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BART used to be a regular part of my commute, with the occasional Caltrain trip mixed in, and this: "only those who are impoverished would consider trying to ge

BART used to be a regular part of my commute, with the occasional Caltrain trip mixed in, and this: "only those who are impoverished would consider trying to get anywhere using bart + caltrain + public buses." is so totally out of line with my observed experiences that I have to wonder what on earth you were tracking.

ghshephard 12y ago
I lived in Oakland (17th and Merrit), and worked at Netscape in Mountain View on Ellis. I took Bart + Caltrain + a company shuttle for 2 1/2 years. I tried taking buses as well - but it was a brutal grind, and not something anybody with a realistic choice would undertake. Bart + Caltrain is possible, particularly now that Millbrae exists, and you don't have to perform the absolutely wretched 4th and Townsend to Powell street transfer, which was the bane of my existence. But Public Buses are just not seen as first, or even second class transportation in the Bay area, so most people, and certainly the vast, vast majority of Silicon Valley employees, would never consider using them to get to work in conjunction with Bart+Caltrain. They are, at most, used as part of two-segment trip. (I.E. Caltrain + Bus, Bart + Bus). What I'm really trying to say, is that if the valley had a first class rapid transit system around the bay, so you could eliminate the transfer to caltrain, and just go from Bart -> Bus, it might be a reasonable alternative for a lot more people, particularly with company shuttles that run from the nearby bart station to the office on a regular basis. Speaking of which - I've been away from the Bay for a few years - have they finally unified the payment of Caltrain/Bart/Buses, or are they still on separate payment systems?
- matthewarkin 12y ago
  You can use your Clipper Card on most transit systems (Golden Gate, BART, MUNI, VTA, AC Transit, Sam Trans). You can load generic cash that can be used on all the systems, or you can load the Bart "passes" (the $40 for $44). Some monthly passes will get you monthly passes on other transit systems, like a 2-zone Caltrain includes a VTA monthly pass. So yea you can use a clipper card everywhere but its still complicated. Also, if you load your clipper card online it will take days to actually appear on your card.
Domenic_S 12y ago
When I worked in Emeryville I signed up on the parking waitlist for Concord BART (I lived in Pleasant Hill). 3 years later I've moved to Gilroy and I still haven't made it to the top of the list yet. The East Bay BART situation is bad. Now I work in SJ and on the days I go in to the office I drive to Caltrain --> Diridon --> company shuttle. It's not terrible, except for the waiting. About 1:30 total commute time each way. With no traffic it's about 0:35 up 101 driving. Even with traffic it's only about 0:45 to drive back to Gilroy from SJ, but the morning commute is so ghastly it's better to take Caltrain. I think the OP was saying that if you have options, Caltrain is probably low on your list. I would agree. It's not like NYC where you're essentially no more than 5 blocks from the nearest subway station.

ghshephard 12y ago

I lived in Oakland (17th and Merrit), and worked at Netscape in Mountain View on Ellis. I took Bart + Caltrain + a company shuttle for 2 1/2 years. I tried taking buses as well - but it was a brutal grind, and not something anybody with a realistic choice would undertake. Bart + Caltrain is possible, particularly now that Millbrae exists, and you don't have to perform the absolutely wretched 4th and Townsend to Powell street transfer, which was the bane of my existence. But Public Buses are just not seen as first, or even second class transportation in the Bay area, so most people, and certainly the vast, vast majority of Silicon Valley employees, would never consider using them to get to work in conjunction with Bart+Caltrain. They are, at most, used as part of two-segment trip. (I.E. Caltrain + Bus, Bart + Bus). What I'm really trying to say, is that if the valley had a first class rapid transit system around the bay, so you could eliminate the transfer to caltrain, and just go from Bart -> Bus, it might be a reasonable alternative for a lot more people, particularly with company shuttles that run from the nearby bart station to the office on a regular basis. Speaking of which - I've been away from the Bay for a few years - have they finally unified the payment of Caltrain/Bart/Buses, or are they still on separate payment systems?

matthewarkin 12y ago
You can use your Clipper Card on most transit systems (Golden Gate, BART, MUNI, VTA, AC Transit, Sam Trans). You can load generic cash that can be used on all the systems, or you can load the Bart "passes" (the $40 for $44). Some monthly passes will get you monthly passes on other transit systems, like a 2-zone Caltrain includes a VTA monthly pass. So yea you can use a clipper card everywhere but its still complicated. Also, if you load your clipper card online it will take days to actually appear on your card.

Domenic_S 12y ago

When I worked in Emeryville I signed up on the parking waitlist for Concord BART (I lived in Pleasant Hill). 3 years later I've moved to Gilroy and I still haven't made it to the top of the list yet. The East Bay BART situation is bad. Now I work in SJ and on the days I go in to the office I drive to Caltrain --> Diridon --> company shuttle. It's not terrible, except for the waiting. About 1:30 total commute time each way. With no traffic it's about 0:35 up 101 driving. Even with traffic it's only about 0:45 to drive back to Gilroy from SJ, but the morning commute is so ghastly it's better to take Caltrain. I think the OP was saying that if you have options, Caltrain is probably low on your list. I would agree. It's not like NYC where you're essentially no more than 5 blocks from the nearest subway station.