Cities With the Best Public Transportation
 

In a quest to take more car-free weekend getaways, I want to compile a list of U.S. cities that are easy to navigate by public transit, beginning at the airport.

Which cities qualify and why?

Portland, OR

Well, Portland should be high on your list. MAX train from the airport, streetcar through downtown connecting it to popular areas (Pearl District, NW Portland, Riverplace, new South Waterfront district with Aerial Tram), and good bus service, including "fareless square" buses downtown. See www.Trimet.org .

I have to say New York City. I think a car here is a hassle.

Seattle, San Francisco, and New York City. I always tell people that if they get a DUI, they should move to Key West, because you can walk (or ride a bicycle) everywhere.

All that has been said, adding Chicago and Wash, DC. I think Boston and Philadelphia also, though I haven't been to either.

washington, dc is great, especially if you fly into DCA (Reagan National Airport). It is served by public transport. The DC metro and bus systems are good--dependable, relatively clean, and not too expensive.

I've been to all of the following metroplexes (and lived in two of them) and consider all of them with sufficiently good mass transit that you could do quite well without a car:

New York
Washington
Chicago
Boston
Philadelphia
Bay Area

All of them have fairly reliable mass transit from their main airport to the city center.

About the SF Bay Area, it's very good in SF and Oakland. Getting better but not as good in the south bay, north bay and parts of inland east bay (Livermore, Pleasanton, Danville, etc.).

I live very comfortably in Philadelphia without a car :-) and I get around quite a lot. You can get a train right in from the airport and the Septa system of buses, el, subway, regional rail, and even trolleys works quite well. (Actually, much better than it used to, I think.)

Plus Philadelphia is a wonderful walking city!

St. Louis and Atlanta are easy to get from the airport to the main part of town. A little less convenient once you get there, but . . .

You can also get around Baltimore fairly easily.

New York. Between subway, local bus, express bus, commuter trains and ferries you can get all over the city and far into most of the suburbs. And most of it runs 24/7.

I always get around by foot/public transit for my chosen destinations. In the USA, I've lived in Baltimore w/o a car... not the best public transit in the country by far, but with a bit of patience doable; light rail does serve the airport from downtown and a combo of buses, water taxis, walking shoes and occasionally light rail or metro get you most anywhere you want to go.

New Orleans and Pittsburgh are the only cities not mentioned yet in the US that I had a lovely visit without a car... I arrived by train in one and bus in the other, so can't comment on airport-> downtown transit.

Portland, OR.

Seattle has good public transportation IF you live on Capitol Hill and your main destination is downtown. Otherwise, no.

Chicago. In terms of being able to see nearly every neighborhood in the city while easily using mass transit, it has to be Chicago.

I have to take issue with Portland. Yes, it is easy to get from the airport to downtown and around Portland proper, but if you really want to explore, you would need a car.

NYC and Chicago, on the other hand, really allow you to easily see the 50-mile radius using nothing but public transit.

Seattle.

You can take Metro bus all over the place (not just Capitol Hill and downtown, I disagree with the statement above). Yes, even in from the airport. It's right outside baggage claim, an express route to downtown.

We're bus-only still unfortunately - yet to see successful light rail, monorail, trains, etc. in place.

Plus we have a ferry system! Do we get bonus points for that?

A car ("Cah") is a total liability in Boston - absolutely useless. I grew up in inner city Boston and my family didn't even have a car until I was high school - few of my friends did. The subway/trolley/computer rail/bus/commuter boat system is second to none in the U.S. (it's the oldest subway system in the U.S., BTW). I can't think of any major city with an airport closer to downtown than in Boston - a very short hop by water taxi or subway from the core of downtown.

Now if they can just stop Cartoon Network from "advertising" around the city...

If you want to toss in a Canadian city, Toronto has great mass transit with a nice combination of buses, subways, and streetcars. The connection from the airport is the toughest, but even it is fairly convenient (bus to subway).

<<A car ("Cah") is a total liability in Boston - absolutely useless.>>

But apparently a "Polah Bayah" can be quite useful...According to a recent 'Non-Sequitur' storyline.

(To tie-in w/ the mention of "Cartoon Network")

A car is absolutely useless in Boston but be forewarned that public transportation shuts down early. Of course you could walk or take a cab. The fact that everything turns into pumpkins at midnight keeps Boston from having a great public system IMO.

I have travelled all over the world, and have lived in London, New York, San Francisco, Baltimore, and Philadelphia. I think that Washington, DC public transportation, especially the Metro, is the best in the US for effeciency, safety, and cleanliness.

The DC Metro is so easy to use, even a caveman could use it. :)

Far and away New York is #1. First, it's 24/7. I take subways at 2am, perfectly safe & convenient.

Second, coverage is incredible. With the exception of LGA, one can get anywhere in the city on a subway or bus.

San Francisco? Not even close. The buses run so far apart, the waits can be interminable. And is it 24/7?

D.C.? Coverage is horrible.

"D.C.? Coverage is horrible."

Absurd. You can get anywhere a tourist wants to go by subway or a convenient bus, except for Mt. Vernon or Dulles (and there is even a bus there).

It's not NYC, but DC is not the same kind of city. It isn't a 24hour city so you rarely have anywhere to go at 2a.m.
Unlike NYC, the subway stations are clean, easy to use, and logical.

No specific entrances depending on where you are going, no choosing between express and locals, signage that explains where every train is going, clean trains without panhandlers.

While I think the DC Metro is easy to use, I think the subway cars are not nearly as clean as the NYC subway cars. They should remove the carpeting and cloth seats from the Metro - every car I was in smelled like urine. I never find that in a NYC subway car.

NYC is king, though DC and SF are quite decent. I sense some mixing it up here, LOL.

I didn't realize the discussion was limited to "where tourists want to go." D.C.'s system may take tourists to the major attractions, but that's about it.

Horrible coverage -- sorry.

I believe one can have a pleasant visit to the Washington DC area, using public transit only. Certainly, Dupont Circle, the Smithsonian area museums (Capitol & Wash. Monument), Eastern Market, The Zoo, White House, Arlington National Cemetery, Old Town Alexandria (with a 20-minute walk) and National Cemetery are accessible. So unlike some, I don't believe the coverage is *horrible*.

However neither do I believe it is "anywhere a tourist wants to go". Even as a tourist... even in DC itself (even relatively close in!): what if one wants to go to Hane's Point? Jefferson Memorial? Roosevelt Island? I don't think I've ever even seen a bus stop near these. Great Falls? Not doable. I'm guessing the National Cathedral and Georgetown have bus stops somewhere around if you want to explore those, although I've not yet figured those out; the Lincoln Memorial & Vietnam Memorial according to the WMATA trip planner are 0.5 miles walk from a bus stop... not great either for two major attractions. So, my opinion, neither "great" nor "horrible"...

I must say, though, DC's metro in my experience has seemed quite clean. And I do appreciate that it takes me right from Union Station to my parents in Falls Church pretty quickly ;).

< SIGH >

Once again, my hometown appears unfairly omitted from the discussion. ATLANTA was the first and remains one of the few US cities in which a subway station is accessible FROM WITHIN THE AIRPORT. In other words, you can walk off a plane at Hartsfield-Jackson, go through baggage claim, pay $1.75 to board a train and ride 25 miles to the north suburbs without ever breaking a sweat (if you desire).

Perhaps you can ride a train to JFK, but why would you? It takes a lifetime! And as for the DC Metro, last I checked there was just ONE stop on the entire Mall (Smithsonian) between Foggy Bottom and the Capitol. How tourist friendly is that? The city's most popular neighborhoods - Georgetown and Adams-Morgan -- are far off the line, and for rather dubious reasons I've been told.

Newsboy, as a big fan of mass transit, I'd agree with you about Atlanta that it is nice to be able get from Hartsfield to downtown. The problem is that MARTA doesn't really go many places. I found it very inconvenient and rather lonely. Locals don't seem to use MARTA very much.

As for DC's Metro, there are at least four Metro stations adjacent to the Mall (Smithsonian, L'Enfant Plaza, Federal Triangle, or Archives/Navy Memorial).

Gosh, Newsboy, don't let the facts get in the way.

Look at a map of the DC Metro and you'll see all kinds of Mall access from a number of stops. You can leave National Airport and be on the Mall within minutes. Georgetown is very nicely served by the dedicated Circulator buses.

As for Atlanta, that city and its transport system hugely embarrassed the U.S. during the Olympics. Atlanta touted it. Foreign visitors used to functioning systems thought it was a joke. Heck, Athens kicked Atlanta's butt with its 100-year-old subway. I know, I was there for a month.

Don't know why newsboy's post had to pump up Atlanta by trying to dump on DC, which is FAR, FAR superior by any measure.

FYI, after living in Seattle and trying the bus, I can't see it. As mentioned, Capitol Hill to downtown and a few other trips are easy, but there's a definite difference between Seattle and places with light rail/subway. I've only used Portland's as a visitor rather than commuter but it's THE model for medium sized cities. Excellent.

One of the coolest uses for transit has to be the Salt Lake ski deal. Light rail from downtown to the ski resort buses in Sandy. You can get from DT to the best snow in the world in under an hour.

Just outside of the U.S., I love the options in Vancouver ...

As for DC's system only going to tourists destinations ... truly absurd. Perhaps Gekko can fill me in about the attractions I'm missing in Glenmont and Shady Grove or that hotspot known as Franconia? What about a weekend in Wheaton? The fabulous Cheverly strip?

I love both systems and appreciate the way the NYC system covers the most ground. But for cleanliness, DC's is infinitely better. The "urine" reports certainly don't fit with my daily experiences, in fact, I've had the fabulous opportunity to see a bum relieve himself on a platform not once, but twice. Both in NYC, where a lot of the stations are dark, dingy and oh-so-odiferous. More folks are eating and there's much more trash in the NYC system.

There is one fundamental difference between a city like DC and a city like Atlanta.

In DC, sure, the stop by might be blocks from where you need to go, but you know what? You can WALK? It is a walkable city. A walkable city + good mass transit = easy for residents or visitors to get around.

Atlanta is not walkable. Sure, there are some neighborhoods that you can do on foot, but you could get dropped off 300 yards from where you need to go, and it would be difficult or unsafe to walk the rest of the way.

Trying to imply that Altanta at all compares with DC on this measure is absurd.

The OP is looking for "more car free weekend getaways". So to me that is more tourist oriented, than focused towards a resident in that particular city.

Thanks so much, everyone. Yes, this list is tourist focused, but it's good to know which cities allow to get virtually anywhere on their public transit. I find buses harder to navigate and am more comfortable with rail, trolley or tram, but am trying to learn to use them all.

We did St. Louis last year and found the Metrolink OK. We sure ended up doing a lot of walking, which wasn't necessarily a bad thing.

Regarding Atlanta, how far north can you get on the rail from the airport? (I have a friend in Ackworth.)

Your friend lives in ACWORTH which is in far northern COBB COUNTY, which is not part of the MARTA system. However, Cobb County Transit runs express buses (quite luxurious) into Midtown ATL to connect with the MARTA line and there's starting to be talk of even more integration between the two, but don't bet on it anytime soon.

FYI: The North MARTA line terminates now at North Springs south of Roswell but eventually is supposed to extend all the way to Alpharetta and beyond. The Northeast MARTA line ends in Doraville at the border with Gwinnett County, which also has its own bus system that runs local and express downtown routes. Gwinnett is closing in on 1 million residents and will likely have to join MARTA eventually. On the southside, the Airport is the termination for the MARTA South line but C-Tran (Clayton County Transit) offers connections there to the southern suburbs. And the Georgia Regional Transit Authority has express commuter bus service to several far-flung suburbs to the south as well. Efforts to establish a commuter rail line south to Macon have apparently stalled over politics.

BY THE WAY: The initial query was about what cities are easily accessible by transit STARTING AT THE AIRPORT. Atlanta certainly fits that bill. But let me point out that no transit system in the USA or the world was built with TOURISTS in mind! They are an afterthought at best ... face it, transit exists to benefit the local citizens who use it day in and day out. And for those folks, it's greatly unfair to criticize a system just because it's not easy for a one-time or occasional visitor!

In Atlanta's case, MARTA was designed and built to be a hub-spoke system, to collect commuters from the suburbs and get them to employment centers. It was not INTENDED to be a destination system, but to relieve local traffic. Over the years, neighborhoods with rail stations have boomed with housing, retail, offices, etc. and that is helping turn Atlanta into a city that you truly can get around in and enjoy via transit.

AND FINALLY: MARTA was primiarly funded by fares and local taxes, a mechanism that almost assures limited expansion in the future due to the soaring costs to build heavy rail. The DC Metro was funded almost ENTIRELY by the FEDERAL GOVERNMENT. There's no comparison.

AND ONE MORE THING: Reality is that Atlanta successfully hosted the Centennial Olympic Games in the Summer of 1996, more than a decade ago. In that time, the state of Georgia and the City of Atlanta have experienced economic and population growth largely unprecedented in the history of the USA. Perhaps you were embarassed, but that hasn't stopped millions of people from moving here from all over the world to get their piece of this dream.

I make no apologies for my hometown, which isn't perfect but remains far and away one of the greatest cities in the world .... get over it.

Atlanta? "One of the greatest cities in the world"?

Is this the comedy forum? If so, where's the punchline to that joke?

:)

There are many things in Atlanta to praise, but one of the "World's greatest cities". You are really pushing it.

WORLD CLASS? YOU BET! Let me share some examples:

-- A depression-era mayor ignores critics and invests in a dirt racetrack because he believes in the future of air travel. Today, WILLIAM B. HARTSFIELD INTERNATIONAL is the largest and busiest airport in the world and the economic engine that drives the Southeast economy.
-- A crop-dusting company relocates from Monroe, La., to Atlanta in the 1930s and becomes the second-largest air carrier in the nation. This week, DELTA AIR LINES fends off a hostile takeover bid from rival U.S.Airways after thousands of local employees and metro residents come to its defense and vow to fight for the integrity of the hometown company.
-- A pharmacist develops a soda fountain drink and sells the formula to ASA CHANDLER who turns it into the most recognizable trademark in the world, COCA-COLA. The company's longtime president ROBERT W. WOODRUFF in turn invest hundreds of millions of dollars back into the local arts and cultural community and turns EMORY UNIVERSITY into one of the wealthiest institutions in the U.S.
-- A germ warfare lab established during WWII is expanded after the end of the conflict into the nation's leading research facility for identifying, treating and curing all the world's health-borne ills. The CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL is where scientists first identified and isolated the virus that causes AIDS. Thanks to the great wealth of scientists and doctors that work there, national agencies such as the American Cancer Society and CARE now call Atlanta home.
-- A goofy Southern dreamer who dared to uplink his low-watt local independent UHF TV station to satellite goes on to create a cable media empire that revolutionized the broadcasting business. Today, TED TURNER'S news and entertainment networks are beamed around the world daily from facilities still in Atlanta.
-- Two men open a home improvement warehouse store in 1979 in the Atlanta suburbs that 25 years later is the second-largest retailer in the world. When HOME DEPOT founders BERNIE MARCUS and ARTHUR BLANK retired, each vowed to give back a portin of their huge fortunes to the city that made them so successful. BLANK bought the Atlanta Falcons and vowed to make them winners for long-suffering fans; MARCUS invested $300 million of his own money to construct the world's largest aquarium in the heart of downtown Atlanta, an attraction that has literally transformed the city and prompted billions in new investment.
-- In the tense days following the assassination of MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. in April, 1968, violence and riots raged in cities across the nation. But in his hometown of Atlanta, the City Too Busy To Hate, a plea for calm and tolerance by a white, Jewish mayor was heeded by thousands of mourners who paid their respects without incident. When his widow, CORRETTA SCOTT KING, died last year, her funeral in suburban Atlanta marked the first time in history that all living U.S. presidents attended a non-state funeral.

World class? Damn right. A world class city isn't made by fine restaurants or hotels or attractions (though we've got all those), but by the people who've bravely built it into a place they proudly call home. And one thing about Atlanta and Geogia and the South that outsiders seem never to fully understand is how very passionate and proud we are about not just the place, but who we are.

As famed Atlanta Journal editor HENRY W. GRADY emplored to a group of industrialists and financiers in New York City in 1889, "We have built a brave a beautiful city."

Y'all come back now, ya hear?

To bad all those brilliant Atlantans
never learned anything about urban planning or controlling sprawl.

"To bad all those brilliant Atlantans
never learned anything about urban planning or controlling sprawl."

ROFL. That would require that they actually get out of their cars. I really wanted to like Atlanta, but found it soulless.