DC traffic experts

[abreakfromlife]

We're going on vacation in a couple of weeks, and on one leg of the trip we are going from Manassas, Va, to Onancock, Va. Mapquest says it will take 4.5 hours. But upon looking at the map, I realize we are going to be driving the entire upper half of the Beltway, on a Thursday morning. The plan initially was to pack up camp at 8ish and leave, but now that I'm looking at the map, that's going to put us in DC rush hour, and DC traffic is terrible, right?

 

So....is it really going to be that bad? Are there any better options to do that route? And is the alternative just to wake up at 5am and leave, to get out of DC before rush hour?

[Margo out of lurking]

I am not an expert, but I had two very different and unexpected experiences on the Beltway.

 

Friday afternoon of July 4th weekend. We sailed around from I-66 to Silver Springs with no traffic problems at all.

 

One Monday early afternoon in mid-June. It was raining, and we crawled most of the way from I-66 to I-95N. A 30 min. drive took about an hour.

 

A few months later, ds and I snapped this photo on a car in front of us. I hope you can read it!

[abreakfromlife]

ha, that's a great license plate.....but that's what I'm afraid of :tongue_smilie:

[CatMomof3]

love the photo :D

sorry I can't help you with the traffic question.

[Stacia]

I've been to D.C. quite a few times over the past 10 years. My experience has been that there are *always* traffic jams there. We were even stuck in massive traffic jams at midnight a couple of times.

 

So, I think it may vary & it's just the luck of the draw as to whether or not you will be sort-of stuck or very stuck in traffic!

 

My suggestion, read your horoscope & plan a time based on that. ;):D (It would be as accurate as any other form of traffic divination.)

 

(The license plate was awesome. :lol:)

[mlktwins]

Is mapquest taking you Rt 28 (Centreville Rd) to Rt 66 and then through DC or around the beltway? I'm in Manassas and rush hour is crazy. I used to commute to DC every weekday by car before I had the boys.

 

I would say rush hour starts dying down around 9:30 or so -- I don't usually venture out of Manassas until 9:30 or later. Traffic in DC might be a little heavy during the daytime hours, but not as bad as in the morning or evening rush hour. You also could leave very early...I would say no later than 5 am.

[abreakfromlife]

it has me taking 66 to 495 and then over to 50. I think we're just going to try and leave at 4am :eek:

[mlktwins]

When we leave for Ocean City, MD (same way you would be going) on a weekday, we don't leave before 9:30. I used to have to get up for work around 4 am so I don't do that anymore :D. You would probably be ok to give youself another hour, but might regret too much later than that.

 

Good luck!

[Tammyla]

Snort! Beltway traffic is what it is, and for the most part it stinks. (I don't miss it.) Don't begin your adventure with out eating, using the bathroom and a full tank of gas.

 

We've endured numerous bridge openings, a helicopter landing, a man threatening to jump off the bridge and countless other delays. Kid entertainment is always a good idea along with snacks and diapers if you need em.

 

I am not an expert, but I had two very different and unexpected experiences on the Beltway.

 

Friday afternoon of July 4th weekend. We sailed around from I-66 to Silver Springs with no traffic problems at all.

 

One Monday early afternoon in mid-June. It was raining, and we crawled most of the way from I-66 to I-95N. A 30 min. drive took about an hour.

 

A few months later, ds and I snapped this photo on a car in front of us. I hope you can read it!

[Melissa in NC]

Drove the beltway from Andrews Airforce base to Frederick last Friday afternoon. It was a crawl most of the way.

 

Drove back on Sunday afternoon; drove about 70 mph all the way.

 

There are so many varibles it is hard to tell.

[G5052]

Snort! Beltway traffic is what it is, and for the most part it stinks. (I don't miss it.) Don't begin your adventure with out eating, using the bathroom and a full tank of gas.

 

We've endured numerous bridge openings, a helicopter landing, a man threatening to jump off the bridge and countless other delays. Kid entertainment is always a good idea along with snacks and diapers if you need em.

 

Frankly you never know, but yes, rush hour is likely to be bad, but it is perpetually a YMMV type of thing. We lived in Virginia and went to church in Silver Spring, and there were times we didn't make it there on Sunday morning because of road closures and/or huge wrecks. Normally it was straight through, but not always.

 

Keep in mind that there are High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lanes at rush hour on part of your route if you have more than just you (babies and children do count). That has saved our bacon when we had to get somewhere within a certain time period.

[dsmama]

I also think you might want to leave at 8:30 or 9:00 and just be prepared. There is also the option to leave at 5:00 a.m.! Hope you have a good trip.

[happypamama]

Yes, rush hour on 495 is terrible (love the license plate shot), but non-rush hour, it shouldn't be too bad. I'd probably opt for leaving a little later, like 8 or 9, but early might work too.

[Farrar]

Agreed with others that DC traffic is just weird.

 

But I'm confused about your route. When I Google Mapped that (because I didn't know where Onancock was) it gave me a route through the city via 66 to 50 and then out to Delmarva - I could see that you could alternately go around the city to the north via the Beltway, I suppose. Actually, I'm guessing there's a number of possible alternate routes, but all of them could be just a traffic-y. Anyway, all this amounts to is that there's no way to avoid DC traffic to get from the western burbs to Delmarva. So yes, get up early for a better shot at a quick trip, or just stick in an extra long audio book and be resigned to it.

[Puma Mom]

It might be better to drive down 95 to 64 to VA Beach and go across the Bay Bridge tunnel. It is about 30 miles longer, but might be less subject to traffic issues.

 

What day will you be driving? As long as you are missing Friday or Sunday after noonish, the traffic is usually not bad. Most of the way will be at or above 55-65 mph. Depending on how you feel about bridges, it might be of interest to drive across the 20-mile long bridge with 2 tunnels. My dc like stopping at the visitor center at the tunnel.

[Tutor]

I just typed "manassas, va to virginia beach, va" then "virginia beach, va to onancock, va va" into google maps. That route would take you south into VA, take about 30 minutes longer, but avoids D.C. If it were me, this is the route I'd take. We lived in D.C. then Hyattsville, MD, and then Frederick, MD, and we avoid D.C. traffic at all costs. :)

 

ETA: The general route would be 95S -> 64 (E?) -> 564 -> 13N

Edited April 18, 2011 by Tutor

[abreakfromlife]

or just stick in an extra long audio book and be resigned to it.

We're already driving from MI to Gettysburg, to Manassas, to Onancock, to Jamestown, to Richmond, to MI, so the less time in the car, the better :D And any time spent in traffic is less time on the ocean.

 

It might be better to drive down 95 to 64 to VA Beach and go across the Bay Bridge tunnel. It is about 30 miles longer, but might be less subject to traffic issues.

We're coming home that way, so we like going two different ways so we get different scenery. We'd be driving this sometime on a Thursday morning.

[dsmama]

Actually, the southern route can be fraught with traffic as well. All it takes is one accident in the Hampton-Roads Bridge Tunnel to shut down everything for hours. You might as well stick with your current plan, as there may be more suburban roads/alternate options in the DC area.

[abreakfromlife]

I just had someone else tell me DC rush hour starts at 4:30 am!!!!! For real?????? gosh, what a hassle. We should have just camped on the east side of the city!!! :001_huh: