If you can find a daily schedule that works for you, an Amtrak monthly pass is actually less expensive than an MBTA commuter rail pass. Taking Amtrak instead of commuter rail means that there are only 2 stops between Providence and South Station instead of about a dozen, and the train is far more comfortable. You get power outlets, a cafe car, and save about 25 minutes each way.

As far as getting to the station, if you live in walking distance to the R-Line, you can reliably get to the station. It's the closest thing Providence has to a rapid transit line, and it runs every 10 minutes or so and goes directly to the train station.

https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/17171883-a-history-of-the-providence-river

I'm actually reading a book right now that mentions the reason!

https://i.imgur.com/JD3pUbT.png

I respectfully disagree.. 95 is a huge gash through the center of the city. We should do everything we can to undo the damage.

I-95, combined with the dreary wasteland that is Cathedral Square today completely killed one of the most active parts of the city.

https://i.redd.it/fjqd58yj00v91.png

Cross the river and check out Taunton Ave Bakery in East Providence. Everything they make is great.

Not to mention that those "service roads" are treated like highways by most drivers

Take a walk on a windy day over any one of those bridges. Even in nice weather they are loud and dirty. Cars are extremely loud. Not to mention the crossings, especially on Broadway and Atwells, that prioritize cars over pedestrians so that often times I'm waiting at the corner of one of the overpasses for an entire light cycle or more with cars whizzing by beside and below me and no inkling of safety or comfort.

Prices automatically increase based on how full the train is. When you search for trains it shows how sold it is at that point. When it gets over 50%, it ramps up a lot. If you can buy at least 2 or 3 weeks ahead of traveling, you can get NE Regional round trip to NYC for under $60

https://i.redd.it/b7fgbe6klux81.jpg

I've said for years that it would be relatively easy to put a cap over 95 between Point Street and Atwells. Imagine being able to walk from downtown to Broadway or Westminster or Atwells without having to cross a hostile, extremely ugly highway overpass.

If you sign up for their text club, they frequently have $20 specials too

I've started going to Zahara instead. It's never crowded, and their listed prices include tax which I like.

There's a shop called Aura on Lonsdale Ave on the CF/Lincoln line that has signs up saying they're starting rec sales on Dec 1

My grandfather said a cabinet has ice cream in it, a milkshake is just milk and syrup. He said a lot of things though

Castle Hill Inn in Newport does a prix fixe Thanksgiving menu and it's one of the most scenic restaurants in the state.

In Providence, Red Stripe serves Thanksgiving dinner as well.

Yea that's all I'm saying. It sucks that there's no other legitimate option for living your life outside of your neighborhood without a car. It's an extra tax that people don't even consider

or.. we could invest in Transit. With the density of the Providence metro area, it's embarrassing how car-dependent we are.

> why live in a walkable neighborhood if parking and driving is their priority

Because they are blind to the fact that their pretty and accessible neighborhood is that way because it wasn't designed for cars

Nobody ignored the criticism, but the loss of parking is not a valid criticism.

It's proven time and time again the bike lanes are good for business despite the pearl clutching fears of drivers and business owners.

https://www.cambridgebikesafety.org/2021/09/22/bike-lanes-and-local-business-the-economic-impact/

The thing most fail to realize is that accommodating bikes converts some drivers into cyclists, making less demand for parking in the first place.

And before you say "what about the weather" that link up there has numbers from Toronto, Cambridge, and NYC

What is the differing opinion though? That people shouldn't be able to use bikes for non-recreational purposes? Not trying to be a jerk but it seems like you're the one pushing the pro-car agenda with little to back it up except anger.

I love taking my kid to school on my bike instead of the car. Riding to the grocery store is refreshing instead of infuriating. Having protected paths to do those things on makes my life so much better. Everything for the past 100 or so years has been built around cars. Building infrastructure for other modes is not an attack on cars.

yea the 60 was one of the routes that they recently increased service on, including the 30-minute weekend headways. They alternate down East/West Main Roads, so there's one on either side of the island every hour. Now you can reliably take RIPTA to Polo!

> That's why Chicago's road grid is so organized compared to Boston or providence. The roads were built afterwards.

Ah yes that's why driving in Chicago is notoriously pleasant and trouble free

What in particular is your gripe with bikes? I don't own a car and my bike is my primary mode of transport. I can't understand how providing alternatives to driving is a bad thing.

Because they're not a priority. Cars make cities a hostile place to exist for the people that live there. You want a place made for cars? Foxboro is right up the road with Trader Joe's and all the acres of parking you could hope for.

Providence was laid out long before cars, and cars have damaged the fabric of the city irrevocably, most notably Routes 95 & 10. A city of Providence's size should have a robust, reliable, frequent transit network. Take a look at Bilbao in Spain for a similarly sized metro area that does it right (https://www.bizkaiatalent.eus/en/pais-vasco-te-espera/conocenos/transporte-publico-estado/). Decades of car-first thinking have to be reversed and I for one am encouraged with what Providence is doing for the most part.

Some people are always going to drive, and that's fine. But there are plenty of other people who would walk or bike if they felt safe enough, or would take transit if it actually provided usable service.

I agree with your points, but the 35, 60, and 78 all go on South Water/South Main right by the new store. 92 runs E-W and the other 3 go N-S