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That hour and a half is on a good day. Those with children should also be aware of the weather in PA. What's your plan for the many, many days school is cancelled or starts on a 2 hour delay all winter long? Winter there starting in November and ending in late March most years. My sister couldn't believe how often her kids were home the first winter they spend out there. My coworker worked in NYC and lived near Stroudsburg and saw her kids for an hour or 2 at night and they were asleep when she left in the morning. She just started a new job in PA. It isn't like moving to another neighborhood in NYC. Make sure it the state of PA in general and the Stroudsburg area in particular that you like. Moving there just because you can get house for less is a huge mistake.
It probably more like 2:15 on average. If you have a job where you can work at home and commute 1-2 day a week its bearable, but for you and the wife to both hop on a bus its 4.5X2=9work hrs a day.
Its literally like working a 3rd job between the two of you. Get a second job at night or weekends. You will be better off and have more time with you kids.
Take a ride on I80 some day during rush hour you will make up your mind quick.
Those days of buying a house for half the price,and half the commute from Conn. and LI. are about over.
You are moving into an area where Brand New schools are obsolete because of the migration from NYC.
There are very few natives left in the area because they were taxed out of own to pay for the infrastructure that was needed to accommodate.
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Having a train service that goes directly to NYC is certainly a benefit because it provides another option for transportation, but don't expect it to be the end all be all solution you are making it out to be. Before I loved to East Stroudsburg, I lived in an apartment in Hackettstown, NJ. I lived 45 miles from where I worked, and I was taking the train for the majority of the time I lived there.
The train ride to Newark, NJ took about 1 hour and 40 minutes, but could be a bit more if I took an earlier train. I would have to be at the train station at 6:05 AM and would arrive in Newark around 8:35 AM which would make me a bit early for work. If I wanted to take an earlier train, I'd have to arrive over an hour earlier at the train station, which was a killer.
What really sucked about about the service was that my worked used to end around 6 PM, but the next train would not leave until 7:15 PM. So basically I would get some extra work done before I headed out to get the train. When I had to close for work which meant leaving around 7:30 PM, I would have to wait for the 9:15 PM train ride. To make matters worse, because there were more stops on the way home, it would take upwards of 1 hour and 50 minutes for the train ride to get home.
There were frequent delays, and many times there were delays that lasted a couple of hours which meant they would take all of the folks who were waiting for the 7:15 PM train, and the folks who arrived for the 9:15 train, and cram them on the same ride like cattle (they might have a few extra cars on the train so it wouldn't be SO bad). There were a couple of times, due to delays, that I was late for work. On two occasions I drove to the train station only to find the train was inoperable, and I had to drive to work. What was annoying about that was it would take a half hour or so of sitting on the train and waiting before they determined they would have to abort the train ride. At that point I would find myself rushing to work to get there on time. To make matters worse, because I was using a monthly pass, there was no option to get any reimbursement for this lack of service.
One time I took the wrong train because the system the electronic system failed to tell passengers that my train was delayed, so when the system announced the next train was my train, it actually wasn't. I got on the train and found myself waiting and didn't hear that one of the stops was the LAST stop on the train ride (I was listening to an audio book). None of the conductors saw myself and another passenger who made the same mistake I did, and we found ourselves temporarily stranded in the train yard. When the conductor found us, he was not exactly sympathetic. Eventually the train was placed back into service in the opposite direction and I had to get off at Monclair, NJ and wait for the 11:15 PM train to take me home. I arrived home at 1:30 AM in the morning, and had I missed that train I would have been completely stranded.
The bottom line is this. Even when things ran well, I would have to be AT the train station at 6:05 AM or earlier. If I ran even a little late, I would miss the ride and be forced to drive into work. Now that I live in East Stroudsburg, I live exactly 21 miles further then I did when I was in Hackettstown, and yet the normal time I leave my house is around 6:30 AM, and sometimes as late as 7 AM (which is pushing it). If I wanted to get into work an hour or so early, I leave at 6 AM.
It takes me less time to get TO work, and SIGNIFICANTLY less time to get home in East Stroudsburg then it did taking the train from Hackettstown. By driving to work while living 21 miles further from it, I actually can spend about 1 to 1 and a half hours more time with my family. It's unfortunate to point this out, and I wish things were different, but there's the scoop. That's one of the reasons why moving to East Stroudsburg wasn't such a hard decision.
With that said, I'll be the first to admit there's a DISADVANTAGE as well. Let's say train service to NYC does take place. That would mean there would also be train service to Newark which would allow me the OPTION of taking mass transit to work instead of depending on a car. The problem with driving to work is that I can't work while driving.
I have had such an increase in workload that I find myself working longer hours. Besides, so many employees all over the country are doing the same so they can keep their job. Transportation to and from Newark would cost more then taking a car, and it would take about 2.5 hours to and from. But that would be 2.5 hours I could spend working. I wouldn't be bothered by co-workers during that time, so this is the research and documentation I always need to get done, but never seem to get done on time because of constant meetings and discussions.
I believe in mass transit. I believe this nation needs to become less dependent on fuel. It would allow me the opportunity to live 66 miles from work, and take a 132 mile round trip and still use LESS gas then somebody who takes a 20 hour round drop to work. That's factoring the assumption that I'd have to take a 4 mile around drop to and from the train station.
I would also have to assume that such service would be far more comprehensive then it currently is from Hackettstown. There's a huge demand for this type of commuting in East Stroudsburg, so I would imagine service would have to run at least every hour. No more waiting 2 hours for the next train to arrive just because I worked until after 7 PM. Since I'd be working on the train, it would mean less hours in the office, and the work I would get completed would be the administrative/research I need to get done anyway. I could spend more time in meetings, more time with my peers and management, and then get leave work "early" and basically complete all of the other work while I ride home.
Sorry for the long post, but there's the full scoop on taking the train. It's an option, but one that has it's advantages and disadvantages.
If you have your mind made up to move to Stroudsburg...proximity to Rte 80 would be key. There are many good deals to be had out there at this time. Try contacting some local builders & or realtors. LTS has been at it a long time & I am sure that they have inventory to sell. Try www.roaringcreekbuilders.com as well. For a local realtor, try the The Stroud Agency on 9th Street, I have heard good things about them. Goof Luck!! You may contact me directly for additional help.
Take a ride on I80 some day during rush hour you will make up your mind quick.
Those days of buying a house for half the price,and half the commute from Conn. and LI. are about over.
You are moving into an area where Brand New schools are obsolete because of the migration from NYC.
There are very few natives left in the area because they were taxed out of own to pay for the infrastructure that was needed to accommodate.
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I take the commute into the city 5 days a week at rush hour and one day with no rush hour. The only place it slows down is at the 287 south interchange. Just stay in the left lane to avoid the slow down. Oldbluesguy, when is the last time that you pulled your head out of the sand? Prices for new and used hames have been turned back. People are still and will get new and used houses for far less that in New York and New Jersey. New schools, a great education, families invloved with their kids and communities and by the way my kids are also in the local public schools the class sizes is only 17 to 19 kids per class, I quess you can call that obsolete. When I moved here in 1968 there was about 47,000 people today there is about 164,000 people. People have not left except for the ones that always wanted to retire to Florida or other areas. People I went to school with still reside in the area, their kids are raising their families here. Just sounds like you don't want more people to move here. Unfortunately you can not stop progress. Embrace the change or move to Florida.
I take the commute into the city 5 days a week at rush hour and one day with no rush hour. The only place it slows down is at the 287 south interchange. Just stay in the left lane to avoid the slow down. Oldbluesguy, when is the last time that you pulled your head out of the sand? Prices for new and used hames have been turned back. People are still and will get new and used houses for far less that in New York and New Jersey. New schools, a great education, families invloved with their kids and communities and by the way my kids are also in the local public schools the class sizes is only 17 to 19 kids per class, I quess you can call that obsolete. When I moved here in 1968 there was about 47,000 people today there is about 164,000 people. People have not left except for the ones that always wanted to retire to Florida or other areas. People I went to school with still reside in the area, their kids are raising their families here. Just sounds like you don't want more people to move here. Unfortunately you can not stop progress. Embrace the change or move to Florida.
This is pretty much correct. I find slow downs to be around exits 35 to 42 on most days, so you will find it can be a slow but steady jam through that area. Staying in the left lane is the best way to go, but be prepared to do some ridiculous speed variations--going 75 miles per hour for 3 miles and then hitting the brakes to a complete stop and then going 40 miles for a mile, etc.
I take the commute into the city 5 days a week at rush hour and one day with no rush hour. The only place it slows down is at the 287 south interchange. Just stay in the left lane to avoid the slow down. Oldbluesguy, when is the last time that you pulled your head out of the sand? Prices for new and used hames have been turned back. People are still and will get new and used houses for far less that in New York and New Jersey. New schools, a great education, families invloved with their kids and communities and by the way my kids are also in the local public schools the class sizes is only 17 to 19 kids per class, I quess you can call that obsolete. When I moved here in 1968 there was about 47,000 people today there is about 164,000 people. People have not left except for the ones that always wanted to retire to Florida or other areas. People I went to school with still reside in the area, their kids are raising their families here. Just sounds like you don't want more people to move here. Unfortunately you can not stop progress. Embrace the change or move to Florida.
I know personally of the over crowding. My grandkids went thru it a few years ago in a brand new school.
Plus.
The Stroudsburg district is currently debating whether or not to RENOVATE the current high school building for 69 million dollars [2004 est.], or build a school at a new site. Construction plans are being explored due to the overwhelming number of new students arriving each year….{Gee I wonder if that will make the taxes go up?}
The population of the Pocono’s area has greatly increased in recent times. There was a time when there was only one high school in a town located in the Pocono’s, but with so many new students, two had to be built. Now, there is talk of building a third, as things are beginning to overcrowd again. They expect over 2000 students to pass thru in ten years.
{Feel fortunate that your kids are in a small class because that’s not the case in general]
State Rep. Mario Scavello, a Pocono commuter for several years, reports that over 20,000 people leave Monroe County to work in other counties daily. Thomas Wilson a realtor says these long commutes definitely cut quality of fife, and he and other officials are looking for ways to keep workers home by attracting new businesses.
Scavello says property taxes have risen about 20 percent in the last five years in Monroe County, and home owners are taxed at about four times the 1980 rate.
"Seniors who were paying $600 in 1982 are paying $5,000 today," Scavello notes.
How many of those Seniors do you think Packed up and headed for Fla, and how many packed up to get away from the taxes?
It effected my family enough to move out.
This is old data from local newspapers, school district ,and real estate people. Not from Some old guy with his head in the sand who also lived there in the 60,s When Ireland owned Pocono Manor, and Art Wall Roamed the golf course.......{INPASINCETHE40s]
I can't understand why it would cost $69 to renovate let along BUILD a new school. Why should a school building cost so much money?
To be blunt they should be able to build a new school that holds 2,000 students for 1/4th or even 1/8th the cost. Why aren't the tax payers questioning these figures and challenging them? Why aren't we finding out the name of the company that is building the school, and requiring the company to provide a list of all of the donations they have provided, and who they provided them to?
They renovated my high school which essentially meant gutting it, and it cost $2. This was in 1993. 13 years later it costs 23 times the cost?
Seriously, let's put this into perspective. It costs as much to RENOVATE a high school as to purchase 3 F-16 fighter jets? Do we honestly BELIEVE this?
Better think twice before you move out to the Poconos. The roads are narrow, twisting, unlighted and dangerous. The schools are scattered by miles and miles and the kids huddle together in the freezing morning cold waiting for the bus. You'll have to landscape that big property of yours at a cost of about $15,000 on average. You'll need to put in a driveway cause what is supplied will wash out with the first substantial rainfall, avaerage cost of black top drive $6,000. The list goes on and on, trust me it's a nightmare, and not at all like the pictures in the Daily News. The builders are on the balls of their a-- right now because of the recession and are making promises they can't keep.
The crime rate in Monroe County is very high and there is always a shooting in the news. (See Pocono News online). To top it all off, school taxes are sky high (because state doesn't contribute as is done in most other states.) The average school tax on those houses advertised in the Daily News is about $4,800 and that's not counting the county tax!
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