Should I bring a car if I move to San Francisco for LS? Forum

[millieb]

If you are going to USF and plan to live around there, bring a car. If you're going to Hastings and plan to live around there, save yourself the hassle.

I live in SF now and survive without a garage/parking space. Remembering street cleaning is the biggest hassle.

When I first moved to the city I didn't have a car and felt pretty isolated. In order to get out of the city I had to take a bus to Bart, Bart to wherever I was going, and then depend on someone else to pick me up at Bart. And even Bart is pretty limited. Having a car means you can have the freedom to come and go as you please and depending on the neighborhood, parking isn't horrible. And it's nice to have something to fall back on just in case without having to reserve a car in advance.

[calgal17]

Or you could just live in Oakland, have a car, bart into the city and live the good life.

[fortissimo]

Or you could just live in Oakland, have a car, bart into the city and live the good life.

except Oakland is generally a dangerous dump, unless you are talking about living in the hills.

[sbcity24]

-Don't have to deal with the scum that rides muni.

TITCR

[oberlin08]

Thanks for all the great advice guys.

If I did move out there for LS I would definitely want to explore the region over the years... It will be a tough decision to make though with all things considered ($$).

[Dignan]

Or you could just live in Oakland, have a car, bart into the city and live the good life.

except Oakland is generally a dangerous dump, unless you are talking about living in the hills.

This really isn't true. There are parts of Oakland that are dangerous, but there are also several cool neighborhoods that aren't in the hills (e.g., Rockridge, Piedmont).

[straxen]

I cannot emphasize enough how much of a pain it is to own a car in the city...particularly parking. Let me add another vote for Zipcar, there is no reason being in SF to own a car. As a member of Zipcar, I run errands when I need to, go meet friends, and take day trips, for no more than a couple hundred bucks a month (if that, my bill this month was $70). Gas and insurance is free, and I don't have to worry about finding a place to park near home. I've been a member of both Zipcar and City Car Share. My opinion is that whereas Zipcar is awesome, City CarShare sucks...they charge for mileage, no daily rates, cars aren't as nice, and you don't know if there's going to be a car when you want one.

Public transit will take care of your commute. Yes, muni can be a pain in the ass sometimes, but this is the reality of living in a major city like SF. Muni will get you where you need to be and everyone in the city uses it. Far better than trying to find (and/or pay for) parking in the city.

Don't commute from eastbay or the peninsula if you move to SF for law school, particularly USF, it won't work out.

Thanks for all the great advice guys.

If I did move out there for LS I would definitely want to explore the region over the years... It will be a tough decision to make though with all things considered ($$).

I've used Zipcar to drive to Monterey, Santa Cruz, all over east bay and the peninsula, Marin County, Point Reyes, etc. Seriously, owning a car in SF is an utterly ridiculous idea. Most people who move here with cars wind up having to find someone to sell them to once they discover the error in their thinking. In other cities where a car is a viable option for a commute, a car's a great idea, but not SF.

[fortissimo]

Or you could just live in Oakland, have a car, bart into the city and live the good life.

except Oakland is generally a dangerous dump, unless you are talking about living in the hills.

This really isn't true. There are parts of Oakland that are dangerous, but there are also several cool neighborhoods that aren't in the hills (e.g., Rockridge, Piedmont).

Piedmont technically isn't part of Oakland. It's another city. Rockridge is okay. After living in the East Bay, South Bay and Marin, I gotta say for the Bay, Marin....>South Bay..................>East Bay in terms of QOL. I'd much rather live in SF than Oakland, or should I say I'd much rather never live in Oakland again. The commute from the East Bay to USF is too much of a pain in the ass to complete on a daily basis. (The BART itself is pretty quick once you get on it, but the lines generally only come once every 20-30 minutes (the way it operates makes traveling a lot slower than traveling on a real subway) so frequently I found myself spending half the travel time waiting for the BART.) I wouldn't be surprised if you had to spend an hour - or more, depending on where your apartment is in Oakland - one way traveling from Oakland to USF law school, taking into account the 12-15 minute walk you have after you get off the BART at Civic Center in order to get to Van Ness.

[calgal17]

Or you could just live in Oakland, have a car, bart into the city and live the good life.

except Oakland is generally a dangerous dump, unless you are talking about living in the hills.

Whatever be judgmental. I love living in Oakland.

[foxyeconomist]

You can definitely get by without a car in San Francisco and save a fortune doing it! In addition to residential parking permits, certain streets have time limits, meters or tow-away hours, and all streets have weekly street cleaning which you will forget about at least once/month for your first year. Tickets are at least $50.

Take a look at an online map MUNI map and plan on living in neighborhood near a bus line that goes right by USF (like 5, 31 or 43.)
--LinkRemoved--

You will be much happier without a car, but taking the bus really sucks if you have to transfer. If you need a car you can always use City Car Share or ZipCar. And you can always bring your car back with you after Christmas.

[lawlife2010]

Muni is good enough to get you by and basically runs until 1 am. However, if you are dead set on having a car and go to Hastings, don't plan on driving it to school. Parking is impossible, expensive and the traffic would make you arrive much later than you would have via muni or bart. That being said, if you are set on having a car you should like in the Sunset district or an apartment complex that gives you a parking spot or maybe live a bit south. if you have a car you will likely not be able to live downtown close to Hastings (assuming that is your school). Even if you end up at USF, parking in the Presidio nearby is more doable but also pretty tough and more of a hassle than its worth. If a car is that important, plan on commuting to school via public trans or paying more to have a place that gives you a safe parking spot. Realistically you will only need it if you plan to travel to the south bay or to Marin or something north.