Getting to the Computer History Museum from San Francisco without a car

October 6, 2013 1:43 PM

How can I get to the Computer History Museum from San Francisco without a car, and is it worth it?

I'm travelling to San Francisco on business in December, and planning to spend a few days there afterwards having a look around. As a huge computer geek, I'd love to visit the Computer History Museum down in Mountain View, but it looks like it's fairly difficult to get to without driving (which I don't want to do).

From what I've looked at, I might be able to get a Caltrain from SF to Mountain View and then I'm only a couple of miles away. Is that the most sensible option? Once I've got to Mountain View I guess I can either walk or get a cab. Does anyone have any idea how much a cab might be to get to the museum from Mountain View Caltrain station? I've no idea whether cabs in the US are cheaper or more expensive than those in the UK. Also, do cabs tend to wait at the stations? I'll have a UK phone with me, so although I could call a taxi I'd rather not have to as it'd probably cost me a lot!

Also: if you've been there, I'd be interested to know if you think the computing history museum is worth travelling to get to!

Cheers,

Robin

posted by robintw to Travel & Transportation around San Francisco, CA (21 answers total)

There's a (free) shuttle on weekdays from the Mountain View station that has a stop near the museum. You would get off at Shoreline and Pear.

Bear in mind the shuttles are designed for commuters so they run one direction in the morning and then back again in the afternoon, so you'd need to time your visit around this. (And, of course, the worst case scenario is you'd have to walk, which isn't a huge deal if a 30 minute walk is physically possible.)
posted by wackybrit at 1:59 PM on October 6, 2013 [1 favorite]

Yeah, I think the weekday shuttle is your best bet if you want to do this without driving. I can't tell you about the museum, as I've never been, but I can tell you that getting anywhere in Mountain View from San Francisco is a huge pain in the ass without a car.
posted by trip and a half at 2:07 PM on October 6, 2013 [1 favorite]

I can vouch for the museum being worth the effort -- I had a ride when I went there, but I would totally do the shuttle thing myself just to see it again.
posted by thesmallmachine at 2:10 PM on October 6, 2013 [1 favorite]

The Computer History Museum has a truly amazing selection of hardware from the early decades of computing. If you're the kind of computing buff who has always wanted to see the inside of an early Cray or lay eyes on a complete PDP-1, it's the place for you. It's not a small museum; the main exhibits are expansive, and what is presented is impressive.

That said, I don't think there's an inexpensive transportation option if the shuttles mentioned above don't work with the timing of your trip. As an alternative to taxis, which can be awkward to get, Uber is now available in Mountain View and could conceivably take you from the Caltrain station to the Museum (and back). While a bit more expensive than standard taxis, Uber is generally the most time-effective way of summoning a black car or sedan for impromptu transportation throughout much of the Bay Area.
posted by eschatfische at 2:13 PM on October 6, 2013 [2 favorites]

The museum is worth it. Consider timing your visit so that you can see the docent crank the Babbage analytical engine and explain how to approximate transcendental functions using polynomials.
posted by Nomyte at 2:31 PM on October 6, 2013

Yeah, I didn't mean to discourage you. The Computer History Museum is near the top of my list of (relatively) local things I mean to do. But having had the experience of travelling to Mountain View from SF without a car for much less interesting reasons, I think I'm going to opt for CityCarShare when I go, which is probably not an option for you.

Just be aware that no matter what transportation solution you arrive at, you're probably looking at an entire day on your trip's itinerary.
posted by trip and a half at 2:38 PM on October 6, 2013

Personally, I'd walk it (if you're able) or do the shuttle one-way and walk the other, but another option might be to rent a bike in SF (sadly, there's no Bike Share station near the museum). There are a number of outfits that rent bikes to tourists downtown. You can ride down to the Caltrain station in SF, bring the bike on the train (see the Caltrain website for information on how this works, and I'd avoid rush hour as the bike car can fill up), then it's a pretty short ride to/from the museum. After you're done there, you could continue on for a quick peddle round the outside of the Googleplex if you'd like (they're not big on random visitors, but you can stick to the roads certainly) and/or even head over to the visitors center at NASA Ames Research Center, whose website is currently shutdown so I won't bother to link it. If you don't eat at the museum, you could hit up one of the places on Castro St. in Mountain View (near the train station) or go for delicious In-N-Out at Rengstorff.
posted by zachlipton at 2:40 PM on October 6, 2013 [2 favorites]

Maybe you could talk a friendly station agent into calling a cab for you and save the cost of the international call?
posted by trip and a half at 2:40 PM on October 6, 2013

Personally, I'd walk it (if you're able)...

Walk? From San Francisco to Mountain View? That's 25 miles!
posted by sonic meat machine at 3:24 PM on October 6, 2013 [1 favorite]

The trains stations along the Caltrain line do not have station agents, so you can't count on one of them calling a cab for you. I have seen cabs lurking at Caltrain stations during commute times, but I don't know if they are routinely there during off-peak hours.

Another possibility would be to rent a bike from Palo Alto Rent-My-Bike, they will bring a bike to you and it's $20/day or less. The museum is about 30 minutes riding from the Palo Alto Caltrain, you'd have to ask if they can deliver it to you at a station closer to the museum.
posted by ambrosia at 3:28 PM on October 6, 2013

I think zachlipton means "walk from the Mountain View Caltrain station to the museum"; Google Maps says it's a 1.5 mile walk, but it seems to require navigating a freeway cloverleaf somehow.
posted by Sidhedevil at 3:57 PM on October 6, 2013

The logistics are pretty reasonable if you have a bike, but it's possible to walk from the Mountain View station. Caltrain allows bicycles onboard and I bring mine down from San Francisco every now and then. There's a fantastic walking/biking path called the Stevens Creek Trail that's near the station and will take you most of the way to the museum. It's a nice diversion all by itself. Exit the trail at La Avenida and take it down to Shoreline Boulevard and you'll be near the museum.
posted by jeffhoward at 4:27 PM on October 6, 2013

If you're biking, take the Permanente creek trail, not Shoreline. If you are not used to having your life threatened by cars, that stretch of road may not be for you.
posted by jewzilla at 4:55 PM on October 6, 2013 [1 favorite]

Walk? From San Francisco to Mountain View? That's 25 miles!

Yeah I meant from Mountain View Caltrain to the museum and back (or shuttle one way and walk back later since the shuttle is just a commuter route). I do know people who enjoy biking from SF to Mountain View as an occasional commute method, but that's not something I'd suggest to anyone who isn't super into cycling like that.
posted by zachlipton at 5:01 PM on October 6, 2013

Or, alternative option: propose a MeFi meetup out of it. If the logistics work out, someone may be able to hook you up with transportation.
posted by zachlipton at 5:03 PM on October 6, 2013 [2 favorites]

Caltrain + shuttle sounds like a very good bet. I believe there's a shuttle stop at Pear Ave., right across the street from the museum. The walk is doable and if you decide to do that as a back-up plan, there are routes that are not too complicated and have sidewalks throughout.
posted by quince at 5:26 PM on October 6, 2013

Bus 40 goes between the museum and pretty close to the train station before the Mountain View station, called the San Antonio Station.

You could take the shuttle mentioned earlier to get to the museum then take this bus to get back to the train.
posted by eye of newt at 5:35 PM on October 6, 2013

propose a MeFi meetup out of it.

This is a great idea, and you should totally consider it.
posted by ambrosia at 5:38 PM on October 6, 2013

There are Bike Share bikes at the Mountain View Caltrain station. I'm not really clear on how the pricing of those works, though. Might be cheaper to take a cab (although cabs aren't always that cheap here). Usually there are cabs waiting at the caltrain station in Mountain View (that one has a parking lot where they can wait, many caltrain stations do not).

The museum is okay. Their hours are weird, and their copy writers aren't the best, but if it's something you're interested in, it's probably worth it (the Babbage machines are cool just by themselves). Nearby in the Googleplex the only thing to see there is the Android OS statues at Huff Ave and Charleston Rd. There's also Shoreline Park, which is at the end of Shoreline Blvd, and the Stevens Creek Trail which leads out from there back to downtown MV. If the government shutdown has ended by then (FSM willing) and new owners haven't moved in, in addition to the NASA Ames visitors' center, there's the Moffett Field visitors' center. Did you know that one of only two American naval airships was housed here in the 40s? It's one of my favorite geeky thing about this city. Also that there is a secret model train in a little room behind the Moffett visitors' center.

If you want to do a MeFi meetup, it'd probably have to be on a Saturday or Sunday because the museum is only open noon to five, and most people work during those times on weekdays. But there's a good sports bar across the street from the museum. :)
posted by sarahnade at 6:05 PM on October 6, 2013

I've been meaning to visit the museum for a long time and a meetup would be the impetus for me to go, and I'd have no problem shuttling to/from Caltrain. So nthing the "organize a meetup" suggestion!
posted by zsazsa at 7:17 PM on October 6, 2013

If you haven't travelled much in the U.S. be prepared for it to be pretty gruelling compared with what you're used to: the Bay Area has pretty good public transportation compared with most U.S. cities, but by European standards it's awful. The South Bay especially is completely car-centric: public transportation (especially locally) is poor and the gap is being filled by private services such as Uber, which would be a different kind of hassle for you -- you'd have to download the app, you might need a U.S. bank aaccount to pay, and your phone (as you say) would be roaming.

If you feel like spending $60 each way you could take a private car service like Planet Trans. If you're comfortable driving though, your best bet is just to rent a car and drive down. That's the easiest lowest-hassle way to go anywhere in the South Bay. And it would give you the opportunity to explore restaurants and other museums and galleries -- for example, if you have the time to drive to Monterey the aquarium there is astounding, and the beach (at Carmel or anywhere on the coast, really) is gorgeous.

(I have lots of friends from Europe who've done public transportation in the South Bay on their first California trip: really, it can be quite a culture shock.)

I haven't been to the CHM for a couple of years, and I've heard it's undergone an expansion in the intervening time. FWIW based on my visits I'd say it's worth it if you're seriously a hardware nut and up for some nostalgia about equipment you owned as a kid or have read about. When I was there the written materials were weak and the museum overall had a kind of dusty neglected air. But like I said, I've heard it's much better now.
posted by Susan PG at 9:57 AM on October 7, 2013