms of conviniences and proximity to city centre. But again, we found very old, ill-maintained rental properties. Also, there are a lot of schools around the area, so you have to be careful about the place you pick up. We found Korman properties which were expensive, but worth the extra buck. however roadside parking :-( made us change our mind.
Whatever you do, please check for apartment reviews on the internet. I found them to be very very helpful!!! All the best!

[ViolaNova]

Hi Everyone -

Just wanted to update - we found a beautiful place in Rosemont / Bryn Mawr, near the Route 100 Subway. It's within walking distance to Villanova, a brand new duplex.

I found it through scouring the apartment ratings website. I found a property with 100% satisfaction ratings, emailed the company, & they emailed me some properties / photos, I saw "it" and knew right away it was perfect, so we sent our deposit today.

Thank you so much for your advice everyone - City-Data is a wonderful place.

[ViolaNova]

Hi again -

I thought I would give you an update, because I have gone from being a person who doesn't live in the Philly area yet (who had lots of questions) to a person who has lived here three months & can start to provide some answers, from a new-person's view.

We moved from Tallahassee, FL to Rosemont / Bryn Mawr area 3 months ago. So far, here are my impressions, which touch on a lot of things. Overall, we love it here and feel very thankful for the very nice quality of life we now enjoy.

The Main Line is... older than I expected, and very sophisticated (compared to Tallahassee & even Chicago, in my opinion). For example, the bar on our corner serves Lindenmans Framboise (Raspberry Lambic beer from Beligium) on TAP.

More later...!

[JHG722]

Originally Posted by ViolaNova

Hi again -

I thought I would give you an update, because I have gone from being a person who doesn't live in the Philly area yet (who had lots of questions) to a person who has lived here three months & can start to provide some answers, from a new-person's view.

We moved from Tallahassee, FL to Rosemont / Bryn Mawr area 3 months ago. So far, here are my impressions, which touch on a lot of things. Overall, we love it here and feel very thankful for the very nice quality of life we now enjoy.

The Main Line is... older than I expected, and very sophisticated (compared to Tallahassee & even Chicago, in my opinion). For example, the bar on our corner serves Lindenmans Framboise (Raspberry Lambic beer from Beligium) on TAP.

More later...!

We're glad you think so

[ViolaNova]

More stuff about the Philly 'burbs...

They have is the prettiest Autumn leaves I have ever seen. Every Sunday morning I drive up to Gladwyne to go to church, and each week the drive is even more breathtaking. It will be over soon, I know!

Of course there is a lot of money on this side of town, but contrary to what I had heard, not everyone drives a Mercedes, BMW or Hummer. Super fancy cars are pretty few & far between, actually, and I feel just fine in my Ford. But we do have a Ferrari / Maserati dealer nearby...

We live in Garrett Hill, which, I am told, is a historically African American neighborhood. Back when the Main Line was getting settled, the wealthy people set aside small plots of land in Garrett Hill where their servants could live. Many homes have been passed down from generation to generation. Some are immaculately kept, and some aren't. There are lots of yard signs which say "Save Garrett Hill" (although one of my neighbors doctored his, which he hides on the side of his house, to say "Sell Garrett Hill".) There's probably pressure to bulldoze & sell the valuable real estate location at a much higher price. (I live in one of the few new buildings on my street).

People say stuff about rude behavior. Honestly, so far I have encountered a mixed bag. Some people have been here forever and it's like they don't even SEE you. *They* don't need you, so go away...

Then again, there are plenty of locals who are very nice - especially once they know who you are & why you're here. And there are other friendly people who have been transplanted here; they are my "peeps"! We need each other!

The people who are rudest are mainly strangers doing jobs (cashiers, for instance, or switchboard operators). I try to be super nice to people who are working, but "nice" does not work on them. You are a bother, and they try to get rid of you as quickly as possible. Compared to how nice people are in North Florida (where I spent the last few years) this makes me a bit sad.

People say a lot about snobs. Maybe they take the insular rich locals as snobs; I don't know. The Main Line is not the place to be if you are jealous of other people's money. If you are happy with your life, then it's just really pretty & nice. The money is not glaring you in the face, like Rodeo Drive... it's just a really good, subtle, sophisticated quality of life.

Given our 3 options, I'm glad we chose to live on the Main Line, because we are super close to my husband's job, and to public transportation. I love being near everything and the R100 & R5, so we can make do with one car for now. Center City is GREAT, but the commute & the wage tax would have been a headache. West Chester is lovely, but it's too country & family-oriented for us, with no public transportation.

By the way, so far my favorite Main Line town is Wayne! They have so many cute shops & good eateries (a French bakery. a Belgian brew house with no TV's. a few cool coffee houses. Awesome.). But I do think they should re-paint the R5 train station... dirty, peeling paint... it's not a slum!

Anyway, I've got lots more to explore and look forward to doing so. There's so much great stuff here!

Hope this has been helpful to some of you who want details about life here.