Commuting between the East Bay and Davis/Sacramento
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Commuting between the East Bay and Davis/Sacramento
June 2007
I am frustrated with the schools in Oakland, and really want to
consider a move to Davis to have better schools for my
children. I can transfer my employment to Sacramento. My
partner has a great job at UC Berkeley, and understandably does
not want to give it up. Can anyone give us feedback about
having lived in Davis and commuted to the East bay? How long
did it take each day? Was it worth it? Any recommendations
about whether to consider such an arrangement?
Considering a move
I'm sure others will have more real experience. I just took
the Amtrack (Capitol Corridor) to Sacramento, train stops in
Davis. It was great. Very leisurely, not too slow, and I got
a lot of work done. Think if you buy tickets in advance you
can get a discount.
Anon
One word - Amtrak. Take the train to the Berkeley station,
then take the 51 up University to campus. Not fast, but oh so
nice.
anon
Hi. My husband commuted from Davis to Berkeley (very close to campus)
for several
years. It is doable, either by Amtrak plus BART or by car (and there is
a shuttle that
runs between UCD and UCB). It is nice if it works out to not commute at
least some
days each week. The days are long, it takes over an hour to commute
each way and
traffic can be bad. Amtrak can be great but it can also be unreliable.
We loved life
in Davis but the commute took a steady toll in the end. It became
exhausting for
my husband to commute such a long distance and try to make it home for
our
family time. We would have been happy to stay in Davis but not with the
long
commute.
fan of Davis
My husband does this commute and it's terrible for us. He works
in W. Berkeley (exit University) and spends at least 4 hours a
day in his car. Sometimes more. It's so bad that we have our
house for sale and are planning to move closer to the bay area
(where we will rent a much smaller house). From Berkeley to the
bridge is stop-and-go, and traffic through Fairfield is also very
bad - usually many accidents because people drive crazy through
the 680-12-80 merges.
About Davis: Davis is a very nice town with excellent schools.
It has a lot of great activities for kids and a wonderful
farmer's market Saturday in Central Park. I would recommend
attending this to get a feel for the town. It is very hot here
in the summer. We have been running our AC since April, no joke.
Last summer we had two weeks where it never went below 110
degrees. My PGE bill was over $500. Davis has a similar (much
smaller) group like this called mom's circle Davis - a yahoo
group. It is very liberal here, they call it Berkeley East. You
would probably be in the minority if you are not a super-AP type.
There is also an Amtrak station here and a stop in Berkeley.
Even with all the perks of Davis, we will move ASAP. The commute
is taking a toll on our family life. You might want to check out
the Green Valley area in Fairfield - very good schools, not as
liberal as Davis, though.
Davis lover, traffic hater
My husband was in Davis and I lived in Berkeley when we were engaged.
We dreaded
the commute so we finally settled in a nicer part of Solano County. It
is a little rural
but close enough to the freeway. We have nice walks and friendly
neighbors, but we
still have to drive out of town for entertainment. Our commutes are now
cut about 30
minutes to Davis and 35 to Berkeley and that is not bad!
Fellow Commuter
May 2005
My sister is going to be working in Davis next fall and is
thinking of living in the east bay. where would good places
to live be that are easy to commute on train or by car at least
three times a week? does anyone make this commute that
can tell me about your experience.
thanks!
If your sister is a UC affiliate, there is a bus that runs between
the two campuses. I think there is one in the morning and one in
the afternoon. See http://www-fleet.ucdavis.edu/buses/shuttles/berkeley/schedule.php
Hi, I grew up in Davis, and my husband's mom and my parents
still live there. We live in West Berkeley, and grandparents
from both sides take the train up to see their grandson
weekly. They get off at the Berkeley station (which is not
much of a station although improvements are underway) and just
walk 10 minutes to our house in West Berkeley. Since it's
always daylight when they do it it's fine, I probably wouldn't
make that walk at dark. If I had to get off at night by myself
I would probably go to the Emeryville station and have my car
there. Overall the train is quite reliable and on-time,
although if I absolutely had to be at work at a particular time
(for example, if I were a teacher and had a classroom waiting
for me) I might be hesitant, or might take an early train to
make sure. For example, several times in the last 2 years
since the grandparents have been doing this, someone has thrown
themselves on the tracks (so sad) and the train gets really
delayed (like 2+ hours). Ick. The big plus is that they can
read, watch the beautiful scenery, work, or even socialize (my
mother-in-law knits with a group of commuters regularly).
There are lots of bike commuters, which would be perfect for
Davis. I suppose one could even chain a beater bike up at the
Davis station if you didn't want to have to deal with a bike
when you got to the East Bay.
anon
I commuted to Davis every day for 2 years. I live in Crockett, and worked on
campus. I carpooled, so some of the time I would drive, some of the time drive to
someone else's house and then ride with them. . A surprisingly large number of
people communte from the East Bay to Davis! so, tell your sister to contact Bay Area
Rideshare - they will hook her up.
I did try Amtrak, but it was quite expensive and the times did not really work with
my job. There is a bus that runs from Davis to UCBerkeley, but I believe you have to
be a student or faculty member to ride it (I was neither), so I never really looked into
it. But really, I found carpooling to be fun, fast, and friendly - I met great people,
and it really was just as convenient as driving alone.
Emma
Feb 2000
Any recommendations on an alternative route to Sacramento, that's not all
highway 80;
scenic would be nice, but not too long. Any advice on short stopover
activities for 2
young boys between here and there?
Re the request for a scenic route: that's an easy one! First take highway
80 to highway 4 out to Antioch. Cross the bridge to sherman island and the
scenery begins. After the bridge, make the very first right. You'll be on
a levee road with the river on one side and rich reclaimed farmland on the
other. Pear trees and so on. You'll see that the road, Highway 160,
mainly goes on one side and then the other of the Sacramento River all the
way to Sacramento. Lots of boathouses and interesting drawbridges and
small towns. Walnut Grove, Locke, Isleton, Hood. This is the old river
road from before highway 80 existed. Console yourself by speeding home
on I-80 at a fast clip. I first saw this route published in Bill Mandel's
column in the Examiner about 15 years ago. Have driven it at least a dozen
or more times. In fact, I just drove the route again last month.
Beautiful! Peek at a state of California map first. Can't get lost if you
follow the river though. For stopovers for your two boys, there's not a
lot except near the bridges where they can see what fisherman have been
catching. Later in the season there are folks selling roadside fruit,
pears and such. Or bring some binoculars for bird watching along the
river. Have fun!
...p.s. the Amtrak train service is also very good and relaxing and quite
scenic.
Glenn
From I80 - to Suisun City/Fairfield
Take Highway 12 to Rio Vista/Stockton. The trip between Fairfield to
Rio Vista is about 30 minutes (approx. 20 miles) & this time of year
the green rolling hills are beautiful. Also, as you leave Fairfield, if you
look off to the left you can see the HUGE airplanes at Travis AFB &
(if you're lucky) they'll be running touch & go drills & the big planes fly
over you so you get a good look at them.
At Rio Vista, as you enter town, veer off Highway 12 to the right
to downtown Rio Vista. There is a park & an old Chinese
cemetery right next to the big community cemetery on your
right where you can have a picnic or you can go to the end
of Main Street where there is a plaque about Humphrey the
Whale -- right on the river with grass for running & playing & a
few picnic tables. Also on Main Street, if the boys are old enough
& you are not totally grossed out see Foster's BigHorn (one of the
world's largest collections of taxidermy animals from Africa, etc.)
Bakery across the street from Foster's is pretty good. Rio Vista
Museum is only open on Sat. & Sun. & it is right off of Main St.
on Front Street. Everything is within walking distance.
Go across Rio Vista Bridge to Highway 160 -- at end of bridge make
left towards Sacramento.
Follow Hwy 160 to Isleton, approx. 5 miles (you'll be on right side
of Sacramento River). In Isleton you can also veer right (just before
you go out of town) & that will take you to a small Chinese part of
town -- nothing too interesting but Rogelio's restaurant can be pretty
good. The better China town is in Locke & you'll get to that on this route.
After Isleton, get back on the river road (Hwy 160), go left over bridge
approx. 1/2 mile outside of Isleton. You can continue straight on the right
side of the river but you'll miss the Ryde Hotel which used to be an old
speakeasy. I haven't been there in years but I understand the restaurant
is now pretty good & they've fixed up the hotel.
Continuing on to Sacramento (on left side of river) until you get to Walnut
Grove then you can go back over a bridge to the right side of the river
again. Right past Walnut Grove is Locke. Very old historical buildings.
This is only about a half an hour from Rio Vista but if you didn't stop in
Rio everyone may be ready to get out & stretch their legs.
After Locke you have some choices as to how you want to continue the
trip to Sacramento. You can continue on the right side of the river to
Twin Cities Road (about 2 miles out of Locke) & that will take you to
I5 into Sacramento. Or you can continue up the River Road (Highway 160)
on either side -- beautiful scenery on both sides. If you want to continue on
the left side of the river, you'll need to backtrack to the Walnut Grove
Bridge but make sure you cross over @ Freeport or you'll end up in
West Sacramento. All of the different types of bridges are wonders
in themselves.
I grew up in Rio Vista & still live there (yes, I commute to Oakland
EVERY WEEKDAY!). The trip from Rio Vista to Sacramento (non-stop)
is about 50 minutes. I love the drive & this time of year the colors
are beautiful & the river is usually like glass. After Rio Vista
there are no junk food places (i.e., Taco Bell or McDonald's) until
you get to Sacramento. Rio Vista's Taco Bell/KFC franchise is
(unfortunately) opening this week (our first fast food
except for Subway). There are a few restaurants (most of which I
haven't been to in years) & delis along the way & plenty of places
to pull over for a picnic.
I think it is an incredibly scenic drive with a wide variety but, of
course, I'm prejudice. Happy to provide more info if needed.
Vanessa
Highway 99 through Stockton is scenic. There is a place between Stockton
and Lodi called The Chicken Kitchen (melt in your mouth chicken) that has a
little mock western town that's open, usually during the Summer. I hope
the place is still open. It is very old. I enjoyed it as a child and my
children enjoyed it as they grew up.
Ella
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