San Diego residents...
 

Say you were to have a job at UCSD. You wanted to live nearby, say within a 25 minute drive (or hour ride), be able to get to a grocery store pretty easy, and MOST importantly be able to get off of work and ride a 30-40 mile loop from your apartment with few red lights so as to be able to train. Where would you suggest living?

La Jolla? (is this too boring for a single person)
Hillcrest? (too many traffic stops)
elsewhere?

Thank you very much!

I'm not sure what constitutes "boring" in your mind, but I would probably live next to the university, in condos off Gilman or Nobel. There is a north-south bike-friendly route along I-5, and, if you head north, there is a bike path the entire length of route 56.

Hillcrest or Encinitas might be more "fun" in some sense, but in either case you're looking at a 1/2 hour drive during rush hour.

Have you seen these maps? http://www.icommutesd.com/Bike/BikeMap.aspx

Encinitas and other coastal cities offer the option of taking the Coaster train to Sorrento Valley and a shuttlebus to UCSD. Both the Coaster and the shuttles have racks for bikes. I took the Coaster for 14 years and loved it, especially since my employers offered tax credits for taking public transportation.

You could ride a loop up and down 101 without a whole lot of traffic signals.

I live on my boat on Harbor Island. Yesterday I rode from the boat to La Jolla/UCSD via Morena Dr and Rose Canyon and it was 15 miles - (then on to Scripps Ranch, Kerney Mesa, and Ocean Beach 51 miles of beautiful riding).

Liberty Station (groceries, restaurants, bars) and Shelter Island (bars) are only 2 miles away on bike path and Little Italy is 2 miles the other direction on the bike path (all kinds of fun stuff).

I ride almost every day from Harbor Island and can describe dozens of great riding routes with few lights - range from 20 miles to 65 miles.

Ocean Beach is right on the San Diego River bike path - from the path you take Morena/Rose Canyon directly to UCSD with almost no lights. Or, you can go thru Mission Beach, Pacific Beach, La Jolla and have lots of lights but interesting things to see. Ocean Beach is a pretty dynamic locale with something going on every minute.

This is my 2nd winter in San Diego and I am also looking for the right place to live and bicycle. PM me if you want some other ideas.

Another vote for OB (Ocean Beach) or PB (Pacific Beach.)
Or if great riding with minimal stoplights is more of a priority, you could take a look at Solana Beach, which is just North on PCH. It's still fairly fun and you're closer to the great roads in Rancho Santa Fe, which are a gateway to even greater roads to the east.
http://www.calamarichris.com/images/...ardiffsign.jpg

It comes down to what your are willing to spend on housing. All the suggestions are good, I would say go to North County because i'm biased, but I beleive it is generally more expensive than say east to University City, West Claremont or south into PB and OB.

Freeway car commuting anywhere/any direction in and around the Golden Triangle these days is an absolute nightmare but there are decent bike options getting to UCSD by bike from South, East, or North.

OT,

Chris did you see that the longtime plans to develop a hotel on that lot near the Cardiff sign finally got shot down. The latest is to just make a little park/extension of the San Elijo Lagoon. I think the conservancy group is in the process of purchasing the lot.

Frankly, I would just find a place near UCSD (UTC, Golden Triangle area). PB is fun however it's a pain in the ass to get in and get out of if you have a car (not so much with a bike). There are a lot of off campus housing options in the UTC/GTA area alone and the UCSD shuttle buses in the area are quick and stops plentiful.

Ian in SD

That is beautiful news! Thanks Dad, I wasn't aware.
I wish Carlsbad were more like you DelMartians. Sometimes I feel like I live in South Orangutan County: more buildings, more concrete, more parking lots, more ugliness.

Parking in UCSD is also a pain in the ass (unless you qualify for class A parking permit, which is available for professors, managers and some postdocs). Or at least it used to be 5 years ago. I would try to live someplace where I could ride a bike or a shuttle to work every day.

Here's the scoop on ucsd having worked there for 3 years. Traffic is bad on the 5 going north from the 52 to la jolla village dr in the morning. At night, it's especially bad going south from genesse to balboa. Don't even bother trying to enter the freeway from genesse at night. my suggestion to you as others have mentioned, live in the golden triangle. I commute on my bike from governor. You have to go up genesee to governor at the end of the day which is about 6-7.5% grade, but that make you a hardman. If you live across the canyon in clairmont, that makes you an even harderman. If I were to choose a place not in university city, I'd live in del mar if I could afford it as the traffic going into ucsd isn't nearly as bad as coming the other way. You have to go up torrey pines, but your legs will be the envy of your immediate family and friends. As for parking at ucsd, it's a joke. It's a joke and a nightmare. If you can't get an A pass(mind you it's 1000+ a year) you'll have to get a B if you are staff. B spots are usually gone by about 9. So for me, to get a nice work out and not have to worry about parking, I just rode my bike in every day. as a bike commuter, you get a pedal club pass that will allow you to park in the b or a spot depending on your status 10 times a quarter. I used those days for rainy days.

scripps ranch, rancho peñasquitos, carmel mountain ranch or western poway areas.

!

I'd stick closer to the coast. You can ride anywhere up and down the coast and taking your bike to UCSD is the ticket. You can ride from Hillcrest/Mission Valley if that is your bag. There are no hills of significance. Riding up Torrey Pines or through UC or Clairemont on Genesee is just a quick roller if you are on a real bike. Wear a backpack and shower when you get to work; there are plenty of places to do it.

As for fun, North County is quiet; that is why atmdad likes it. PB/MB can be a zoo. Lower La Jolla can be fun, but also quiet. Upper La Jolla by UCSD is fun, but a bit sterile, kind of like Irvine. It would be convenient to work, but you would want to leave on the weekend. Someone mentioned how hard it is to drive around the beach areas in the warm months. That is true, so leave the car parked and let the inlanders sit in traffic.

Actually, ignore this. I haven't lived in SDC for 14 years,.

i know everyone is concentrating on the coast because it's closer, but given the op's total parameters, scripps ranch/poway/rancho peñasquitos fit better. north of the 56 and east of the 15 finds fewer stop lights for training. they are within a 25 min drive or hour's ride to ucsd.