What are the evening rush hour patterns in Hampton Roads? (Virginia Beach: home, school)

[BaltimoreNewb]

For the 4 pm to 7 pm timeframe, is traffic worse going east to west (ie from the beach toward Williamsburg), or vice versa?

Interested in general thoughts, esp. worst times and locations to avoid, but maybe someone could also help me with my specific inquiry:

If I had to leave Va Beach sometime during evening rush hour (ultimately toward Richmond/95N), what would be my best option?

[Spazkat9696]

Are you talking HRBT? To the Southside in the AM to the peninsula in the afternoon. That being said it all backs up and you don’t want to cross the water during rush hour.

Your best option is to leave early and chill in Richmond for a bit.

[Oduengineer88]

From 4-7 traffic heads west on 64 on the peninsula (Hampton to Williamsburg) and east on 64 on the Southside (Norfolk to Chesapeake/Virginia Beach). The HRBT can be a challenge, but will be worse going west during those hours. The Monitor Merrimac bridge tunnel is usually pretty good, but is a bit out of the way.

[Spazkat9696]

Originally Posted by Oduengineer88

From 4-7 traffic heads west on 64 on the peninsula (Hampton to Williamsburg) and east on 64 on the Southside (Norfolk to Chesapeake/Virginia Beach). The HRBT can be a challenge, but will be worse going west during those hours. The Monitor Merrimac bridge tunnel is usually pretty good, but is a bit out of the way.

Getting to the M&M is a challenge. The highrise is an issue, but not the only one. You could take the Downtoen Tunnel but that’s still an issue too.

[goofy328]

I don't notice any difference. It is hell regardless of where you're going during those hours.

If you can get somewhere without getting on the highway during that time that is probably your best bet. The start, stop, of the highway is exhausting.

For what you're talking about you could avoid both major highways and go out on roads like 460. It is not going to make that much of a difference. Where I'm at now it is 1 hour and 36 minutes to Richmond, but if I take 460 it is 1 hour and 54 minutes. If I take 10 it is 2 hours and 2 minutes. So, for the half hour you're saving taking 64, is it really worth it to you if you're tired and exhausted, just to keep your foot on the brake?

The problem is that people live everywhere. Someone works on the Peninsula and goes home, East, to the Southside. Someone works on the Southside and is making the reverse commute back to the Peninsula. So there is no logic to it. Hampton Roads is not one city where people go back home to the suburbs, or all of the work is in the suburbs and people are going back home into the city. The work is everywhere and the residential is everywhere. A real clusterf*. Probably worse than cities like DC, LA and Atlanta because those cities have better public transportation than we have. And again, in a lot of those cities everyone lives in the suburbs so the issue is going out of the city. People already in the city may not even have cars. People may not even be going home in those cities. Here, it is work, home, work, home, work, school, work, church, work, work, work. There are things to do but one rarely gets to enjoy them here, if they're part of the rat race.

[jobber123rd]

Originally Posted by BaltimoreNewb

For the 4 pm to 7 pm timeframe, is traffic worse going east to west (ie from the beach toward Williamsburg), or vice versa?

Interested in general thoughts, esp. worst times and locations to avoid, but maybe someone could also help me with my specific inquiry:

If I had to leave Va Beach sometime during evening rush hour (ultimately toward Richmond/95N), what would be my best option?

If traffic on the peninsula isn't too bad, I'd go with 264W (Downtown Tunnel) -> 164 -> 664N (MMMBT) -> 64W

Otherwise, I'd continue down 264 to its end, and then take 460 to 295.