University of California - Berkeley - TransportationCollege Prowler3.85

Transportation:

B+

(explain this grade)

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Transportation Grades:

Quick Stats

Best Ways to Get Around Town

  • AC Transit
  • Bicycle
  • Moped/Motorcycle
  • Walk

How to Get to the Airport

  • A cab ride to Oakland International costs $30-$40; to San Francisco International, $60-$70.
  • BART to Airports Using BART and transferring to a local bus is the cheapest and easiest option, if you don’t have a lot to carry. Oakland Airport by BART: catch the Richmond-Fremont line in the Fremont direction and get off at Coliseum. Take an Air-BART shuttle to the Oakland Airport (these leave every 15 minutes and cost $2). Buy your ticket in the station before boarding the bus (runs Monday–Saturday, 6 a.m.–11:50 p.m.; Sunday, 8:30 a.m.–11:50 p.m.). You can also take AC Transit bus #58 from the Coliseum BART to the airport (runs daily, every 20-30 minutes from 5 a.m.–12 a.m. and hourly, 12 a.m.–5 a.m.). SFO by BART: an extension has just been constructed to take you directly to SFO via BART. Get on the Daly City train at the Downtown Berkeley station, transfer at Balboa Park onto the SFO train. One-way costs about $6.
  • BayPorter Express shuttles pick you up at your doorstep and run to both OAK and SFO (www.bayporter.com; $19 one-way or $32 round-trip; (877) 467-1800).
  • City Express Shuttle serves Oakland and San Francisco and offer student discounts.
  • Luxor services the Oakland airport ($15 with student discount, 7 a.m.– 10 p.m.).
  • The easiest way to get to or from the Oakland and San Francisco (SFO) airports is to take a shuttle van, which is like a taxi, but much cheaper. Fares run from $15-$19. When taking a shuttle, be sure to call the company ahead of time to make a reservation and to confirm departure times.

College Prowler Take

Most students agree that Berkeley’s extensive public transportation network makes it easy to survive without a car. Every Cal student is given an AC transit bus pass, which makes it easy to get around the university area. While buses run much less frequently at night, most buses come every 15-30 minutes during the day. This pass also gives students access to the Transbay (F) line, which goes to Emeryville and San Francisco every hour. For those willing to spend the few dollars on a BART ticket, getting across the bay is even easier. BART is an 80-mile-per-hour rail system that connects many points in the Bay Area, and comes every seven to fifteen minutes. Unlike the F line, whose only San Francisco stop is the Greyhound station, BART can take students to many places in the city. This makes it easy for students to work part-time in the city or just to go away for a nice dinner.

Because Berkeley is on a hill, many students prefer walking to riding a bike. Also, high theft rates and dismount zones add to the hassle of using bikes. Many students prefer to walk, describing the uphill trek to class as something just short of a workout.

 

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x3infamy says:

University of California - Berkeley 2013

Biological and Biomedical Sciences

AC Transit Is Your Best Friend

A

From transporting you to the Downtown Berkeley Bart Station or to San Francisco, AC Transit is the most convenient way to get around the Bay. Your class pass helps you get onto any AC Transit bus. Mobility around the Bay Area is easy as they have a large number of buses running all the time

Transportation: March 09, 2010
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Anonymous says:

Public transportation has its...

Public transportation has its negatives, but I love it. The buses sometimes run late—or often in the case of the 51 line—but BART is so easy to take to baseball/basketball and into the city for shopping or whatever else you want to do in San Francisco, including the airport.

Transportation
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Anonymous says:

BART is a great way to get around...

BART is a great way to get around the Bay Area. It is fast, reliable, and has frequent departures during the day. The bus system in Berkeley is not as consistent as one might like it, but I would not recommend getting a car.

Transportation
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Anonymous says:

The bus schedules aren’t too...

The bus schedules aren’t too reliable, but I made good use of my class pass while I was at Cal. It got me everywhere I needed to go, like Safeway, the BART station, and, of course, class.

Transportation
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Anonymous says:

Public transportation is the only...

Public transportation is the only way to go at Berkeley. When I hear that a person is going to bring a car for the school year, my immediate reaction is “WHY!?”

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Interested in
Berkeley?

On-Campus Transportation

Drives students and faculty between UC Davis and UC Berkeley campuses for $5.50 each way

Berkeley-Davis Intercampus Bus

http://public-safety.berkeley.edu/p%26t/transit/index.html

UCB daytime and night safety shuttles

(510) 642-5149

Day shuttles run from 7:40 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Night shuttles run from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m.

Public Transportation

Runs 24 hours a day

Runs from 5 a.m. to 12 a.m.

Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART)

www.bart.gov

Taxi Cabs

A Cab
(510) 548-8000

Berkeley Yellow Cab
(510) 548-2561
(510) 548-2233

Grand Lake Taxi
(510) 540-6282

Khalsa Taxi SVC
(510) 649-8200

Local & Airport Cab Co.
(510) 841-8294

Yellow A-1
(510) 845-3333

Yellow AA Cab
(510) 486-0400

Greyhound

Provides commuters travel between SF and Gilroy, via San Jose

Caltrain

(800) 660-4287

Greyhound

2103 San Pablo Ave., Oakland

(510) 834-3213

Amtrak

(Un-staffed) Amtrak Station

3rd St. and University Ave., Berkeley

(800) USA-RAIL

Airport

About a 20-minute drive - 1 hour BART/bus ride from Berkeley.

Oakland International Airport (OAK)

(510) 563-3300

www.oaklandairport.com

About a 45-minute drive, 1 hour, 40-minute BART/bus ride from Berkeley.

San Francisco International Airport (SFO)

(650) 821-8211

www.sfoairport.com

Car Rentals

Avis
(510) 548-7363
(800) 831-2847
www.avis.com

Budget
(510) 486-0806
(800) 527-0700
www.budget.com

City Carshare
(415) 995-8588
www.citycarshare.org

Enterprise
(510) 526-3900
(800) 736-8222
www.enterprise.com

Hertz
(510) 562-7888
(800) 654-3131
www.hertz.com

National
(510) 549-1580
(800) 227-7368
www.nationalcar.com

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