Transportation to/from New England/MA

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Rochester
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<p>To students/parents in New England/MA---</p>

<p>How do most UR kids from NE get back and forth during breaks? Amtrak works coming home, but gets back to Rochester at 11 pm. Are there any shuttles to amtrak station near breaks?</p>

<p>There seems to be some options thru Greyhound. The terminal is supposed to be a 3 min. walk from the Eastman school, so the bus from River campus to Eastman might be used. Can anybody verify this info?</p>

<p>Lastly, some low-fare carriers, like Jet Blue and AirTran, fly Boston-Rochester.</p>

<p>Barring having a car on campus, how do most people travel back and forth to school?</p>

<p>Thanks</p>

2

<p>Only USAir flies non-stop Boston to Rochester. No direct flights from Providence, either. Greyhound to Rochester is about 9 hours at best. Amtrak doesn't directly from Rochester to Boston, either - you have to go through NYC.</p>

<p>We're just outside of Boston, so I'd like any other tips, too!</p>

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<p>The Greyhound terminal is a short walk to Eastman School (4-5 blocks?) but I do not know the frequency of buses between campus during breaks.</p>

<p>The UR has launched an on-line ride board last year (2005-2006). Your s/d will need a NetID to gain access. The ride board was announced in a UR Family News (parent mag) issue, <a href="http://secure1.rochester.edu/parents/parentsnewsfall05.pdf%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://secure1.rochester.edu/parents/parentsnewsfall05.pdf&lt;/a>, and the ride board is run by the student activities office, <a href="http://www.sa,rochester.edu/roadtrip%5B/url%5D"&gt;www.sa,rochester.edu/roadtrip&lt;/a>. I do not know how successful it has been but it is worth a look.</p>

<p>Zipcar (car share company) also launched its service to students on campus recently (2006-2007) but again I have not follow up on how well it has been going and whether it will continue. The students have to be at least 19 to use the service. <a href="http://www.rochester.edu/news/show.php?id=2601%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.rochester.edu/news/show.php?id=2601&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>I am surprised that Amtrak route you through NYC for the Rochester-Boston trip. I would have thought a change of train in Albany because that's what it was like for the train trip to NYC from Rochester (Rochester-Albany, then Albany-NYC).</p>

<p>Sorry, not to be able to add more. Hope the info helps a little.</p>

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<p>Zipcar is not feasible for traveling home- it will be ridiculously expensive</p>

<p>Most kids fly home...</p>

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<p>T'is true Zipcar is not a feasible option for travelling home. I was posting it as an option for those without cars on campus and needed to do errands types of things.</p>

<p>Flying is probably the best option if one does not want to spend 2 days on the road (R/T).</p>

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<p>Chedva--</p>

<p>Check Amtrak's lake shore limited--it branches in Albany. One branch goes NYC-Providence, the other goes Springfield-Worcester-Boston.</p>

<p>If you don't require a nonstop, there are some discount carriers that fly Boston-Rochester.</p>

<p>The Boston chapters of the alumni associations of Cornell, Bucknell, and Colgate sponsor a bus for Boston area students during breaks (if only my daughter had chosen one of those schools!). These run at a reasonable cost and make 2-3 stops. Maybe if enough MA kids start choosing UR, something like this could happen.</p>

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<p>I'm pretty certain that I would no want my child walking from the Amtrak station at 11:00 PM to the Eastman dorms.</p>

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<p>Bluejay--</p>

<p>Exactly--that's why amtrak would not work returning to Rochester.</p>

<p>On the other hand, my wife or myself, waiting to pick up daughter at Worcester station at 8 pm--not a problem.</p>

<p>Short of flying, this isn't an easy thing to plan out.</p>

9

<p>For me, the cost was definitely one of the deciding factors- the two were so close to each other that the inconvenience of the train really wasn't worth the differential.
If the train ticket was $50 compared to the $250 that we pay for plane, then maybe.</p>

10

<p>Hopkinslax---</p>

<p>How easy was it for you to get to/from the airport? Did UR run shuttles, or did you rely on public transportation or rides from friends?</p>

<p>Thanks for your input.</p>

11

<p>My advanced plan for getting back and forth to school (6+ hour drive) was to find kids with a car headed my way and split the driving and gas with them ... pretty much worked whenever I needed a rdie my last 3 years. I had personal friends and used the "ride board" a the student union to find rides.</p>

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<p>The Student Activities Office had an airport shuttle for Thanksgiving break (since everybody leaves at the same time).
Otherwise taxis do just fine- the ride is just $10 and it takes maybe 10 minutes (probably even less)</p>

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<p>Chedva and MADad,
My older son is a rising junior at UR. His suite mate (a rising senior) this year is a Bostonian (Brighton?) and she relies on flying for her trips home for Thanksgiving and semester breaks. Her mother drives out to drop off and pick up at the start and end of year. There must be others living in the same area. If you'd like me to ask her about details, please pm me.</p>