Commute to Quantico from Sterling/Dulles (Reston, Manassas: how much, townhouse, gated)

[mptesta]

I currently live and work in Sterling, right off of Rt 28, so my commute is 5 minutes to work. I was offered a job down at Quantico, with a $8k payraise. It would take me about an hour and 10 minutes to drive, one way to Quantico, taking Rt 28 south, to 66 west, to PW Pkway, then traversing through Manassas and Dumfries and getting to Quantico.

Does anyone make this commute, or similar commute, daily? Let's say leaving my house at 6am....what traffic would I encounter that would FUBAR the commute?

Thanks.

[oneasterisk]

Well I another alternative is once you're on 234, take Joplin road. It's a little winding 1 lane in each direction road, but it ends right in front of Quantico. I've been on 234 going westbound at 715am and the east bound traffic is minimal.

Bad thing with Joplin is if there is any accident or fire, it pretty much shuts down because it's a narrow road.

[mptesta]

Thanks...I drive a 4x4 truck (V6) as well so I was thinking last night the $8k raise would be negated by the cost of gas alone for that commute. Me and my girlfriend share a townhouse and she doesn't want to relocate closer to Quantico (she would lose a lot of money on her house if she sold it), hence I was considering the option of commuting.

[oneasterisk]

Figure out how much you'll end up paying extra on gas for the new commute and see if it's "worth it". Is the new job a better opportunity for advancement? What about getting a beater car or motorcycle for commuting?

[mptesta]

I'm a DoD govie, so they gave me a grade higher (from GS12 to GS13) and the difference is $8k. For advancement? Well me and the g/f are planning to escape noVA/DC region and move to somewhere less traffic congested in another 5 years so the only benefit I see is that when applying to another DoD agency elsewhere, I can compete for jobs at the the 13 or 14 level. It's not a guarantee though....both jobs are of the same type so the new job will be as interesting as the old job.

[Bigfoot424]

Originally Posted by mptesta

I currently live and work in Sterling, right off of Rt 28, so my commute is 5 minutes to work. I was offered a job down at Quantico, with a $8k payraise. It would take me about an hour and 10 minutes to drive, one way to Quantico, taking Rt 28 south, to 66 west, to PW Pkway, then traversing through Manassas and Dumfries and getting to Quantico.

Does anyone make this commute, or similar commute, daily? Let's say leaving my house at 6am....what traffic would I encounter that would FUBAR the commute?

Thanks.

That is definitely a longer route than what you need to do. Stay on Rt 28 into Manassas and turn left onto Liberia Ave. Stay on this all the way to RT 234 South towards 95. Take 95 south and exit on Rt 619 right at the entrance to Quantico. This is at least ten miles shorter than taking 66. If it's a morning commute you go against traffic all the way until you hit 234 Dumfries Rd. Then it's still not a bad road as traffic is going both ways. This is all at least 4 lanes all the way.

[hilsmom]

Ugh - my husband did the commute to Quantico for a while from North Reston (so, just south of sterling). He left at 6:30 am and it took him at least an hour and 15 minutes WITHOUT traffic. The drive home? Sometimes took 2 hours.

He hated it, and would not recommend it to others. I don't know if a payraise of $8K would be worth that aggravation.

[mikebnllnb]

The $8000 dollars extra works out to about $150 a week. When you take into account the extra 10+ hrs a week you'll be commuting to and from work it comes to about $15 dollars an hour you're getting paid to drive to work. And that's if your lucky enough to hit zero traffic. You'd be better off getting a part time job near home if you need the supplemental income. If your married or have kids I would stay as far away from this job as I could.

[Bigfoot424]

Originally Posted by hilsmom

Ugh - my husband did the commute to Quantico for a while from North Reston (so, just south of sterling). He left at 6:30 am and it took him at least an hour and 15 minutes WITHOUT traffic. The drive home? Sometimes took 2 hours.

He hated it, and would not recommend it to others. I don't know if a payraise of $8K would be worth that aggravation.

Um, which way did he drive? To Winchester then home? I can drive from Dulles to Quantico in non rush hour in 45-55 minutes. This is easily a reverse commute making me wonder what route he used to drive.

[hilsmom]

FFX Cty Pkway to 123, then 95. Maybe Dulles is a more direct shot somehow?