living in Princeton and commuting to NYC - crazy idea? archived

Sure, if you can make good use of 3+ hours per day on a train or bus and you can tolerate the periodic bad transit days.

Yes, people do it.

Yes, it's crazy.

Yeah, what they said. I think that commute would get old fast, no matter how productive you made your train time. I used to commute from Monmouth County by bus, and by the fourth year I would wake up in the morning, cry, throw up, and head out to the bus. The bus itself was fine, but the time it took was murder.

I had a relative who drove from Woodbury (county seat of Gloucester County) to Philadelphia, paid for parking, took Amtrak to NYC Penn Station, then either WALKED 20 blocks or took the subway to 14th Street - St. Vincent's Hospital. FOR TEN YEARS!

Princeton costs the earth. Otherwise, great place to live. Actually, not sure it costs more than here!

I know people who commute from Princeton to NYC by Amtak. I know people who commute to NYC from way out in Queens, and from Wilmington DE -- commutes in the 1-1/2 to 2 hr range each way. The financial tradeoff is often very favorable, and sometimes the whole schools/quality of life for the family -- especially if you're allowed to work from home on Fridays or similar. Honestly, most of the people I worked with in lower Manhattan had way longer commutes than I, with a bunch living near Neptune NJ, Cranberry and way out in Queens.

I think it depends on your family circumstance, whether you have/intend to have children, whether a partner is at home with them etc.

Looks like the NJT ride from Princeton Junction to NYP runs (scheduled, at least) 70-80 minutes, depending on the train, and is $14.75 each way, or $414 for a monthly pass. I think if I were seriously considering something like that, I might give it a try-out and see what it's like -- I can think of a couple of ways to do that, none particularly convenient, but maybe worth it.

When I worked in Manhattan many years ago there were a couple of big wigs at my firm who commuted from Princeton Junction. If I remember correctly there are some express trains from Princeton Junction that get you into Manhattan in about an hour. Our offices were at One Penn Plaza, so they didn't have any extra travelling once they got into the city. They did it for all the years I worked there - took the really early trains in, and took relatively early trains out. I think a lot would depend on if you can get the express trains, and how close you work to Penn Station.

Don't forget about the non-train commuting time in addition to the actual train time. I'd lose my mind.

Princeton is a great place to live, but you might get to know, you'll be too busy commuting!

Thanks for the input. It definitely sounds like the commute could be a deal breaker. We are going to look at it next weekend - maybe we will even take the train down to get a sense of length of the commute. My husband would be the one commuting, but he most likely would not have to go in every day to NYC.

About 12 years ago I did the princeton - new York commute for about 2 months and hated it. I was amazed at the people who did it on an ongoing basis , as the only thing that kept me going was knowing that it was temporary.
One underrated thing to consider is how close you'd be living to the Princeton junction train, and how early you'd be leaving. I remember some of the worst parts about my commute were the ~12 min drive to the station (rt. 1 traffic) and the sometimes nightmarish parking situation at pj if you weren't there by like 645.
Overall it's not fun, I'd say a lot depends on your tolerance level for a crappy commute.

Keep in mind that unlike around here, almost no one can walk to the Princeton Junction train station. Parking is a huge issue, as is the time it takes to get over there from Princeton (and Princeton itself is spread out). I did the NYC commute myself for about a month once, and it was more than I could bear. I can attest to the fact that it's a nice place to live, but I would only do so if I worked nearby.

Cross post with Student Council!

I'd also look into "express" bus service from Princeton to whatever part of Manhattan he works in. Not something I've ever done, but a lot of the guys I worked with with the farflung commutes took commuter buses like that. Sometimes better, wifi, comfy seats etc. They tend to do their paperwork etc. on the bus (or nap i a couple of cases) and keep fairly strict at-the-office hours.

cynicalgirl, that's a great idea. Just so you know Queens, even the farthest town in northeast Queens, Little Neck, is only 18 miles from midtown - same distance as Maplewood to midtown. I used to live in Little Neck. No that far flung but everything is relative of course. I personally took the LIRR when I lived and commuted there but many people opted for the express bus depending on their schedule and the towns they lived in including those in Queens. Princeton is quite a bit further but looking into express buses is still a good idea particularly if they will be working closer to the port authority or downtown.

Showing my ignorance of boroughs! The co-worker I have in mind lives in Locust Valley. Is that Queens? He took a bus from there to World Financial every day...was more direct and reliable he said that a couple of trains.

...and 1 other lives in Atlantic Highlands NJ (apparently there's a more direct ferry, but costs the earth) and still another in Avenel NJ. They're all bus commuters because, I think, the commuter buses stop fairly near their houses whereas its a trek to the nearest train station.

Locust Valley is in Nassau County, the next county east of Queens. Here's an insider tidbit for non-NYers: Brooklyn, Queens, Nassau and Suffolk all make up Long Island geographically but people only use the term Long Island to refer to Nassau and Suffolk. If you're from Brooklyn you'd never say you're from Long Island; same with Queens although I used to say I was almost in Nassau County, right near the cityline. Locust Valley is about 30 miles from midtown and Princeton is about 54. So your suggestion of an express bus is still a good one.

Clearly I need a geography lesson! Yeah, all of those guys said those special commuter bus services were the way to go in terms of comfort and amenities and cutting down on the crud. They have their bus friends just like we have train friends...nicer than typical mass transit buses and with fewer stops so time is better.

Express buses can be great... when I lived in Bay Ridge (Brooklyn) I tried taking the subway, using the N ("never") and R ("rarely") trains, and it was gruelling -- in summer, quite disgusting and exhausting. Then I found out that an express bus ran from a stop near my apartment on Shore Road, and it was lovely! Considering it was still part of NYC, it took a surprising amount of time to commute from Bay Ridge.

And, speaking as a Long Island girl, I can confirm what Wendy says is true.

I used to commute via Community Coach bus from West Orange- it was far more civilized than the NJ Transit commute from South Orange. Also, far more expensive.

Pro:
- more comfortable seating
- fewer stops to the city
- more resistant to delays (they could change routes if a highway was slow or blocked- no "path cross-honoring through hoboken" crap)

Con:
- Cost (no monthly pass for Community Coach, although NJT busses have them)
- Time (took a little longer during rush hour)
- Environmental (waiting for the bus on the street is no fun in February)
- Weather - certain types of weather affected the bus more than the train- mainly, icy streets

When I was working in the City and living in Brooklyn (after moving from Santa Monica), I was put in charge of the Mt. Lauel office (Ext. 4).

A 2 month drive and we purchased a house in Princeton, actually Hamilton. My wife was working for Paine Webber and flew all the time so Philadelphia or Newark were about the same drive. My drive was split between Exit 4 and having to go into the City every week or so.

This Suxed for 2 years, then I was transferred to Roseland. (Over the hill so to speak from Maplewood-South Orange).

No parking at Princeton Jct. Crap train schedules, long drives. While nice to live, the getting anywhere other that Trenton or Princeton Suxed very big time.

IMHO.

Later,
The UPS Store
George

If you or your husband travel a lot on business, you have the choice of Newark or Philly. This is often helpful when bad weather causes problems in the NYC area. Even for personal travel you can sometimes get better deals out of Philly.

A very long time ago, a woman who worked in my office did the Toms River-NYC commute every day by bus. Knowing how long it took to get to Toms River when I drove down the shore, I always said "is she nuts?" Then, several years later, I bought a house in northern Monmouth county because it was all I could afford. I thought I would learn to deal with the commute, since I loved my home and knew I would not have that if I lived "up north". After 5 years of a four-hour-a-day commute (there was ALWAYS a tractor-trailer jacknifed on the Turnpike) I came screaming back to Northern NJ for less house, more costs, but a better commute (regardless of what I complain about here about NJ Transit!). It's all about what sacrifices you're willing to make for your own sanity.

My spouse did the commute from Princeton Junction for a number of years, but we didn't look down there when we bought a house. The length of commute was fine when we were childless, but not what we wanted to have to deal with when it came time to deal with childcare and parental responsibilities (it just didn't seem like a good plan for the two-career parenting juggle we aspired to!)

I work with two people who make this commute daily and find it okay -- totally individual decision; it would not be for me, that's for sure -- I am ready to leap from the train when we get to Maplewood!

I did the Princeton Jctn - NY commute for 3 years. It can really take a toll on you. The time and stress wasn't worth it. Maybe if you don't have to do it every day, and have a very predictable schedule, you can make it work. In addition to the commute issue, it isn't convenient to the major highways. You end up spending a lot of time on Route 1. One of the benefits of this area is the ease of access to the GSP, NJ Turnpike, 78, and 280 (even 287 isn't too far, depending where you live around here). Having lived in the Princeton area, I came to really appreciate this area for it's proximity to NY and many major highways.

My parents live in Princeton, and my father has been commuting from Princeton to NYC for years. It can be a toll; however, he has gotten used to it, and they love living in Princeton. There is also a train that will take you from the center of Princeton to Princeton Junction - "The dinky," as it is fondly called. Parking is a real pain at Princeton Junction, so if you can get a ride to drop you off at P.J or "The dinky" to P.J, you will then have an easier time going into the city. Princeton is a wonderful place to live.

I did it for 3 years. This was before laptops/cellphones and before kids. I read many, many books on that commute. It really wasn't that bad. We lived in Princeton, so I took the "dinky" from Princeton to Princeton Junction and then the philadelphia clocker to Penn Station I believe that Newark was the only stop. It was expensive and i cannot imagine doing it if you have children. Too much time!

I live even further away then Princeton and people commute into the city every day. Some drive, some take the train from Trenton. After living in Maplewood, I have no idea how people do it everday. I go nuts when we go in for the day, it take so long.

That said, you can get the express which is an hour commute. Personally I couldn't do it.