Commute from Aldie, VA to Falls Church City (Reston, Centreville: houses, construction)

[Slightlysomething]

Hi---

I currently live and work in Falls Church City, but am looking to move out to an area where I can have a small amount of land and move my horse from my parents property.

I am looking in the Aldie/dulles area.

What kind of commute would there be? I would be leaving early (6:30) and would leave work by about 4....

Thanks for any help!

[Slightlysomething]

Also, what other areas should I look at? I have looked at homes in Nokesville as well, and it just seems like it would be a LOOOOONG commute for someone that had animals to care for in the AM and PM.

[the2bobs]

We just moved from Stone Ridge (Aldie) to Bristow/Gainesville and I like it so much more out here. Husband bought house in Aldie b/c he worked 5 miles down Rte 50 from our house. It could take him 45 min on avg to get to/from work if he didn't take a lot of back roads. It was awful. He did work 8:30-5. I worked in Reston and had to be on the road by 7am and heading home before 4pm to make the 18 mile drive in about 35 min.

Not sure where you're looking--if it's before or after the rte 15 circle? That used to be a huge mess, not sure how it is now but you had to avoid that area during rush hour.

Now it is nice and you can get some land further out in Loudoun Cnty--beyond Leesburg, maybe Hamilton, etc but that's a long commute and you'll be living off the Greenway. That's one of the reason we didn't even look at staying in Loudoun--btwn Toll Rd & Greenway, it costs a fortune to sit in traffic on Loudoun's hwys.

We were worried about moving to Bristow b/c of husband's commute but it's only added about 15 min to his commute each way (he leaves work at 5 and is home at 5:45).

I would suggest staying at your parents house and trying the commute some day.

[stuntmonkey]

Question for the2bobs (or anyone else who'd like to weigh in):

Would you mind elaborating on why the commute is better from Gainesville to Reston instead of Aldie to Reston?

I would expect that commuting from Aldie on Old Ox would be better than coming in from Gainesville, but I must be missing something. Please fill me in.

We are considering moving out to Aldie as well (Kirkpatrick Farms). I work in Centreville and would take Braddock to 28 to 29. Any opinions on this drive? I've driven it several times when I'd be driving and it took about 27-28 minutes each time.

Do you think my commute would be easier (or even the same) from Gainesville/Bristow? We could afford a much nicer house out there than we could in Loudoun County, so you've tapped into my curiosity here.

Opinions are appreciated.

[Claire2900]

My inlaws used to live off Poland (South Riding Reserves) and he said it could take 30 minutes to get to Pleasant Valley Rd. If you work in Centreville I would think it would make more sense to take Pleasant Valley to Lee Highway. I take 29 occassionally from Bristow (via Groveton) and it takes about 15 minutes to get thru the light at 234 and then its clear sailing thru Centreville. The commute west has improved dramatically in the evening since the new lanes have been opened thru Gainesville.

[the2bobs]

stuntmonkey: I'm doing the stay at home mom thing so no longer working in Reston. As for Braddock from Kirkpatrick Farms, that can be pretty rough. You can spend a while at the intersection of Gum Springs & Braddock during rush hour. There's a ton of construction vehicles out there, too. My husband used to take all the back roads to get into Chantilly (he's right off Rte 50 and Rte 28) and there was a lot of traffic on Braddock and it still took him about 30 min to go those 5 miles. I'm not really sure how he gets to work now but he's using a lot of back roads out here, too. His commute is a little longer but like you said, you can get a lot more house out here than in Aldie. The same houses start 100k higher out there. Also, I hated living out there b/c there was nothing out there--we had to go to Ashburn/Fairfax/Gainesville to do any shopping, except for grocery shopping. For some reason Aldie/S. Riding has an abundant supply of grocery stores! There aren't a lot restaurants out there and not much to do. I'm so much happier in Bristow; it has everything I need.

Not sure what your commuting hours are but my neighbors work something like 6'ish-3pm. He works in DC, has kids in the car (HOV) and leaves around 5:30am and gets home around 3:45. She works in Dulles and leaves at 5:30 and is home by 3:30. My husband leaves for work at 7:45 and is in by 8:30. Not too bad.

[Novamom06]

From Aldie to Falls Church at 6:30 am - if you are willing to take the Toll Rd/Greenway - would take you about 45 min - one hour max.