Vienna to Shirlington? (Arlington, Idylwood, Falls Church: bus, rating, best)

[penandpaper]

What is the best was to get from Vienna to Shirlington during am rush hour? How bad is it? Thanks for any info.

[Zack]

66 to glebe to shirlington rd or take the orange line to Ballston and catch the 23a, 23c, 22a, or 10b bus to shirlington; the bus wait isn't more than 5-10 mins during rush hour. If you drive alone you will have to take 50 or the GW parkway which could be slow going.

[saganista]

Depends some on where in Vienna you'd start from, but most likely you'd want to end up running across either Idylwood or Shreve Road through Falls Church to pick up either Old Dominion or Washington Boulevard to Glebe Road, then heading south to Shirlington as above. If you had a passenger, you'd still want to stay off I-66 outside the Beltway, but you could then just take Idylwood across to Route-7 and hop onto (HOV-protected) I-66 from there to Glebe Road, which would be a nice plus...

[penandpaper]

If you are alone and use route 50 or the GW parkway, how long does that take? How long is the bus ride. Thanks for your help.

[Zack]

The bus ride is about 10-15 mins from Ballston. Last time I took 50 it took me over 45 minutes to get to the beltway from Arlington and the GW Pkwy gets backed up all the time and is out of your way. You might want to try Saganistas route instead if you drive alone.

[dkf747]

If you're using 50 take the George Mason Dr exit and turn right. Follow thaqt to 4 mile run and turn left. Much easier than Glebe.

[saganista]

That might be a good idea. You could pick up George Mason off of Washintgon Blvd as well. Would at least bypass some of the more frustrating lights that Glebe has to offer...