How early is the Wash DC morning traffic?

[Disneyonmymind]

We need to leave early enough to avoid that infamous slow-down on I-95. Any folks from the DC area or others familiar with what time we need be there to avoid getting bogged down?

Thanks,
Jackie

 

[Shelbelle6]

We need to leave early enough to avoid that infamous slow-down on I-95. Any folks from the DC area or others familiar with what time we need be there to avoid getting bogged down?

You want to avoid the Beltway between 6:30-9:30am and from 3:30-7pm! Any other times of day, you might get bogged down by some accident, but your chances of getting through with less frustration will be minimized if you avoid those hours!

 

[Suzanne74]

I am from MD right outside from DC. Where are you coming from? I would avoid anything between Baltimore and DC I95 and their respective Beltways like the plague from 6:30am to 9am, even sometimes 10am - seriously traffic stinks here. If you are coming from the North, You would be taking the other side of the Beltway where I am from to continue on to I95 so I don't know for esact sure but this side of the Beltway is a mess!!!

 

[rchristiansen]

Also keep an eye on any construction delays. Maybe check out local newstation websites. (nbc4.com and wjla.com) There have been a few times where they have actually CLOSED down parts of the beltway and rerouted traffic on side streets on the weekend due to the construction on I-95.

Also, I've gotten into some slow traffic on i-95 on Saturdays and Sundays around Springfield and Woodbridge going south and north. It's just the nature of the beast.

 

[Disneyonmymind]

We will be coming from PA - north of Harrisburg. We have a AAA trip-tik that is routing us on 15S to Frederick to I-270 to I-495 and around on the west side of the beltway to I-95. We will be driving on the weekdays so we really want to avoid the commuter traffic.

thanks,
Jackie

 

[Suzanne74]

I live off of 270 so I know where you are talking about. I would suggest not getting near 270 or 495 until at least 9:30am. If you want to get there before that, PM me, I know a way you can get to Virginia thru Fredrick and avoid 270 and some of 495. It is a little longer and not highways per say but it is an option.

 

[agnes!]

Another hint...
When you get close(maybe an hour or so away...) to the DC area, tune your AM radio to 1500(WTOP) or 630(WMAL). Both of these radio stations are mainly news during morning drive time, evenings are a mix of news/talk. Anyway, they both have regular traffic reports during the entire day, that can be a big help when you're already on the road.

good luck,
agnes!

 

[marty]

I am from York. I would stay on 15 until it intersects with 17 south. Take 17 south to Fredericksburg, Va. and pick up I95 there. The route is a little lomger, but you'll avoid all of the Baltimore/DC traffic.

 

[Suzanne74]

I am from York. I would stay on 15 until it intersects with 17 south. Take 17 south to Fredericksburg, Va. and pick up I95 there. The route is a little lomger, but you'll avoid all of the Baltimore/DC traffic.

 

[bdcp]

I agree I live less than 10 miles from rt 15 near Leesburg, VA and use it to go to my son's college near Harrisburg. Take 15 as far south as you can. I would avoid I-270. It can be and usually is a lot worse than I-495. Rt 15 joins Rt 29 near Bristow/Gainesville and by passes Warrenton. After passing by Warrenton you turn left onto Rt 17 and ride it out to I-95. There will still be some traffic til you get past Rt 3(Central Park shopping center exit), but after that it should be clear unless you're traveling on a weekend during the summer with all the traffic heading to NC/SC beaches. I rarely use I-495. My parents live in Fredericksburg and we always use back roads to avoid I-95. The longest we're ever on it is 20 miles or so.

 

[Disneyonmymind]

Are routes 15 and 17 that you suggest 4 lane restricted access roads or is there a lot of stop and go (traffic lights and such)?

Would you still suggest taking this alternate route even if we can leave early enough to pass through the DC area before 6:30AM? Although I'm not positive we will be able to leave that early so it's nice to have a Plan B anyway.

Thanks,
Jackie

 

[Uncleromulus]

Sadly, there is NO good way around DC whatever route you take. Some are just "less worse" than others. Most of those alternate routes at least keep you moving, but they have traffic lights, etc and problems of their own.

WE live just S of York. We leave at 3:30 AM on Friday. Taking I-95 we are JUST through the mixing bowl area by 5:30--which BARELY beats the traffic. If you can't manage to get through the area any time before 6:00 AM, then wait until at least 10:00 AM--but no later than about 3:00 PM because it then turns sour again.

Good luck!!!

 

[PlutoPony]

*Route 15 is mostly 2 lane road that runs thru the countryside (landscape is rapidly changing to housing developments however). A few stoplights but should move pretty well if you're going in the a.m. driving south.
*Route 17 is mostly 4 lane divided access highway which also should move. These are decent roads, it's just more miles to drive. But around here that may be the better trade-off.
*IF you're stuck driving I-95 and I-270 during rush hour, using the HOV lanes (High Occupancy Vehicle) can help. Where they exist, if you have the requisite number of passangers in the vehicle (total of 2 or 3 incl. driver) the far left lane is reserved for you. The lane is marked by a diamond and applies only during specific rush hour times going the way of the prevailing commute (i.e. towards the city in the a.m., away in the p.m.). For more info check websites for DOT in MD and VA.
*Afternoon rush hour in the summer starts earlier as people get away for the weekend.
*Very good suggestion to listen to the local radio stations mentioned for traffic updates especially if it's a rainy day which always causes accidents.
You'll be fine whichever way you go if you're patient and not trying to make up time in the DC area...
Have fun!

 

[Disney Planner Mama]

We live in Frederick, which is where 15 and 270 intersect. If my husband doesn't leave the house before 6 AM it can take him up to 2 hours to get to Bethesda (where 495 starts). I'd say either avoid 270, as suggested or leave later.

 

[mowog]

We live in Maryland north of DC. On any southern trip we want to be on the South side of DC before 6 AM. In the morning, traffic is heavy heading toward DC from all directions, so once you get through you'll be going against traffic coming from VA.

I like leaving for trips around 2 AM as you can get a lot of quiet driving in (just have to watch for critters!). 270 is normally busy as a lot of Frederick people work in DC area. Once you pass the tech centers in N. VA (Dulles,Herndon) you should be OK. Again I would plan on hitting the VA border no later than 6 AM if it were me.

Jean and Bob

 

[TimF]

We are driving down mid-August on a Friday and have to leave the Philly area around 2PM in the afternoon. We were very concerned about taking I-95 because of rush hour traffic for Philly, Wilmington, Baltimore, and DC in addition to Shore traffic for all theses areas. Because of these we are going to try something new which I have seen mention on other areas of this board. That is the I-81, I-77, I-26 to I-95 route. If there were no other cars on the road, this may take 2 more hours. Last weekend I had a 2 hour trip become 3 hours because of volume alone in the Philly area, this was at 3PM on a Friday. The hardest part of this alternat that we will take is that we have to drive West on the PA Turnpike to get I-81 at Harrisburg, it sounds like you might not even have that issue. It might be an interesting alternative, especially where you are located.

 

[agnes!]

On a good day it takes me 3 hours, door-to-door, to get to Philly. I live south of DC (near Mount Vernon & south of the Woodrow Wilson Bridge/Capitol Beltway/the Eastern portion).
TimF...I feel your pain, having to leave at 2pm on a Friday. If you came down I-95 you'd probably hit severe traffic in Philadelphia, Baltimore *and* Washington(even continuing on south to Fredericksburg & the Richmond area)! Are you coming from west or east of the city? I guess Bucks County is slightly southwest of metro Philadelphia?...so your route makes sense if coming that direction.
If you *were* coming from east of Philly, you could always try US 301 down to where it intersects with I-95(between Fredericksburg & Richmond? I think...)

To anyone who's travelling through the DC metro area...
There is a website that has the expected road construction delays for the Springfield Interchange (where I-95, I-495 & I-395 come together south of DC). Do a Google search, it should turn up.

Good luck, road warriors !
agnes!