anyone live in altadore?

[terminator]

Hey All,

Was wondering if anyone commutes from Altadore to Downtown? I'm thinking of purchasing property around 20th St and 50th Ave SW and was wondeirng how long public transit takes? I've checked google and they quote about 20-24min however we all own CT is not all that "efficient".

Any insight would be appreciated.

Thanks

[DoubleF]

My former neighbor lives in Killarney (bikes down on a regular basis) and swears that the bus takes 15-20 minutes to reach the front of his building on days he doesn't feel like riding (though its supposed to be about 25 minutes when I looked it up). Traffic downtown sucks, but it's actually quite consistent. If CT is quoting 20-24 min, I'd expect it to be pretty close and on a bad day 30 mins at most? Maybe more if we're talking a crazy detour due to construction, but in such a situation, hop off the bus and walk would probably be faster.

Other opinions from others in the area may be more reliable, but based on comments from someone I know in Killarney, I would say that 20-24 mins sounds around right. You're talking low speed roads in the inner city and not higher speed arteries like Crowchild, Deerfoot or Glenmore which has traffic speeds fluctuating crazily. A bad day is going 30 kmph vs 50 on those roads vs 20 kmph vs 80+ on the others.

[FlamesAllTheWay]

I live right around that area and 20 minutes sounds about right. You generally can use the 7 or 13 bus routes, or 107 during rush hour. 7 and 107 stay mostly on 14th street and actually go pretty quick. 13 goes though Mount Royal so no main roads but also no traffic so it's about the same I've found.

I don't take public transit that frequently from the area but it's been pretty good when I do use it.

[calgarywinning]

It's a nice area. You are really physically located in the inner-city. Looking at travel times are deceiving, because 5-7 km out of City isn't about travel time, but more so time of day, and number of lights. Biking can be the say time as a car, because you are stuck at lights. On the bus you can read a bit. I quite appreciate the CT system except for when it fails.

[calgarygeologist]

I lived just off 14th and 36 Ave. I only took the bus a few times but from there it was about 15 minutes on the 13. The 7 could be very slow some days especially when 14 street was backed up. Occasionally, the intersection at 38 and 14, part of route 13, is very slow especially if there is a delay down the hill around Elbow Drive. On those days it could easily add 5 to 10 minutes.

There is also a bus you can take that runs up and down Crowchild. I don't know the number but my buddy catches it at Flanders Ave and he says it takes about 15 minutes most days.

[terminator]

Awesome thanks guys.... so during rush hour.... 730am or 500pm I can get home in 25min ? I'd be happy with that.

[DuffMan]

I lived there in 4 different houses, and I can add, that if you ever stay dt too long, you can walk home. I've done it a few times, just stop at whatever bar is closest to 17th & 14th for a refreshment and then at 34th and 14th for a refreshment. Course, that was when it was just a pizza joint with a beer soaked floor.

[bizaro86]

Originally Posted by terminator

Hey All,

Was wondering if anyone commutes from Altadore to Downtown? I'm thinking of purchasing property around 20th St and 50th Ave SW and was wondeirng how long public transit takes? I've checked google and they quote about 20-24min however we all own CT is not all that "efficient".

Any insight would be appreciated.

Thanks

I would try it for yourself. You're looking at spending hundreds of thousands of dollars, so even though it sucks to commute to there, then commute downtown, it's probably worth the inconvenience (maybe only 1 or 2 days) to make sure it'll work for you.

[RatherDashing]

Originally Posted by fotze

I used to hop the bus at 26th. If you leave before 7 its just minutes. Getting home is a bitch because downtown is a s-show.

The fastest way back to altadore from downtown is definitely the 18. It goes straight down crowchild and makes use of the bus lane. If you catch it near the end of sixth ave it's probably under ten minutes to your stop.

The 7 is terrible coming back as it runs down 17th ave, so it gets jammed up with traffic and a bunch of weirdos. The 107 is okay but it catches a lot of traffic on 14th street. Not sure about the 13 as I rarely catch it. Altadore is a pretty great spot for transit though as so many bus lines run throug or nearby. Also as was said above, you can always bar hop your way home from downtown.

[terminator]

Originally Posted by bizaro86

I would try it for yourself. You're looking at spending hundreds of thousands of dollars, so even though it sucks to commute to there, then commute downtown, it's probably worth the inconvenience (maybe only 1 or 2 days) to make sure it'll work for you.

This, I'll give it a shot next week! Was thinking of doing it.

On a side note, how is Altadore as a community, the property I'm seriously considering is right next to Central Memorial HS.

[Canehdianman]

I went to Central Memorial High School. Back in my day it was a pretty good school, filled with enough smart French Immersion kids that the knuckle-dragger English-only kids were kept in line.

I've heard it's a little rougher around the edges now. Not sure I'd want to live right beside it.

[DoubleF]

A lot of inner city communities are gentrifying, so even if it's slightly rough around the edges now, I presume it will get better over the years?

[Peanut]

I used to live in North Glenmore Park, right around 20th street and 54th Ave. I would say the bus commute is closer to 40 minutes each way (depends where you are going downtown I guess. I was going to the east side around Center Street).

[Peanut]

Originally Posted by Canehdianman

I went to Central Memorial High School. Back in my day it was a pretty good school, filled with enough smart French Immersion kids that the knuckle-dragger English-only kids were kept in line.

I've heard it's a little rougher around the edges now. Not sure I'd want to live right beside it.

?? Maybe the high school itself is rough around the edges? The alternative high school is also right near there. However I would say the neighborhood is not rough around the edges at all. Just land value alone is $500k+. Super close to Mount Royal, Glenmore aquatics center, Glenmore athletic fields, Sandy Beach park and the pathway system to downtown and around the reservoir, a great dog park, tennis... It's a pretty awesome location IMO. Also really convenient to Marda Loop, which is nice for restaurants and groceries and hipster coffee. I'd still be there if it weren't for extenuating circumstances in my personal life.

[_Q_]

I live a few blocks north of there in Marda Loop. I can't comment on the bus commute as I drive to the NE for work. I will say, however that the area is awesome and you won't regret moving there.

[terminator]

Originally Posted by Peanut

?? Maybe the high school itself is rough around the edges? The alternative high school is also right near there. However I would say the neighborhood is not rough around the edges at all. Just land value alone is $500k+. Super close to Mount Royal, Glenmore aquatics center, Glenmore athletic fields, Sandy Beach park and the pathway system to downtown and around the reservoir, a great dog park, tennis... It's a pretty awesome location IMO. Also really convenient to Marda Loop, which is nice for restaurants and groceries and hipster coffee. I'd still be there if it weren't for extenuating circumstances in my personal life.

Thanks for the input.... what scares me about what you said is that the lot i'm looking at is ~800k. But a 40 min bus ride is too long if i'm looking at spending that kind of money.

[Peanut]

Originally Posted by terminator

Thanks for the input.... what scares me about what you said is that the lot i'm looking at is ~800k. But a 40 min bus ride is too long if i'm looking at spending that kind of money.

I'd try it one morning! I'm thinking door to my office desk was under an hour for sure, even in winter. July and August are faster when school is out and traffic isn't so bad.

Don't quote me on the lot price!! Haha. I'm just guesstimating based on what I sold my R1 lot for back in 2010. I just know it's an expensive area.

[calgarygeologist]

Originally Posted by terminator

This, I'll give it a shot next week! Was thinking of doing it.

On a side note, how is Altadore as a community, the property I'm seriously considering is right next to Central Memorial HS.

It is a great area. It will obviously improve over the years as the infill developments move south of 50th. It is a little rough around the edges between 50th and 54th though. My brother use to live on 54th, two blocks from the shopping plaza and he said it was a pretty decent area. There is lots of foot traffic in that area and also many renters.

I`ve wondered for many years who owned the corner lot at 50th and 19th because it has been vacant for a long time and would be a great piece of land for a good size infill.

The number 13 is quite quick with the slowest portion usually being along 8th ave going from the core to the beltline. Once it get past 12th Ave it is a very quick ride through Mount Royal to Altadore (again I`ve only taken it to 14th and 38 Ave.) The big storms in the winter can really screw up the commute though. There were a few bad storms were the buses couldn`t go up and down the hills (14th street and 10 street) but those are very rare occasions.

[Peanut]

Originally Posted by fotze

What bus did you take though? Any routes not on crowchild would suck balls.

I worked on 9th Avenue on the west end so it was like 4 bus stops and I was back off the bus.

Oh yah. I took the 7 I think? Or the 107? Maybe that was a poor choice... The stop was really close to my house though. It definitely didn't go up Crowchild.

[Frequitude]

Lived there for 5 years. Didn't love it because you have to drive everywhere. It literally feels like it's all infills. But I don't have a family yet so I'm looking more for a walking based community closer to downtown vs having somewhere for kids to play.

As far as the commute goes, its worth it to hike the few blocks to 16th Street and hop on the 13. It goes through Mount Royal where nobody uses it so it flies through. Gets backed up on 8th around the Safeway but its not that bad. Probably 20 minutes max. If you're going to drive avoid Crowchild and just cut through Mount Royal and head down 8th (sorry Mount Royalites...it's just so easy).

For heading anywhere else in town, Glenmore and Crowchild are money. You can literally get anywhere easily. The best way out to the mountains is Glenmore to highway 8 then cut across to the 1 (vs up Sarcee). To the NW its straight up Crowchild. To the SW it's Glenmore to 14th. To the NE/SE it's Glenmore to Deerfoot. You'll also find Deerfoot Meadows conveniently close for your big box shopping vs Westhills. Too many lights getting in and out of Westhills.