Working in Tysons. Live in McLean or Arlington/Ballston? (Alexandria: to live, restaurants)

[sohogrand]

Originally Posted by live_strong28

If you think LA is bad, this area can be worse. Ignore the stats...this is your reality.

LA is also lucky that they don't need to deal with the 4 seasons as we do. Snow, ice, torrential downpours, fog, tornadoes, etc. You name it, we got it.

Uh, I think it's already been established that traffic in that area can be bad. What I'm looking for now are options from people who live the Arlington/Ballston-Tysons commute daily or opinions from those who both work and live in the McLean/Tysons area.

[claremarie]

Originally Posted by sohogrand

I'll be across the street from the Galleria on Greensboro off International Dr.

Well, from that location you can take International Drive to 123, to Old Dominion or Glebe into Arlington.
Or you can head the other way on International Drive, to Springhill Road (going under the Toll Road), to Lewinsville which turns into Westmoreland, which will also take you into Arlington. Or you can get onto the Toll Road inbound to 66.

If you get an ADC map, you'll be able to see that there are multiple ways of traveling from your workplace to Arlington. You should be able to find a few that will be under 30 minutes.

[shinyguy]

I live in Arlington (near East Falls Church Metro stop) and work in Tysons, about 2 blocks from where you'll be working. Traffic is never a problem for me in the morning. The drive takes maybe 15-20 minutes. For some reason the evening is much worse. My drive home indeed involves crawling through traffic for the first several miles and can take up to 40 mins. As you get further away from Tysons into Falls Church and Arlington the traffic eases considerably, so only part of that afternoon drive is in stressful traffic. The commute from the Ballston neighborhood would be about 5 minutes longer than mine.

One site with some interesting information about Tysons Corner, including a traffic map (for the major roads) is Tysons Corner Visitor Information.

Hope this helps.

SG

[sohogrand]

Thanks SG, that helps a lot.

So I've been doing some apartment hunting and have expanded my radius to the Pentagon City/Crystal City area as nice apartments near the metros of the Ballston-Clarendon-Rosslyn corridor are very high. Found a great place in Crystal City near the Metro but am wondering about the commute as it's a bit farther away from North Arlington but on the plus side, it's right next to the 395 and the 110.

[klly417]

I believe You will LOVE the Ballston area. I lived there for a few years, and it was great. You will enjoy the day life and the night life. The access to the Metro is awesome, The Mall is walking distance, so is the library, shops, restaurants, church and Harris Teeter (grocery store) The mix of nationalities and culture in this area is wonderful, and hard to find the furthur out you get. I also love the amazing views of the city, if You choose to live in a high rise. We lived on the 20th floor, and I miss the awesome views.You will not have to worry about the daily traffic congestion, if you decide to live in Ballston, and just missing the traffic congestion is priceless.

[NOVAmtneer82]

I'm also in agreement that North Arlington is the place to go. I love living in Arlington. I've lived in Ballston, Court House, Rosslyn, and now I'm kind of on the Clarendon/Court House line. Although it is expensive even by Northern Virginia standards, it is well worth it to be within walking distance to the Metro and so many great bars, restaurants and shops.

A lot of people in Arlington work out in Tysons but given the size of the area it is sometimes hard to give exact estimates on commute times. For instance my office is along Route 7 close to the Beltway whereas other friends of mine work further back in Tysons towards the Dulles Toll Road. They have to go through a few additional stoplights and yes indeed it can sometimes take them 20 + minutes longer than me to get to their offices. For me the drive it is usually 20-30 minutes in the morning and in the evenings it can be closer to 40. The main culprits of course being Route 7 and I-66 heading into Arlington.

[sohogrand]

You all have convinced me! Ballston-Clarendon-Rosslyn corridor it is! Now to find a place...

Any way to gauge how much I should expect to spend for a 1 bdrm somewhere that is walkable to the metro?

[NOVAmtneer82]

Plan on spending at least $1400 per month or more if you want things like a community pool, washer/dryer in apt. work-out facilities, etc. There are exceptions to everything of course and some people do luck out, but that would be for the most part a standard rate.

Check craigslist also..sometimes you can find some deals for places in the $1100 to $1200 price range.

[v2009]

if you are planning to stay at your job for a while, I'd suggest living in McLean. It will save you hours of time, especially if you have family, would not you rather spend it with them than sitting in traffic.

If you are thinking of changing jobs - move to Arlington. In my opinion (and not only mine), it's the best place in the country. It's safe, fun, and has lots of job opportunities, and is close to DC. Real estate here is VERY expensive, but it's well worth it.

[irvine]

First look into Ballston, Clarendon, etc...

But for some less expensive options check out the adjacent neighborhoods:

There are new apartments near Buckingham Village on N Pershing Dr, near Ballston, but about a 15 minute walk to the metro. There are older renovated garden apartments on the east side of Glebe Rd much closer to Ballston--just look for the intersection of N Quincy St and N Glebe Rd.

The commute would be Glebe to Old Dominion and 123 and the other side streets as you wish.

Plenty of relatively inexpensive apartments in Westover Village in North Arlington, but it's about a 25 minute walk to Ballston (or a quick bike ride on the Custis Trail). Westover is more of a family oriented community, for a heads up, but you are right in the middle of Arlington.

From here you'd probably take Washington boulevard to Westmoreland to 123.

Your commute would not be that bad at all, and you can avoid all the freeways and the toll roads. And if you like driving, a short commute can be quite relaxing.