where to live between providence, ri and groton, ct? (Warwick: transfer to, buy)
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My fiance and I will be moving from Europe to RI next fall. I will be working in East Prov (Bradley Hospital) and he will be working in Groton, CT. He will drive to Groton and I will be using buses. What would be the best place for us to live?
We would like to find a place close to the I-95 for him and to a RIPTA bus station for me (we would prefer having only one car).
We are hesitating between East Greenwich, Cranston, Warwick and downtown Providence.
How is the traffic at rush hours on the I-95 (morning : southbound and evening : northbound)?
Is the RIPTA system working well?
Thank you very much for answering me!
If you'll be taking the bus, keep in mind that you'll have to go through downtown Providence to transfer to the bus that goes by Bradley, so you may want to consider living downtown/walking distance to downtown. RIPTA has pretty decent service, when I rode it for 4 months in a row I only had one bus breakdown and maybe 1 or 2 really late buses.
I guess it depends on whether you both want a bad commute, or just one of you does. There shouldn't be much traffic heading south from Providence to Groton on most days, but it'd still be a long trip. If you don't mind being on the bus for a while and having to transfer, then you could live in Warwick or East Greenwich, but your commute would easily be over an hour.
My vote goes to Providence, then East Greenwich mostly due to quality of life issues.
If you want to walk from your residence to a downtown with restaurants, theater, nightlife and services, Providence is the only real choice. There are plenty of all. Its also easier to get to the Bristol / Newport / Tiverton side of the bay from Providence. East Greenwich is a distant second choice, with a more limited choice of services in its very nice downtown. Cranston and Warwick are more suburban and have businesses located throughout, but you would usually have to drive to them.
The commute would only be 10 miles more to get to/from Providence from Groton. Its about 45 miles to East Greenwich so his commute is going to be long no matter where you live and the bus transfer issue goes away for you.
Here's what I consider... look for a place in either Rumford or East Providence. That gives you an easy commute and you could take bus to downtown Providence if you wanted to.
Now for your husband...errr.. well be extra nice to him because he's because he's got the tougher commute but he's gonna travel some no matter where you live.
Just me but there's no way I'm gonna live south of Prov and take a bus to Kennedy Plaza (which many people absolutely Hate) then schlep on another bus to East Prov.
My wife takes the bus to Providence every day-but she works downtown with no need to transfer buses at Kennedy Plaza. The traffic into Providence is usually crowded, but not as bad as many cities. I did it for several years, it was a lot worse in Boston, Chicago, and the New York City metro areas.
From Coventry, which is further south than Warwick, there are two park and rides very close by (park your car and ride the bus, basically a bus station with no emenities). They serve West Greenwich, Coventry, and parts of West Warwick.
Public transportation here is very different from Europe, if you have never spent time here....RI that is.
Also, depending on where in Groton the workplace will be there is the possibility of ride sharing with other people.
RI is pretty small....I live in the country and I'm 20-25 minutes from the conveniences of the city. It really depends on what you would like. I am a 30 minute or so drive from Groton, too.
East Greenwich would be my recommendation. And forget about taking a bus to Bradley Hospital--save your money and buy a second car: you're going to have to drive. The time saved would be SO worth it.
"My wife takes the bus to Providence every day-but she works downtown with no need to transfer buses at Kennedy Plaza".
.... errrr..Coventry Dude... I believe the original poster said she was working at Bradley Hospital in East Providence/Riverside. You most definitely need to get a transfer at Kennedy plaza to catch the East Prov. bus.
I'd advise trying that route a few times (in winter) before signing on with that plan.
Getting a car isn't a bad idea...just the expense of it gets more prohibitive all the time .
Also, I hated that East Greenwich to Providence commute for over 20 years, so just check the times you have to be at work. It's better after rush hour.
Thank you everybody for your advices!
First possibility would be having one car and live in downtown Providence. What part of downtown are the best place to live if we want to be close to the I-95?
The other possibility would be having two cars and living in East Greenwich or Coventry. How is life overthere? East Greenwich seems to be very charming, close to the coast. How is Coventry?
Tifenn
"My wife takes the bus to Providence every day-but she works downtown with no need to transfer buses at Kennedy Plaza".
.... errrr..Coventry Dude... I believe the original poster said she was working at Bradley Hospital in East Providence/Riverside. You most definitely need to get a transfer at Kennedy plaza to catch the East Prov. bus.
Mikey
Right....that's why I said my wife doesn't transfer.
It would be easier to have a second car. The expense wouldn't need be too great, and would likely offset the inconvenience of a troubled commute.
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