On a weekday, Caltrain stops going south between midnight and 5 AM.  Bart going east shuts down around the same time.<p>In Manhattan, subways run all night to the different boros, Metro-north, the LIRR, PATH, NJ transit etc. run through the night.<p>People say NYC is expensive, and living on the upper east side or west village can be expensive.  But plenty of safe, cheaper places are a 20 minute train ride from Manhattan, and even more are a 30 minute train ride (and so on).  You don&#x27;t get options like that in the Bay Area.