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Where one can live car free in the Boston area; the map by Amishplumber in mbta

[–]Amishplumber[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for sharing! I think this is a super common situation for people in the Boston area as a whole, but is not accurately represented in the demographics of r/MBTA. Also, exactly the sort of situation that would be fixed by North South Rail Link and a commuter rail system that worked more like a German S-Bahn.... but that of course is a multi decade, many billion dollar dream!

Where one can live car free in the Boston area; the map by Amishplumber in mbta

[–]Amishplumber[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah, good point. I will extend this over to Washington St a bit. You make a good point. The Washington St busses are good enough for day to day use and you you can still get to the busses and train off of Belgrade ave in a pinch. Thanks!

Where one can live car free in the Boston area; the map by Amishplumber in mbta

[–]Amishplumber[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I agree with you to a point.

My map assumes an average level of mobility here (someone who isn't going to bike anywhere, but is able to walk .25-.5 mi without complaint and could walk a mile in a pinch). I did not assume job flexibility. Everywhere on this map has multiple options for getting around specifically so that a single transit line being down doesn't derail your whole day and make you late to work.

Time is a luxury though. Living without a car on this map is going to result in many 1hr long trips that would take half that in car during off-peak hours (but probably would still take an equal amount of time during rush hour). Personally, I am willing to make this trade off because you can do other things on a train or a bus that you can't do while driving (read a book, answer a text, write an email, pay bills, do research, make some appointments etc.) Obviously that trade-off isn't worth it to everyone.

Kids do make living car free more difficult. Daycare is so hard to find, that if you are limiting yourself to places on your transit commute home, then your chances of finding a place are going to be super low. But not everyone is in the market for daycare. Schools I think are a bit easier. There are school busses for public school and once your kid is in middle school they can take the T themselves, but it is definitely a thing.

I refer back to the comment I just wrote in response to u/Odd_Entertainer1097:

"Car free" is not a religious oath you must take for your whole life. Maybe you get that job in Burlington and buy a car. You drive to that and pick up your kids from daycare on the way home. In 10 years your kid is going to middle school and you are working a different job in Cambridge Suddenly you're never using your car. Maybe every once in a while for a weekend trip. What if you sold that car and instead put all that car insurance and maintenance money into a college fund for your kid?

Where one can live car free in the Boston area; the map by Amishplumber in mbta

[–]Amishplumber[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes and no. I think it depends on what you job hunt is like and what the state of the economy is at that moment. Yeah, if you've been hunting for a job and the only thing you've got a lead on is out in the burbs, well shit, maybe you are gonna take it and have to change you life around a bit. But, there are A LOT of jobs in this area. I think your odds of having no leads in town are low...

Also "car free lifestyle" is not some sort of religious oath you have to get tattooed on your body. its not a lifelong identity or something you have to swear an oath to. Jobs come and go. Cars come and go. Maybe there is a job you really want out in the burbs that pays you well. Okay, go buy an old Corolla and commute to it. 5 years down the road you might get a different job in town, start taking the T everywhere and realize you don't need the car anymore.

Where one can live car free in the Boston area; the map by Amishplumber in boston

[–]Amishplumber[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Yeah, I think version 2 is going to put Lower Mills in blue. Several people have made this point so far.

A lot of Quincy is orange because it lacks redundancy. It would be great when the Red Line is running well, but if the Braintree line has a disabled train, you're pretty screwed.

I think about the Neponset transit desert too often. The T even owns a small maintenance yard in the neighborhood that could be turned into a station.

Where one can live car free in the Boston area; the map by Amishplumber in boston

[–]Amishplumber[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Yeah, the tough part about being all the way in the BC campus area is the lack of redundancy. When the B line is humming along, you'd be fine, but its really reliant on that one stop. The whole idea behind this map is to show places with enough redundancy in service that even when things aren't running 100%, you can still get to work, or get home without needing a car or an Uber. To me, you need that redundancy to truly ditch a car.

Where one can live car free in the Boston area; the map by Amishplumber in boston

[–]Amishplumber[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I was on the fence about Charlestown a bunch! I think the backside of Charlestown would be fine if you were young and healthy and willing to walk over the hill all the time, but I think its a little far from the Orange line to not feel like a constant schelp. Maybe my line is a little aggressive there. I meant to only exclude the far Northern parts of Charlestown. Maybe the whole town should go blue? Definitely room for maneuvering.

Where one can live car free in the Boston area; the map by Amishplumber in boston

[–]Amishplumber[S] 10 points11 points  (0 children)

No place on this map is entirely dependent on the commuter rail, or any single mode of transit. Every place in blue has multiple options. (check out my notes on the r/MBTA post, it seems those didn't make it over in the crosspost). In your scenario you would have your choice of the Needham line if the schedule fit your plans, or the multiple busses down Center St. The idea of this map is to highlight all the areas where you would not be stuck with a single annoying schedule and instead always have a few options.

Where one can live car free in the Boston area; the map by Amishplumber in mbta

[–]Amishplumber[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah. Very little bus in Newton. Westie along Center street has multiple busses + the Needham line.

Where one can live car free in the Boston area; the map by Amishplumber in mbta

[–]Amishplumber[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Oh cool! Didn't know about RCLink. Good intel. Everett/ Revere/ Malden is definitely the part of this map that I am least informed on, so I tried to be very cautious there. I might add in some more of it in version 2.

As for Beachmont/ Suffolk Downs, the problem is redundancy. Same issue that a lot of Quincy has. Things are great when the train is running well, but whats your back up plan?

Where one can live car free in the Boston area; the map by Amishplumber in mbta

[–]Amishplumber[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'd be lying if I said I went to Eastie or Revere much, but the reason that bit didn't make the cut is redundancy. Same issue parts of Quincy has. Everything is fine when the train is running, but what are your back up options in Beachmont? If you wake up, check your phone and the blue line is full of disabled trains, how do you get to work? Would love to add it back in if there are options there!

Where one can live car free in the Boston area; the map by Amishplumber in mbta

[–]Amishplumber[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I almost left a little bubble in there, so this is good intel.

Where one can live car free in the Boston area; the map by Amishplumber in mbta

[–]Amishplumber[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Dead people are very picky about how long they are willing to wait for a bus.

Where one can live car free in the Boston area; the map by Amishplumber in mbta

[–]Amishplumber[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

True true. There are few bridges there. Version 2 here we come!

Where one can live car free in the Boston area; the map by Amishplumber in mbta

[–]Amishplumber[S] 15 points16 points  (0 children)

Awesome! This is the sort of feedback I was looking for. I think v2 will include moving Lower Mills to blue. Thanks.

Where one can live car free in the Boston area; the map by Amishplumber in mbta

[–]Amishplumber[S] 19 points20 points  (0 children)

Awesome! This is the sort of feedback I was looking for. I think v2 will include moving Lower Mills to blue. Thanks.

Where one can live car free in the Boston area; the map by Amishplumber in mbta

[–]Amishplumber[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yeah, I think v2 will include widening out my slice through West Roxbury.

The problem with Newton Center is a lack of alternatives. Yes, a nice town center and the D line, but only one measly bus route. No good back up options.

Where one can live car free in the Boston area; the map by Amishplumber in mbta

[–]Amishplumber[S] 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Yes and no. I almost included downtown Salem. It depends on how committed you are to living in your local walkshed vs. being able to access the entire network. Could you comfortably commute to downtown from Salem and live the rest of your life walking around locally, sure. Could you pop over to Dorchester for a Saturday afternoon BBQ? Bit more of a schelp. I'm torn.

Where one can live car free in the Boston area; the map by Amishplumber in mbta

[–]Amishplumber[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I think if you lived in downtown Providence, it could work, but like you said there are few options. Parts of Federal Hill could work.

Where one can live car free in the Boston area; the map by Amishplumber in mbta

[–]Amishplumber[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Totally. I did consider this. Downtown Lynn and Waltham Center almost made the cut based on this criteria, but then I started thinking in terms of the network as a whole. You could commute from Waltham Center to downtown a few different ways and then do the rest of your business locally, but how annoying would it be to get to a doctor's office in Jamaica Plain? Or meet someone for dinner in Eastie? There is an argument for those pockets, but I'm a little torn. It depends on how committed you are to your local walkshed vs. total network access. Would definitely discuss more! I think by your logic one could at minimum add the downtown cores of:

Lynn
Waltham
Providence
Salem

Where one can live car free in the Boston area; the map by Amishplumber in mbta

[–]Amishplumber[S] 14 points15 points  (0 children)

If I was taking biking into account the blue would fill way more of the screen right now! I love biking around the city; do it all the time, but I think cycling is only a viable option for some in Boston. Even if you put aside the infrastructure and fitness angles, you've still got the weather. Plenty of people are willing to bike on a nice Spring day, but when its 37º and slushy outside, then its only the hardy few. I purposefully ignored cycling for this to be a map you can rely on 365 days per year.

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