When driving in Elizabeth in particular please be aware that free street parking is often in short supply, particularly in the business districts. To further compound the issue is the fact that there few coin-fed parking meters. Often, the means to pay is with an automated machine and other times with a mobile app.

I recently leased a car. The area of Elizabeth, Linden and Woodbridge(near the cities mentioned) is a major hub of car dealers. Sansone Auto Mall is one of them, located on routes 1 & 9 north. St. Georges Avenue has a considerable amount of mainly used car dealerships, plus a few selling new cars such as Linden VW. I went to the various dealer web sites after first going to the main site for the particular brand. Every dealership has some unique deals and perks that are worth exploring.

I drive mostly in the adjoining cities of Roselle, Roselle Park and Linden, NJ but often in Elizabeth. My favorite memory is essentially having the great freedom to drive in far-lesser-congested roads than in the boroughs of NYC. True, that there times whereby rush hour congests certain portions of the NJ cities I have mentioned. However, these roads are mainly the NJ Turnpike and the Garden State Parkway, and not so much the secondary roads. The local roads in these NJ cities are mainly never congested and the stress level associated with driving is nothing near what one encounters in NYC.

St. Georges Avenue. St. Georges Avenue is a major county road that traverses from Elizabeth through Roselle, Linden and Rahway, NJ. The amazing part of the road is that it will get you to your point of destination quickly with few delays even during rush hour. It is very safe to drive on. It also is an excellent means to get to fast food restaurants and other retail outlets.

Be careful! There are a lot of J-walkers and double-parkers. Many people think the rules don't apply to them. If you're driving, be wide awake and observant!

Go with a big name dealership, not a "mom and pop" shop. There is a great deal of crime all over Elizabeth, so some vehicles are improperly obtained. You must do your research before purchasing!

Elizabeth is a big, busy city. Many people take the bus, but I feel like its too full, so my only other option is driving my car. I'd much rather drive my car so I'm not tied to the public transit schedule. Often as I'm driving somewhere, I see something I haven't seen before. Sometimes I'll stop at a new place to take a picture or have a snack/lunch. The best day driving around Elizabeth, though, was the day that I recognized a restaurant that I saw on "The Sopranos" TV show. I knew that a large part of the show was filmed in the surrounding area, but I'd never seen the places in person. This was really cool!

North Avenue. It's a very long road with houses, schools, and businesses, so there is a lot to see. I particularly like the old architecture on the school buildings. This area is over by what is known locally as the "presidential streets," because that stretch of streets have presidents' names like Adams, Monroe, Jefferson.