Cleveland has notoriously awful, or inadequate at least, public transportation. One would hope that with the inner belt bridge falling down and being closed half of the time that would change, but it hasn't.
Seattle of course is something totally different. License tags heavily subsidize the public transportation, and it's fairly robust. The various regional authorities also have a combined pass to use it, including most of the ferries, and yes, Microsoft buys one for every employee. And then to augment that, they also have the Connector, the private Microsoft bus system, also free. The buses have Wi-Fi, power in every seat and "upgraded interiors."
The Connector has a stop a mile and a half away from our apartment, so I'm thinking I'll give it a try. I like the idea of not messing with the traffic, not spending money on gas (well, aside from that short drive to the pickup lot), having a half-hour to gear up and down to work by getting online on the bus... it all really appeals to me.
Maybe I won't like it. Maybe once the baby is here I'd prefer the car just so I can come and go if Diana needs me to. But it's a pretty cool opportunity to try it since it doesn't cost anything. I'll have to wait until after we get back, since there is limited service next week with the short week.
If you really want to be BMOC, get yourself a Bike Friday Tikit: http://community.bikefriday.com/tikit.
You could likely ride the bike from your dwelling to the bus stop in a few minutes, use zero of your own gas, and get a bit of a work out in every day. Bike folds/unfolds in 20 seconds, and easily can be carried on the bus (in a carry bag). Your laptop, et. al. can fit in a pannier.
You can likely find a good used one on Craig's List, or make the drive to Eugene, Oregon and visit the factory to have one made just for you.
They also have a hard case option, so you can check it as airline luggage. I just got back from a 4-day conference in Florida, and rode to my conference every day on the bike from my hotel - no rental car needed...
Congrats Jeff. Actually using public transportation in a routine way is a game changer for how many people view getting around. The car has it's place but not worrying about getting to work has so many positive transformational qualities. I hope a train to work and have time to read, listen to music, check Twitter/e-mail, or just zone out by myself between work and home.
Kudos to you for not having "bus-aphobia."