<p>My Daughter and I want to visit Umass and some of the colleges in Boston on the same trip.
I am nervous about driving in Boston.
Any thoughts? We have discussed flying into Logan and taking some kind of mass transit to Amherst for the day. </p>
<p>Thanks</p>
<p>I’m not sure you can get to UMass Amherst and back in one day using public transit. Driving out there would be pretty simple - it isn’t hard to get out from Logan (although I would recommend avoiding rush hour if you are nervous about it. )
However, I would recommend public transport (MBTA - the subway is called “the T”) within the city and Cambridge. Harvard , BU, BC and MIT all have their own stops. Tufts is close to a T stop as well. Brandeis is on the ‘purple line’ which is the commuter rail.</p>
<p>So you think I could drive from Logan to Amherst and not get into really crazy traffic?
(if I avoided rush hour)
I have never been to Boston -but have read that traffic is a bear there.</p>
<p>Have you driven in other major cities? Yeah, they are a little crazy in Boston, but honestly it’s manageable. It’s not like a cab ride I had in Egypt where I seriously saw my life flashing before my eyes! You’re on highways. It’s like any other city.</p>
<p>Here is another option for your consideration:
<p>Bostonians can provide more detail, but that’s just an alternate thought.</p>
<p>I wouldn’t freak out about Boston driving, though.</p>
<p>If you’re going from Logan to Amherst it’s basically Rt. 90 ( the Mass Pike West, outbound) the whole way. Rt. 90 starts right from Logan. It’s about 2 hours out to the Amherst area, would recommend that you check the web sites of the colleges to get specific directions coming from the Boston area. Like many other major cities, rush hour starts around 3 and ends around 7. For morning, inbound(meaning the Boston metro area), it’s heavy about 6 to 9.</p>
<p>It takes a little over 3 hours to go between Boston and Amherst by bus ([Peter</a> Pan Bus](<a href=“http://www.peterpanbus.com%5DPeter”>http://www.peterpanbus.com)). You could save about an hour each way going by car. If it were me, I’d rent a car to have the flexibility to get between the various Boston-area colleges and then head over to UMass.</p>
<p>It is true that driving in Boston is no fun, but it is pretty straightforward to go to Amherst from Logan, and you avoid downtown streets, thanks to the ‘Big Dig’ project. As nemom indicates, it also might be smart to park your car at a ‘T’ parking lot and hit some colleges by train.</p>
<p>Thanks everyone.
I am feeling better about the driving. I am off to do some research. I will probably do some kind of combo of both rental car and public transportation the the city.</p>
<p>Thanks for the Link Alf</p>
<p>You could fly into Manchester, NH, drive south on Route 3 to 495, 495 to Mass Pike (90) and then 90 West to Springfield and 91 (I think) to Amherst. Son was there last summer for an internship and my niece is at Amherst so I know the drive. Certain times of the day the traffic on the Pike can be annoying.</p>
<p>You can easily take the Peter Pan bus from Boston/South Station to Amherst (you have to change buses at the Springfield station, but that is also easy) or vice versa. You probably couldn’t do it in one day however, just because of the bus schedules. That’s a fine option if you want to just be in Amherst the town center, and you can find an affordable place to spend the night there. If you are deadset on not driving, that’s your best bet. </p>
<p>HOWEVER, if you’re thinking you want to see Northampton or any of the beautiful, surrounding areas, a car is easier (you can take a public bus between Northampton and Amherst of course, but it takes longer, and again, it only goes from town center to town center). A car is also a much more pleasant and faster way to get between Boston and Amherst than the bus (which it says is 3 hours, but with traffic and changing at Springfield, it’s always been more like 4 for me). </p>
<p>As others have said, the best thing would probably be to fly to the Hartford airport, rent a car, and then drive to Amherst, do what you want to do in that area, then drive to Boston (it’s a very, very easy drive. Straight shot on the Mass Pike). Then, if you want to fly home from Boston, dump the car there. OR if you want to fly home from Hartford, park your car at one of the outlying T stations that allows overnight parking (Alewife is a good example). Then just get around by T, and when you’re ready, take the T back to your car and drive back to Hartford.</p>
<p>Frankly I found traffic in Cambridge a few weeks ago FAR more frustrating than Boston per se! That was sit-and-move-ten-feet type of traffic, and it was the middle of the day. </p>
<p>Major cities have traffic. That’s part and parcel of a major city.</p>
<p>Actually, I think driving around Boston is lots of fun! Don’t make eye contact in rotaries, or people will know you’re a rookie and they’ll hang you out to dry.</p>
<p>I can handle a little traffic
I think I am more worried about confusing one way streets, or being unable to find a place to park a car- things like that.
Thanks everyone</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>And don’t signal before changing lanes. Otherwise your opponent will speed up so you can’t get ahead of them. Signal only after you’ve pulled over far enough that it’s too late for them to speed up so that they know you’ve changed lanes and there is nothing they can do about it. Never tip your hand!</p>
<p>Typical Boston driving is making a left turn from the right lane or the other way around. The one-way streets can be frustrating and, yes, parking can be tough. I have my usual places to look for off-street parking. We usually only go into Boston on Sundays - don’t have to pay the meter and traffic is usually a little less heavy.</p>
<p>On the Mass Pike - you go up and down through mountains (or very big hills). It can be a little different if you’re not used to that kind of driving. There is a short-cut off the Mass Pike to UMass - we’ve always taken the long route on the highway.</p>
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<p>LOL, “your opponent” … driving to win, I love it!</p>
<p>I live in Western Mass. I recommend bringing a GPS with you to use as you drive. You can program in the various colleges you hope to visit, and the GPS will make you feel like you have driven here all your life. We did so when we went to see the Boston area schools, because I hate driving in Boston and didn’t know where most of the schools were. We figured out a route and order to our college visits using yahoo, etc, and then put the addresses in order into the GPS. Worked like a charm. Even little slight problems, like traffic, etc, were easier to handle, since we knew we couldn’t get “lost” with the GPS to guide us!</p>
<p>Thanks everyone!</p>
<p>Your opponent - I love it!</p>
<p>Take a peek at this book:
[Amazon.com:</a> The Boston Driver’s Handbook: Wild in the Streets–The Almost Post Big Dig Edition (9780306813269): Ira Gershkoff, Richard Trachtman: Books](<a href=“http://www.amazon.com/Boston-Drivers-Handbook-Streets---Almost/dp/0306813262/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1304729815&sr=1-1#_]Amazon.com:”>http://www.amazon.com/Boston-Drivers-Handbook-Streets---Almost/dp/0306813262/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1304729815&sr=1-1#_)
You can click on and view a few pages.</p>
<p>Tom -do you think they would let me rent a 1960 Ford Falcon at the airport? ( that is what the book recommends)</p>