Lancaster to West Chester commute? (Philadelphia, Downingtown: 2009, rent, townhomes)

[JSap]

I saw a thread for a Downingtown -> Lancaster commute, but I wanted to be more specific. I am a young professional who will soon be working in West Chester. I am very interested in moving to Lancaster because of both the selection and pricing of homes (sub-200K, which is great!) I am a bit intimidated by the commute, however.

MapQuest lists it as approximately one hour, but I know that doesn't include traffic and so forth. MQ advised me to take Rt. 30 for a lot of the trip. If you want a specific map-out, I can supply it by using some of the homes I've looked at as a starting point. Regardless, what's the commute like? How long can I expect and what traffic conditions?

I have to be at work by 8:30 AM. I'm thinking if I get up by 6:30-6:45 AM and leave by 7 AM, I should have enough time, but will I? Any help will be appreciated. Thanks!

[DreamworksSKG]

A couple suggestions might be to take

Smaller less travelled routes

Another option using smaller - less travelled routes
would be

Take 30 E from Lancaster to Hartman Bridge Rd and turn R on
hartman Bridge Rd.
at 741 E - Strasburg Rd. turn R
Take 741 E to Strasburg on the Strasburg Rd.
Quick R after Jacksonville PA on 41 S and continue L on Strasburg Rd.
to Parkesburg
Take 372 through Parkesburg PA (still Strasburg Rd), to Stottsville and continue E on Strasburg Rd
Strasburg Rd to Marshallton---which hooks up with 162 E
to 162 E - Strasburg Rd. into West Chester
(this would be your quickest route probably with less traffic)
though its not on highways
----------------------------------------
another option would be:

New Holland Ave Northeast from Lancast
to route 23 E/N
at Holland Heights (also known as the New Holland Pike)(23)
go through New Holland , Blue Ball, Goodville, Churchtown, to Morgantown PA, and get on 76 E take 76 E to West Chester
would be about 12 miles on 23 to the interstate, and then about
another 15-20 to West chester on the highways

you'd have to exit at 312 onto 100 South
to West Chester
-------------------------
follow along in googlemaps

[DreamworksSKG]

I mapped this route out for you in mapmywalk.com
its 40 miles - one way but less hassle than the highway and less stress most likely
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MapMyWalk.com | View 08/09/2009 Route in Lancaster, Pennsylvania
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[JSap]

Originally Posted by DreamworksSKG

I mapped this route out for you in mapmywalk.com
its 40 miles - one way but less hassle than the highway and less stress most likely
-------------------------------------------------------------
MapMyWalk.com | View 08/09/2009 Route in Lancaster, Pennsylvania
-------------------------------------------------------------

Thanks very much.

How long do you think this would take?

[DreamworksSKG]

Not sure i'd suggest doing a couple test runs ---maybe on a off day you arent working drive in on AM And PM rush and then also - on a Sunday when you first do it to learn the route. Also try a coupe different routes See if your bookstore has a local area. map book you can keep in your car and use a highlighter to mark routes and shortcuts

[DreamworksSKG]

Amazon.com: ADC The Map People Lancaster County, Pennsylvania: Street Map Book (9780875308388): Books
Amazon.com: Metro Philadelphia, Pa Atlas (9780875307770): the Map People ADC: Books

[Kayee]

Our daughter lives in West Chester so we have tried many different ways. The drive down Rt 30 is horrible but you do miss the some of the Exton traffic that way. Rt 23 to RT 322 is a slow quiet drive, the kind to take if you have all day to get there.
I would think your fastest way would be Rt 30 to Rt 222 to PA Turnpike to Downingtown/West Chester exit. That is the only way we go anymore, but depending on the time of day sometimes we hit a lot of traffic in the Exton area where it intersects with Rt 30.
From the Denver entrance of the turnpike it takes about 40 minutes. A lot of people from the Denver/ Reamstown area make that commute every day. So it would depend on where you live in Lancaster and how long it takes you to get to Rt 222 & Denver to go that way.
Good luck!

[CosmicWizard]

JSap wrote: Lancaster to West Chester commute?

Rather you than me!

[LibraGirl123]

Originally Posted by CosmicWizard

JSap wrote: Lancaster to West Chester commute?

Rather you than me!

Yikes! My sentiments exactly!

[Jmorton]

You are looking at a long commute there...you are probably right in estimating about 1.5 hours each way during high traffic times. Not sure if that kind of long daily commute justifies the selection and prices of Lancaster homes. You could always rent and purchase later in Chester county. I've seen townhomes in the western suburbs of Chester Co. go for 200-250k (Downingtown, Thorndale). This would put you in a much more reasonable commute - maybe 20-30 minutes. If you look farther west on 322, like in Honey Brook, you can probably find TH's for under 200k. This would be around 45min. If you're set on Lancaster though, I would look in the northwest quandrant (n. of 30, adjacent to 222). I would advise getting a tunrpike express pass as that is really the only way to go. The other routes involve 1 lane roads at times and you risk getting stuck behind a truck or worse a horse and buggie. Goodluck!