Commuting between Marin and the East Bay
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Commuting between Marin and the East Bay
May 2010
Our family is moving to Corte Madera and I want to
continue to minimize my footprint in the daily commute to UCB.
How might I bike or bike/bus/Bart?
thanks for making it better for us all,
Keeping It Green in Berkeley
lindy
The BEST resource around for beginning a commute plan is
511.org. Simplest solution is to arrange a carpool or
vanpool situation. However, using public transit with or
without bike is an option. I write this from near 20 years
experience as a non-driving 4-county (Alameda,
Contracosta, Marin - SF circit) public transit commuter.
Here is what I would advise: Either bike on the dedicated
bike trails from Corte Madera to downtown San Rafael
Transit station, or take a Golden Gate Transit bustfrom CM
to SR. From San Rafael take GGT bus to BART (either
Richmond or ElCerrito Del Norte)You probably can take your
bike with you on this leg. If not you will have to lock up
at GGT terminal, so get a beater bike for this...an irony
since you will need a good smooth-riding strong but
lightweight bike for a daily commute. BART to Berkeley or
other East Bay desitinations. You may have an issue taking
your bike on BART during commute hours. If so, you could
take your bike on AC transit OR take the Bay Trail from
Point Richmond or or other points in between to
Berkeley... a long but flat shoreside ride of real beauty
and calm. Best of Luck and enjoy the quiet of yoru own
time in the morning. Far better than being stuck in
traffic. Oh - get a Translink/Clipper Card and see if your
job is enrolled in the ''Commuter Check'' program.
bike-BART-MUNI gal
Congratulations on your move and on keeping it green.
There are Golden Gate Transit buses (#40 & 42) that run from
the San Rafael Transit Center (3rd & Hetherton St) to the El
Cerrito Del Norte BART station. The #42 is less direct and
also stops at the Richmond BART station. Depending on where
in Corte Madera you live, and the weather, you could bike to
San Rafael and take your bike to the east bay on the bus or
you can take a Golden Gate transit to the transit hub in San
Rafael. You can use 511.org to route the trip and play with
the different options. The Golden Gate Transit website has
information under services about bringing your bike on the bus.
I am sure that there are also casual carpool and rideshare
options from that area. 511.org has rideshare and matching
information.
Good luck and happy green commuting.
Hope This Helps
Unfortunately there are virtually no public transportation
options from Marin to the East Bay unless you want to
transfer three times and spend two+ hours each way
commuting. Try the TripPlanner on 511.org - it's laughable
what they propose for that route. On the other hand, if you
have a reasonably fuel efficient car and can find someone to
carpool with, it's a very short jaunt over the bridge, even
at commute hour. I live in the Berkeley hills and work in
North San Rafael and it takes me 30 minutes tops each way.
Your footprint is less important than the time you spend with your family
It's time-consuming (which is why I ultimately gave up and
switched to driving) but not that complicated. Golden
Gate Transit has a bus route across the Richmond Bridge --
40 is the commute-hours-only express and 42 is basically
the same route but with many stops. It goes from the
transit mall in downtown San Rafael to the El Cerrito Del
Norte BART station. So you'd bike or take a local bus
from Corte Madera to San Rafael, then the 40 or 42 bus
(bike can be racked on the front of the bus), then bike or
BART from Del Norte to UCB.
Alternatively, bike or local bus to the Larkspur ferry,
ferry to SF, BART to Berkeley.
Albany-to-San Rafael commuter
May 2010
We are planning to leave El Cerrito (tired of bad weather,
bad middle/high schools) and buy a house in Walnut Creek or
San Rafael. It would be great if people who know both or
just one of these places would share their experiences.
What is the commute to Berkeley like at 8 am and back around
6 pm? Where are we more likely to find a neighborhood with
lots of kids, where our kids can walk over to their friend's
house rather than having to be driven to scheduled play
dates? Is there anything that is really different about the
two places that we should take into consideration? We just
know both have great schools and warm summers.
Not sure this exactly on point, - but my wife commuted from
Berkley to San Rafael for work for a couple of years and
found it quite easy and fast [she also got hooked up with a
carshare] although periodically it becomes a nightmare.
generally speaking traffic is rarely bad other than on the
Marin side near San Rafael - but was quite light once on the
bridge and through richmond. I also have a client who
regularly commutes from Novato to Berkeley to work and he
confirms this. As far as walnut creek goes - it seems worse
- my parents lived in lafayette for a number of years and we
would regularly take the back roads to avoid 24 during
commute times. I would vote Marin. robert
May 2009
We are considering moving to Marin - somewhere near Larkspur/San Rafael. My
husband works on Bay Farm in Alameda (near the Oakland airport). Does anyone have
experience doing this commute during typical rush hours? How long does it take on a
typical weekday?
Thanks!
Stefany
you know the answer to that. but you can take a look at the live
traffic maps, get a feel for how fast/slow moving the traffic is
during the proposed commute times... 511.org or
http://www.ktvu.com/baytrafficmap/index.html
try to drive non-commute hours. or hope for a crappy economy and
lower employment so less cars are on the road
drivin' around
I commute the opposite direction (from Berkeley to San Rafael -
30 minutes) and I see a ton of traffic on 580 as well as the
Eastshore and in the maze in the morning. I would strongly
discourage you from making this move. In good traffic Larkspur to
Bay Farm Island is 45 minutes. In bad it could be an
hour-and-a-half! You didn't say what your reasons for moving
would be - presumably the school district and Marin quality of
life? I think it's a question to ask your husband, since he'll be
the one commuting. His quality of life will decline significantly
unless he's able to telecommute several days a week. Good luck
with your decision!
Against Painful Commutes
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