Portland to Salem Commute (Tigard, Woodburn: home, employment, school)

[PB&J&A]

Thanks, EnricoV. You're absolutely correct that Amtrak would be great for my morning ride and would be my preference if I could make it work. It's the whole getting back thing that scares me. The unlimited ride is actually really reasonable, if only they were catering to my exact schedule...the world revolves around me, right?! Our plan is to purchase a home within a year, with our budget being around $350K. I would assume that knocks the Pearl out of the running. Also, do you know how often they change the Amtrak schedule or if there's plan to add another service? The schedule I'll have for work will be fairly inflexible regarding start/leave time.

[EnricoV]

Worse comes to worst, you can always use the bus Amtrak has. It looks like it goes about every hour.

I don't think that budget knocks you out of the Pearl, or downtown. You're just not going to get a huge loft, or anything. Here's a site that lists some properties, and there seem to be plenty under that amount:

[psichick]

I did find that weird about traffic. Going home takes longer. Haha. I get to work, on average, in 30 mins. Going home, though, it takes me an average of 50. I found that so strange. Most of my commutes either direction was the same unless I traveled more than 60 miles (in LA).

Sounds like everyone gave you some great places to check out during your two month training. Once you get here, if your partner can do it, maybe s/he can drive down to Salem one morning to get a feel for the drive.....for you.

And from what you want, you probably don't want the suburbs that I was talking about. Haha. I just figured it'd get you closer to Salem and less traffic.

Good luck. And don't go by today's traffic. I forgot it was a holiday. Took me about 25 mins to get to work. I'm about 20 mins early.....hence this post.

[NWGirl74]

Originally Posted by PB&J&A

Any specific recommendations for cities just South of Portland with easy access to both cities?

I would suggest Tigard. I have a friend who commutes to Salem from there and I know for awhile he was part of a carpool/ride share type of group. I don't know if he still is though.

[oldtintype]

I wouldn't take Amtrak. It's not like Caltrain--it runs on the same tracks that the regular freight trains run on so there are often delays. Out of the three times I've ridden Amtrak it's been delayed twice. I was going north though. Maybe south has a better track record.

[SETabor]

There are Portland - Salem commuter bus/vans. You may want to look into them as they could have perfect schedule and pickup places if there's enough variety. I know nothing about them except occasionally seeing one on the road.

[PB&J&A]

Wow, awesome responses. I appreciate everyone's effort here. I did find a website for van pools and also an encouraging article regarding 2014 Amtrak expansion for Portland/Salem commuters, suggesting this could continue to grow and become more efficient in the process. Beggars can't be choosers, so I'm sure I can make something work temporarily and if need be, we'll reevaluate our location. I'll definitely put my wife to work and let her make the drive from various locations to see how it goes. She is exponentially more patient than I am, though, so maybe she's not the best person to use!

[hamellr]

If you want some of the "Portland Ambiance," you should eventually look at Corvallis. It's a college town with all the amenities that means.

Salem isn't a bad place, it's just boring. I'd live on the west side of I-5 as the east side gets really backed up at all hours, especially towards the south end of town. The west side also has the nicer old neighborhoods with unique houses. I don't know where you work, but my ideal would be to live in West Salem, bike to work over the pedestrian bridge. That'd put you in downtown Salem and close to the Capitol.

[PB&J&A]

I'll be working right in downtown Salem. From what I've read (but certainly not experienced), many neighborhoods around there are quite walkable with some shops and restaurants. Still not sure if I'm ready to give up the dream of Portland. And I'm stubborn, so it very well may take a lot of time and frustration to figure out what will work

[Leisesturm]

Salem is no more (or less) boring than Portland is. There are people bored out of their minds that live in Portland, and there are people living happy, fulfilled, active and stimulating lives in Salem. A commute from Portland to Salem is doable, but it is not sustainable. Americans make all kinds of things work (for a time) and on the face of it we don't do too badly. Until you compare our metrics for misery, or happiness (or divorce) with other First World Countries. You don't commute 45 miles one way without the cost slowly creeping up until... I lived in NYC where an hours commute was quite acceptable. That wasn't the actual commute, that is how much time you allowed for the commute. Best case and you could make it in 30 minutes. 'Make it' meant arriving 15 to 30 minutes early. A commute that actually takes 60 minutes requires a 30 minute cushion on top of that. 90 minutes in, 60 minutes out. Best case.

When I lived in Salem I worked in Silverton. ~20 miles. That's really the limit for a practical daily commute by road. Sure there are people commuting from PDX to Salem. Every day? Are they in relationships? Planning for a family? Did they know ahead of time that they would be working in Salem? West Salem is a perfectly reasonable place in which to live and a commute downtown could take 15 minutes. If you need to live in Portland, get a job in Portland. It really is that simple.

H