Carpool to Malden?

[glass-moment.livejournal.com]

I recently got a new job in Malden (yay!), which takes over an hour to get to on the T (boo!). Looking into getting a bike, but I was also hoping to explore some kind of carpool/ride share option, and I have no idea where to even start looking for that. Any thoughts? Do any of the big ride share companies have enough of a local member base to make them worthwhile? Anyone have good or bad experiences?

Comments

[koshmom.livejournal.com]

I don't know where in the Davis Square area you live or where in Malden you're headed, but the 90 goes from Davis Square to Sullivan+Wellington, then it's a hop to the Malden T from there. Also, if you're anywhere nearish the 101 route, it goes directly to the Malden T.

[ceo]

Also, the 89 goes directly to Sullivan. That's how I commuted when I worked in Malden, and it generally took half an hour or so. Taking the Red Line and transferring at DTX takes much longer and is a big pain in the neck.

I also biked semi-regularly; would be happy to share my mostly-traffic-avoidant route if you like.

[glass-moment.livejournal.com]

I've been avoiding buses because I tend to get motion sick on them, but maybe I'll give the 89 a try and see if I can stand it- it goes right by my house.

I would love to hear your bike route, though!

[ceo]

OK. From Ball Square:
Cross the bridge over the railroad tracks on Broadway, and immediately turn left onto Winchester St
Ride down a little ways, and turn right onto Marion St.
At the end, cross Medford St and continue down Mayberry Ave.
At the end, turn left onto Willis Ave.
Turn right onto Alexander Ave, and then take the next left onto Pierce Ave.
Turn right onto Harvard Ave, which we've been going to some lengths to avoid up to now. Here's where the traffic gets dicey.
Cross Mystic Ave onto Mystic Valley Parkway, and cross under I-93.
Take the next left onto Locust St, by the Meadow Glen Mall. If you're riding in traffic, crossing into the left turn lanes here is a little tricky. You can also ride on the sidewalk and use the pedestrian signal.
At the end of Locust St, turn right onto Riverside Ave.
After the next light, bear left onto 4th St.
Cross the Fellsway at the pedestrian signal. Turn left, go about 20 feet and turn right onto 3rd St.
Take the second left onto Middlesex Ave. Here's another dicey traffic section.
Ride up Middlesex about half a mile, and turn right at the first light onto Devir St.
At the end, turn left onto Pearl St.
(You might be able to cut through the strip mall parking lot to the very end of Pearl St. There was once a cut in the guardrail at the back of the parking lot, to the left of the strip mall; I don't know if there still is.)
Ride up Pearl St to Malden Center. It ends at Pleasant St, just east of the T station.

The return trip is the same, except that I used 4th St instead of 3rd, Bonner Ave instead of Pierce and Willard Ave instead of Mayberry, due to one-ways. (4th is one way the wrong way after the Fellsway; I never found a way to avoid that.) I also turned left from Willard onto Main St, right after the park onto Morton Ave, then left on Winchester.

Here's a map.

[glass-moment.livejournal.com]

Yay, thank you!

[erlala.livejournal.com]

I would also be interested in this information, since I recently started a new job in Lowell, and it takes me an hour and a half on public transportation (bus/commuter rail) each way. Plus, the commuter rail is expensive!! I am not able to drive, and riding a bike is a little dicey too... I found this site: http://www.carpoolworld.com/, but haven't explored it enough to see if it is helpful, but you may want to check it out.

[ron_newman]

If you can bike only as far as Wedgmere station on the commuter rail, and take the train from there to Lowell, you'll save a lot of money.

[erlala.livejournal.com]

Thanks, but due to a medical condition which affects my vision (and keeps me from driving), I am wary of riding a bike very far, especially in high traffic areas. I have thought about trying to ride a bike to the West Medford commuter rail (from west Somerville), but even that makes me nervous.

[ron_newman]

I hope that works out for you. Once it does, the road from West Medford to Wedgmere is a very quiet lake-front parkway with little traffic and wide shoulders. And the train fare from Wedgmere to Lowell is half the fare from West Medford.

Also, since you're doing a reverse commute, you can take your bike on the train, which may be helpful once you get to Lowell.

[erlala.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the tip. I do see lots of folks with bikes on the train in my commute, and it seems like a pretty easy thing to bring a bike on board.

However, I'm not sure where you see that the train fare to Lowell is half the fare from Wedgemere vs. from West Medford. From what I can tell on the MBTA website, it is a difference of $8.00 vs. $8.75 per one-way fare (zone 5 vs. zone 6), or $252 vs. $275 for a monthly pass, which is nowhere near half the cost.

[ron_newman]

West Medford to Lowell (zone 6) is $8.75 per ride, or $275 for a monthly pass.

Wedgmere to Lowell is Inter-zone 6, $4.50 per ride or $151 for a monthly pass.

[erlala.livejournal.com]

Ah - I didn't realize that Wedgemere was an inter zone stop! I already got my August pass unfortunately, but I'll look into it for September. Thanks!

[hr-macgirl.livejournal.com]

Try Zimride (http://www.zimride.com).

Note: I've never tried it myself but have heard good things about it.

[glass-moment.livejournal.com]

Thank you!