Living in Hackettstown without a car
Hello there,
Currently I reside in Blairstown, NJ where the past few years I've began having epileptic seizures. My days of driving a car for my own safety, or others are numbered. As a result of these seizures I need to move to a location where there is public transportation easily available and work that I can walk to. I had a degree in Business and over 15 years of experience in purchasing. This is not helping me at all living in Blairstown. Would Hackettstown be a town I can consider, where there is lots of transportation and job opportunities? I do have a dog who alerts me to seizures but he does not stay with me 100 percent of the time (I'm fortunate I can tell when they are coming on my own often). So taking the dog to work would not be a requirement. Living with the dog would be though. Any thoughts or insights would be appreciative.
red76nj Hackettstown would only be a minimal upgrade from Blairstown. Public transportation is a taxi. The train is here but has very limited service.
You would be far better off in places in Morris County like Morristown where there are regular local buses as well as trains and busses for further away.
In the other direction Stroudsburg PA is very livable without a car. Plenty of housing down town, many shops on Main St, and the local bus system will take you everywhere. In PA the Lotto is spent on seniors and that funds all those bus lines.
GC My logical brain completely agrees with GC: Hackettstown would not be the town for you, unfortunately. I would imagine that the positions which would be interesting to you would be either nonexistent or currently filled/no openings in Hackettstown. There are a scattering of interesting companies here, including Mars of course, but do they even have any openings which would hold your interest based on your level of experience? And good public transportation? Hackettstown?! No, sorry, that does not describe our town in the least.
My gut tells me this: you are drawn to our town for a reason. Everything happens for a reason, so you are probably meant to grace our town with your presence! And I think you are going to really like it here. So what may happen is this: you will first look for a position in one of the companies in our area, one will be available, you will secure it, and then just easily find acceptable accommodations for you and your dog within walking distance to your new place of employment.
This may perhaps seem premature but: welcome to Hackettstown. You're going to love it here.
Rebecka @ Rebecka....You always express yourself so well and additionally most of the times are posting my thoughts before I get a chance to submit them. I am a firm believer that you are thinking about Hackettstown and drawn to it for a reason... Firm believer that everything in our lives happen for a reason.
joyful I agree that living here without a car would be very difficult, unless you lived near Main Street.
The same with jobs if you want to stay in your field.
I say come visit and feel it out and do some job searching here online to get a better idea.
Best of luck.
irun What happened to the handicap van, that used to take people to Shoprite, etc? I haven’t seen it in a while. That’s a great service, for those who need it. If OP could get a job at a doctors office or the hospital, the van would sure help, depending on what days/hours they operate.
Guilty-Remnant Sorry to say, I can't imagine how one would get around Hackettstown without a car. There are no buses through town. The two supermarkets are far from Main Street. I believe it is much easier getting around more urban towns in NJ .....Best wishes for finding the best place for you.
4catmom Transportation link
http://www.co.warren.nj.us/humanservices/transportation.html
JrzyGirl88 I love it out here, BUT public transportation I poor. I am in the same boat concerning driving. I am looking at moving East.
Old Gent 
strangerdanger Uber would add up over time if it was needed to commute, get groceries, see doctor, etc.
Morristown would be the closest town, and even then could be problematic. For full independence of a car though, probably a town like Montclair would be the closest but still not ideal. Hoboken or Jersey City would be good choices. If you are willing to go to PA, Philly is the most walkable city based upon some stats.
iJay I live in Dover now and could survive without a car but that would be bare essentials. I do walk to work everyday, seven minute walk. Shoprite is less than ten minutes walking. I have bicycled to other places like the library or summer concert. Not sure about public transortation since I don't use it but Lakeland is also a walk away and there is a stop right out in front of where I live.
I was working in Dover allready so at that point deciding to move close to work was easy. no more commuting. and last week when we had snow it was still a seven minute walk, haha
anywee Dover is a realistic option if you can find the right job.
CBGB 
Stymie Move to Europe. They understand how to do the public transportation thing right.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Motors_streetcar_conspiracy
Dodgebaal Very difficult living in Hackettstown with no car. Mars is hiring on a regular basis-seem to always have openings in procurement/purchasing.
Glenn @strangerdanger - uber/lyft driver availability is often iffy, too. You don't always have drivers picking up in town.
kingcoriander 
Hackettstown Wife Ocean County has Ocean Ride … just one example of a county that cares about its residents.
Andy Loigu 
Positive Welcome to Hackettstown! We’ve lived here for three years and living in the historic section allows for walking to do errands, go to library, attending church etc. I’m able to bike to work 1.5 miles each way. We use Uber with ease and the train to the city and up and down the east coast. Our children get back/forth to school via train/Uber and then bus.
It can really work without a car, though challenging.
Robbin I live here without a car. I do have access to someone who takes me grocery shopping however. I can honestly say without her there is no way we could live here. It costs about $10 to get anywhere in town by taxi one-way. The Taxi services might say they are available between certain hours but often they don't have drivers, or they are booked and can't be available unless you book a few hours in advance.
Sirya@Syria: Have you tried Uber or Lyft yet? We generally are able to get a ride within 15 minutes. If you upload the Uber and/or Lyft App onto your phone you literally can map your trip and see where cars are located and ETA to your location.
Morris Plains downtown and Morristown would be the closest places to live (including medical services/hospital) and work with a decent salary without a car. Everything is in walkable distance and local bus service is pretty reliable, Uber / taxi/ Lyft are plenty. But rent and house prices are almost twice what they are in Blairstown. At the end it's up to your lifestyle and quality of life expectations. If you have a telecommuting job, order everything online and schedule taxi/Uber rides to get anywhere, you even don't need to move.
Lena There is county bus service available, not sure if it is only temporary. I used it for a few weeks while recovering from knee surgery. They picked me up at the curb and dropped me off at the rehab center in Mnasfield. You kind of have to arrange for scheduled stops ahead of time, but its worth looking into. They have regular stops at Hasting Square and Manfield village too.
I do agree that Morrsitown offers better public transportation, but it comes at the cost of living in Morristown.
You do not mention age, but there are some retirement housing choices, but they can get quite pricey. Not sure if that is an option for you. Most allow service animals, but may require a larger deposit or additional rent.
Agust Like others here, my first thought would be Morristown.
My second thought would be Easton PA.
While Hackettstown has many things to recommend it, public transportation really isn't one of them.
Shutterbug "Most allow service animals, but may require a larger deposit or additional rent."
I believe it us illegal to charge extra rent for a service dog.
I would classify Hackettstown as a place where it would be difficult to walk to a job that pays a living wage. If you can get into Mars, you could live in nearby apartments. Or purchase a home close by. Hackettstown would be doable then.
maja2 Thank you all for taking the time to reply. I have a relator coming to help me figure out what to do with the house in Blairstown so I guess I need to figure out where to make a new home soon. It does sound like Dover or Morristown might be a slightly better option. I love this town but the idea of not being mobile in the middle of the woods is scaring the heck out of me. The nearest supermarket is five miles from where I live now and I don't believe they offer delivery. I'm a long way from retirement so that's not an option. Dover is probably more affordable then Morristown and I do like the idea of having the bus there to get to NYC as I'm a huge Broadway addict (used to go at least twice a week...yes...I have a problem). Unfortunately things are very different now but I'm hoping things will start looking up again soon. If I didn't have my dog I would have gone completely off the deep end by now. Thank you all again.
HI. I remember talking to you at one of our HL get togethers. Thinking positive thoughts that you will find a nice place. I grew up near Morristown and I would live there if I had a chance to.
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