[srmom06]

Hi, for various reasons, my son could be attending school in Fairfield next year. We live in the Stamford/Greenwich border (near the Merritt). School starts at 8:15 am and ends at 3:15 pm.

By my calculations, mapquest, and a test drive, I am looking at 40 minutes. So far, the test drive did not seem too bad as I am going against traffic, except Stamford/Norwalk area.

I was told that in the summer, it is much worst. Also, friends that live in Wilton and work in Stamford said the commute is horrendous, but as I am going against traffic , it did not seem too bad.

Am I missing something here? Is my one test drive an indicator?

I searched the net for historical traffic reports, trying to find out congestions for certain times of the day at the Merritt, but I have been unable to find any.

Any advice is greatly appreciated.

Many thanks.

[Anaid]

Are you driving back and forth? Getting there at 8:15 shouldn't take more than 35-40 minutes. Getting home to Stamford at 8:45 could take over an hour. Traffic isn't that bad at 2:45 or 3, so it should be around 45 minutes to get back to Fairfield as well, and getting back to Stamford would be fine. You should find a nice coffee shop to spend an hour or two after you drop him off in the morning!

PS- I believe the private schools in Fairfield have a shuttle service to and from the Fairfield train station- could you try the train?

[VTLaw2011]

My mother makes the commute from Fairfield to Stamford via train. It is much better especially in the morning. If you take I-95 (and the Merritt too) southbound is much worse than northbound, so while you may get your son to school on time, be prepared for some traffic coming back home.

In my experience the roads have been worse during the school year rather than in the summer.

The train seems to be the best bet- plus there are groups of students who that you see clustered on MetroNorth that have the same destination so if he is young perhaps you can talk to some parents and have them travel as a group.

[Tresser Boulevard]

^^ Probably a bad idea to take the train, unless you want your son to be bullied by the other kids who don't have the privilege of living on the Stamford/Greenwich line.

[ambarstone]

I just moved to Fairfield from Westchester Cty and had to reply. Traffic in this area is terrible 350 days a year. You just don't know or can guarantee what time you are going to get anywhere no matter if going North or South. (but going back South is much worse like everyone says) Even on weekends and even during winter. Starting in May is much worse because of people going to the beach. I am stuck to the train to go to Greenwich everyday. If you son is old enough (to travel alone), you should think about the train as an option. I see tons of kids getting off at Fairfield in the morning (coming from the North, New Heaven). They have buses waiting for them and none seem to be upset about coming by train and hoping on a bus. You should really consider all of your options, traveling 25 miles to Fairfield each way during peak traffic by car can get into anyone's nerves.
Good Luck!