Driving from Gettysburg?

[MickeyMonstersMom]

I may drive down to Florida this summer. It will be myself and the Dkids - I'm the only driver. We'd leave home early the first day and take a "short" hop to Gettysburg, go to bed early, and head out around 4:00 - 5:00 am to finish the trip (to Gainesville) if possible by about 10:00 that night. Both AAA and Mapquest have me taking 270-495-95, but I'm uncomfortable with the idea of fighting DC-area traffic. Should I go 81-77-26-95 and avoid DC? If not, when should I leave Gettysburg to avoid the worst traffic around DC? I know about the guide to I-95 on the DIS, but if I were to take the other route, are there any exits that I should avoid or are particularly good?

Many, many thanks.

 

[marksommerville]

If you left on a Saturday from Gettysburg at 4:00-5:00am you should have no problem with DC traffic.

We just did Harrisburg to WDW last week and we left at 3:30am on Friday and had no delays around DC. We were thru DC by 5:45 - 6:00am

From Gettysburg we took 15 South to 270 to 495 to 95.

If you want to avoid DC, I recommend 81 to 17 to 95, but to get to 81 from Gettysbrg is a pain.

Leaving at 4:00am from Gettysburg I dont think you should have any probs. Just try to keep up with traffic on 270 lol.

 

[Uncleromulus]

I agree.
And with that new I-95 "flyover" at the DC mixing bowl, getting thru there isn't quite as bad as it used to be.

 

[caitycaity]

saturday traffic around dc isn't so bad - as long as you avoid weekdays and sunday, it should be fine to take 270-495-95. i feel like 81 takes you really out of your way (south from g'burg anyways since you would obviously be taking 81 most of the way in the beginning of your trip, judging by where you are coming from).

(btw, hi from a former central ny-er). i have driven 81 N to syracuse many times.

whatever you do - avoid friday evening rush and sunday. in the summer friday after about 2pm and sunday pretty much all day traffic is really horrible due to people going/coming back from the beach.

 

[MickeyMonstersMom]

Hmmm... so it sounds like I should leave here on Friday morning and finish the trip on Saturday, then. Thanks for the feedback!!

 

[agnes!]

MickeysMonsterMom -

When you start to get closer to the DC area, you should tune the car radio to 630 AM and/or 1500 AM. These are the two major news/talk radio stations in Washington. If there's any bad traffic or accidents ahead, they'll let you know plus they have regular weather/traffic reports.

I agree with caitycaity that I-81 probably takes you out of your way.
It's a shame that everyone, except the driver, will probably sleep through the US15 section of your trip...that part can be really pretty, *especially* if you kept on 15 south of I-70 crossing the Potomac at Point of Rocks(?) passing close to Balls Bluff National Cemetery (the smallest National Cemetery in the country) down to US50 or to I-66...I think sometimes that those farms on 15 are many horses' ideas of Heaven.

I have lived in the DC area for 20+ years, in Northern Virginia for most of that time. If you're coming through on Saturday, your plan to start out around 4am/5am from Gettysburg sounds good. Saturday traffic getting through the "Mixing Bowl", aka the fabled Springfield I-95/495/395 Interchange, can be a b*tch, even on the weekends (though as another poster said, since one of the flyovers has been installed the traffic doesn't seem as consistently bad as it used to be). At least we have three lanes between DC and Richmond now...I remember when it was two....ack. Even so, most folks coming through here are mostly concerned about the traffic around the Beltway, when the traffic south of DC, from about Woodbridge(Route 1 Interchange) to Fredericksburg can be equally a pain.


Have a good time - you're goin' to DISNEY!!!!
agnes!

Just remember...
'All I Needed to Know About Travelling I Learned from My Time at WDW'.
In other words -
"What have we learned from our time at WDW, Class?"
"We have learned to get up early to take in as much of the parks as we can, to avoid the WDW visitors who get there at 11am and wonder why it's crowded."
[The above can just as easily be applied to Interstate roadtrips through & around the nation's capital. ]

 

[Stiff]

if you definitely want to miss dc traffic...just take 15 all the way to opal, VA and then get on 17 to frederickburg and pick up 95

we used to drive this way ALOT when we traveled between NC and upstate PA....sometimes you can get behind slow traffic but it usually balances out with the traffic in DC....besides if you leave that early, you will probably avoid most slow afternoon "sunday" type drivers

its a pretty drive too