Fewest stop lights to Redstone Arsenal (Huntsville, Decatur: apartments, rental, townhouse)

[GinnyFavers]

Hi everyone,

Hubby is up for a transfer to Redstone Arsenal. (Keep your toes crossed for us, we really really want this!!!) Where should we be looking to live? He needs a route onto base with the fewest stop lights possible.

He'd drive for an hour if there were no traffic lights or traffic jams, over a fifteen minute commute sitting stopped. So, the issue isn't CLOSE, the issue is NOT MUCH STOPPING.

No need to argue with him, he's just that way.

School districts aren't an issue.

Thanks in advance!

~Amanda

[Charles]

Originally Posted by GinnyFavers

Hi everyone,

Hubby is up for a transfer to Redstone Arsenal. (Keep your toes crossed for us, we really really want this!!!) Where should we be looking to live? He needs a route onto base with the fewest stop lights possible.

He'd drive for an hour if there were no traffic lights or traffic jams, over a fifteen minute commute sitting stopped. So, the issue isn't CLOSE, the issue is NOT MUCH STOPPING.

No need to argue with him, he's just that way.

School districts aren't an issue.

Thanks in advance!

~Amanda

Renting or buying?
What's your budget or price range?
What type housing are you looking for (SFR, townhouse, apartment, etc)?

Are you going to work too? Where?

What's the realistic time he starts work? (6AM? 7AM? 8AM? It makes a difference in terms of the slight amount of traffic in the Huntsville metro and maybe more of an impact, the lines at the gate.)

I don't work on the Arsenal but my gut feeling is this concern of yours, while not invalid, is overweighted. However, you can use tools like Google Maps to get an idea of the expressways and freeways. For example, I-565 has no lights. Memorial Parkway has some. University has quite a few.

Schools do count - resale.

[GinnyFavers]

Originally Posted by Charles

Renting or buying?
What's your budget or price range?
What type housing are you looking for (SFR, townhouse, apartment, etc)?

Are you going to work too? Where?

What's the realistic time he starts work? (6AM? 7AM? 8AM? It makes a difference in terms of the slight amount of traffic in the Huntsville metro and maybe more of an impact, the lines at the gate.)

Schools do count - resale.

Renting for a year or two, then buying. Single Family Home preferred, but it looks like apartments are a really good deal, when you compare them price per square foot, to rental SFH's. Need to park four vehicles, though, so a house may have to be what we go with. We can go up to $1000 a month, but the cheaper the better, just means we can buy sooner.

I have no idea where I'd work. I have a background in administrative support in colleges, libraries, and museums. I'll find something part time eventually in one of those areas, I'm sure - full time eventually, though that's always harder and takes longer. We can get by on just Joe's pay, my job is for vacations, charitable donations, Christmas, etc.

We have no idea what time he'd start work. Here, he's angled to work from 9:30 to 6:30 with every other Friday off. He's a night owl, so he'll try to come in as late as possible, but who knows what a new boss will or won't want.

I see that 565 comes across the top of the Arsenal campus from I-65.

Where we live now, any interstate that goes towards any place where there's jobs is a parking lot for four to five hours a day (we live north of Baltimore, MD, off I-95).

Perhaps it's nothing like that there! That would be awesome!!

~Amanda

[IRBS]

Time to Gate 9 = smooth, not many delays (usually)

Time getting in Gate 9 = could take longer than your commute...

Each gate is different. Like Charles said, I dont think this is a huge deal in Huntsville. I commute about 10 min with most of that Interstate with no delays. If there is a huge traffic jam, it may push my commute to 15 min, LOL.

Dont sweat it, "rush hour" in Huntsville is a joke. Going in a bit earlier or later that the peak time will save you a couple mins though...

Overall, its not a huge concern.

[IRBS]

Originally Posted by GinnyFavers

I see that 565 comes across the top of the Arsenal campus from I-65.

Where we live now, any interstate that goes towards any place where there's jobs is a parking lot for four to five hours a day (we live north of Baltimore, MD, off I-95).

Perhaps it's nothing like that there! That would be awesome!!

~Amanda

You cant compare Huntsville traffic to Baltimore...its not even close.

The only time that 565 slows down is in the peak travel times, usually between 0700 and 0800 and 1700-1800 and that is usually only slow between Redstone and 1-65, all west of town. I live near downtown and rarely ever have a delay at all (there are some travel issues coming over Chapman Mountain where US 72 turns into I-565, but that is a growing area and construction area now...so it is expected, but it does back up over there).

Like I said, overall, not a huge concern. It will be like night and day to what you are used to.

[Southlander]

Live in Priceville, or the Burningtree area of Decatur. He'll get right on I-65, thence to 565, to the gate on the west side (I think that's Gate 9 but not sure). Traffic's a little heavy in the morning and late afternoon, but it rarely stops - only if there's a road-blocking accident. And that's rare.

[Toymeister]

Here is another inportant detail, since the arsenal is 38,000 acres, WHO he works for determines WHERE on the arsenal he will work. WHERE on the arsenal determines, in large part, which gate he will want to use. Yes, once on the arsenal then he can go anywhere but there is no speeding on the arsenal and it is not the best way to get from one side to another if you can chose where you are going to live. Many posters on this board are realtors, which is great, but this detail often escapes them.

[mm42]

If it's really all about traffic lights, then the Redstone Gate or either Martin Road gate (Gate 1 and Gate 7) could be done with no more than one traffic light depending on exact neighborhood and route. You could also get in the Patton road gate with no more than one, but that would put you in a less desirable neighborhood (but CHEAP!)

However, there are traffic lights on base as well, and to figure those in we'd have to know the exact building he's going to work in.

As others have stated, traffic is not much of an issue here, in general, especially compared to large urban areas. Also as others have stated, the gates themselves can back up a bit, some more than others. Gate 9 (the one coming in from I-565 and Research Park Blvd) is probably the worst.

I knew when I moved here I would be in the Von Braun Complex, and that influenced the location of my home, because Gate 1 is convenient to that building. My commute is about 7 miles, a large portion of it on base, and in perfect circumstances it takes 11 minutes from driveway to parking lot. At rush hour it is more like 15 minutes on average, with most of the delay getting through the gate.

[GinnyFavers]

Originally Posted by Toymeister

Here is another inportant detail, since the arsenal is 38,000 acres, WHO he works for determines WHERE on the arsenal he will work. WHERE on the arsenal determines, in large part, which gate he will want to use. Yes, once on the arsenal then he can go anywhere but there is no speeding on the arsenal and it is not the best way to get from one side to another if you can chose where you are going to live. Many posters on this board are realtors, which is great, but this detail often escapes them.

Good point! Yes, the base where he works now is like that. Loong wait to get through security if you're coming at the top rush hour times, and once you're on base, you better set your cruise control at 34 and stick there, and it's a loong way from one side to the other.

[Keeper]

Move to Arab, AL

You can get to gate 1 in 20 minutes and if you live in the N. part of Arab, there will be only 1 traffic light until you get into H'ville. Once you reach H'ville there is only 2 lights (I believe) one of which is the street where you turn. I don't know if there are any lights on that road.

If you can find out where on the arsenal he will be working the folks here can help you figure out where to live.

BTW.. that neighborhood near the gate on Patton, I lived there back in the mid 60s. I think we paid something like $20K for our house.