LA ATOTers:

[Mr. Pedantic]

I have a few questions. I'm going to LA next March for 5 weeks, and I'm deciding whether to get a car or not. Cause I'm under 25 it's going to cost somewhere in the vicinity of $1300 for the month, so I'm not really sure it's a good decision.

* In general, how reliable is the public transport in LA?
* What's a reasonable price to rent a place? I've found a lot of places around $800-900, I was wondering whether it was pretty good or whether cheaper options are available. This is kind of the thing I'm looking for.
* I've heard in passing from a few friends about things like Uber and Lyft, and I was wondering whether they were actually that useful and how they compare in terms of cost and convenience to public transport or driving your own car.

 

[JulesMaximus]

Public transport in Los Angeles is a joke. Not sure about Uber or Lyft... I lived in LA from 1990 to 1997, pretty familiar with the South Bay area, beach communities, Santa Monica, West LA, Hollywood, Valley, Pasadena and even some of the inland empire, plus my In-Laws live in the South Bay area and I have friends in Long Beach and Newport Beach so I drive up there from San Diego quite often.

Personally, I'd say you definitely need a car but I'm not hip on the latest public transportation in the Los Angeles area either. My wife did some commuting to downtown LA by train for some consulting work but that was over 10 years ago.

What do you want to see?

That link you provided isn't in the best area. Might be nice for a couple blocks but go a bit east and you're in east Los Angeles, south and you're in south central LA.

 

[Mr. Pedantic]

That link you provided isn't in the best area. Might be nice for a couple blocks but go a bit east and you're in east Los Angeles, south and you're in south central LA.

I don't know what this means...so I should get a place in North LA?

I'm there for an internship, not really for a holiday, though I'll probably have quite a bit of time here and there. I've been to Disneyland and Universal Studios before, but not much else.

 

[Fenixgoon]

why not rent a car? guy from work just rented for $50 for the weekend.

public transportation sucks.

rent is hit or miss depending on location. Los Angeles is a MASSIVE metropolitan area. search google maps for "los angeles county" to realize how stupidly big "los angeles" is

 

[Mr. Pedantic]

why not rent a car? guy from work just rented for $50 for the weekend.

public transportation sucks.

rent is hit or miss depending on location. Los Angeles is a MASSIVE metropolitan area. search google maps for "los angeles county" to realize how stupidly big "los angeles" is

Cause I get charged an extra $400 for my time in LA just because I'm under 25. Daylight robbery is what it is.

I'll probably end up doing it if there aren't any other good options, I just want to consider them before getting it and then finding out I could have done something else.

 

[JulesMaximus]

Cause I get charged an extra $400 for my time in LA just because I'm under 25. Daylight robbery is what it is.

I'll probably end up doing it if there aren't any other good options, I just want to consider them before getting it and then finding out I could have done something else.

I used to work in the car rental industry in Los Angeles. It's not robbery, it's that you're a much bigger risk. We wouldn't rent to or let anyone under 21 even drive our cars.

Maybe just rent as needed? Where do you need to go other than where you're interning?

 

[JulesMaximus]

I don't know what this means...so I should get a place in North LA?

I'm there for an internship, not really for a holiday, though I'll probably have quite a bit of time here and there. I've been to Disneyland and Universal Studios before, but not much else.

East L.A. is the Hispanic gang territory, South Central is black gang territory. There are areas around there I wouldn't go in the daytime let alone at night. You are right on the border of both. If you go out at night, only go north and west.

Still Pasadena has some nice areas and it borders East Los Angeles.

 

[Screech]

If where you intern and where you rent/live end up being close to either a single bug line or the metro, the public transit actually can work well enough, but the odds of this happening are.....small. There's also the question of if you want to be able to go somewhere on evenings/weekends/etc.

For places to rent: a single here in pasadena can run over $1000 depending on what you are looking for, but there are always cheaper (slightly more run down in slightly shadier neighborhoods...) places. As a grad student paying 550/month I am cheating using subsidized housing (and roommates of course), heh.

edit relevant linky
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_UpLtGEWoY

 

[Ns1]

Über is great. Red /yellow/expo/ blue lines are great. You'll still want a car.

 

[sciencewhiz]

You'll get better responses if you posted where the company is located. Los Angeles is a very big city, and the LA metro area is huge. The answer of whether you can get away without a car will depend on where the company is located.

Many employers have rental contracts with rental car companies that don't charge fees for under-25. See if you can rent with their contract.

 

[Mr. Pedantic]

If where you intern and where you rent/live end up being close to either a single bug line or the metro, the public transit actually can work well enough, but the odds of this happening are.....small. There's also the question of if you want to be able to go somewhere on evenings/weekends/etc.

For places to rent: a single here in pasadena can run over $1000 depending on what you are looking for, but there are always cheaper (slightly more run down in slightly shadier neighborhoods...) places. As a grad student paying 550/month I am cheating using subsidized housing (and roommates of course), heh.

edit relevant linky
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_UpLtGEWoY

I'm going to be interning at Harbor-UCLA. I didn't really want to stay too far North cause of traffic, but I'd like to avoid getting shot, burgled, or butt-raped if at all possible.

I think it might be easier if you suggest some areas that might be good to look for a place to stay. I think it's safe to say that I'll probably be getting a car.

 

[JulesMaximus]

I'm going to be interning at Harbor-UCLA. I didn't really want to stay too far North cause of traffic, but I'd like to avoid getting shot, burgled, or butt-raped if at all possible.

I think it might be easier if you suggest some areas that might be good to look for a place to stay. I think it's safe to say that I'll probably be getting a car.

Man, that's in Torrance which is a helluva drive from where you're staying. You'd do better to rent a place in Torrance or Lomita. Maybe even West Carson or North Torrance if you're on a budget. Driving down the 110 freeway from Downtown LA to Harbor-UCLA Medical Center will be a horrible commute if you are doing it during rush hour and public transportation would take you through some of the worst area of Los Angeles.

Is this the address of the place you're interning?

1000 W Carson St
Torrance, CA

My wife grew up in Torrance, went to Torrance High School, her Mom lives near Maple and Sepulveda. I know that area pretty well.

Anywhere between the 105 and the 10 freeway on either side of the 110 you will not want to live. I'd try to stay in Torrance personally. It's a nice area, large Asian population and fairly safe.

 

[Ns1]

You need to live in Torrance/Gardena

 

[Joe1987]

Rent someplace close and buy a bike, try craigslist for a room or something.

 

[Mr. Pedantic]

Man, that's in Torrance which is a helluva drive from where you're staying. You'd do better to rent a place in Torrance or Lomita. Maybe even West Carson or North Torrance if you're on a budget. Driving down the 110 freeway from Downtown LA to Harbor-UCLA Medical Center will be a horrible commute if you are doing it during rush hour and public transportation would take you through some of the worst area of Los Angeles.

Is this the address of the place you're interning?

1000 W Carson St
Torrance, CA

My wife grew up in Torrance, went to Torrance High School, her Mom lives near Maple and Sepulveda. I know that area pretty well.

Anywhere between the 105 and the 10 freeway on either side of the 110 you will not want to live. I'd try to stay in Torrance personally. It's a nice area, large Asian population and fairly safe.

Still haven't decided exactly where I'm going to be staying, but it'll probably be in Torrance, Carson, or Long Beach. Should probably sort out flights and stuff first.

When I'm in LA, should I just stay away from South-Central LA as a general principle, or is it reasonably safe to drive through etc?

Thanks so much for the help guys. Much appreciated.

 

[Ns1]

When I'm in LA, should I just stay away from South-Central LA as a general principle, or is it reasonably safe to drive through etc?

I find it reasonably safe to drive through the main arteries (Alameda, Vermont). I would not drive through random neighborhoods.

It's not as bad as Michigan ^_^

 

[Joe1987]

It's not as bad as people make it out to be.

Just more bums at the convenience stores, hope you like homeless people that could pass for zombies

 

[andylawcc]

Man, that's in Torrance which is a helluva drive from where you're staying. You'd do better to rent a place in Torrance or Lomita. Maybe even West Carson or North Torrance if you're on a budget. Driving down the 110 freeway from Downtown LA to Harbor-UCLA Medical Center will be a horrible commute if you are doing it during rush hour and public transportation would take you through some of the worst area of Los Angeles.

what he said.