May be moving to Liverpool - help with finding a nice area please!

I need some help please!

I've just been offered a job at the hospital on Prescot St in Liverpool so will need to move closer and am planning to move in with my boyfriend, who works in Preston.

At first I thought that wouldn't be a problem, but looking at transport between the two cities and experiencing it taking 40 minutes to do the 7 miles from the hospital to the edge of Liverpool up the A59, it's seeming an impossible task to find somewhere to live that won't involve either or both of us having to travel for over 90 minutes just to get to work.

So two questions...

Where are the nice/reasonably nice areas of Liverpool to live (in terms of crime, safety etc.)?

What are the areas that surround the A59 and train line to the north of the city like? I was thinking I could take the train into town (from Maghull/Old Roan) and my boyfriend could drive and hopefully miss most of the traffic by being on the edge.