Driving up to northeast - timing the departure

[C_Lan]

Originally Posted by poppydog

If you're going to upstate NY, or even if you're not going all the way up state, I know a lot of people who completely bypass the DC -NYC corridor area by going up to I-81 and taking that in.

Going to Saratoga. We drive 500 miles to E Stroudsburg and then take a very nice 4 hr drive to our destination the next day. On the way back we leave from the Potsdam area...try to stay off of 81 in PA as much as possible. I think it's worse than I95 with bad drivers.

[poppydog]

A relative has in-laws in Syracuse and they frequently take I-81 to bypass DC. I'm not sure of the rest of their route, but I've also seen that way advised many time on other sites. I-81 through Virginia is certainly more scenic than I-95 there. I've not been on I-81 in PA. I have been I-95 to NYC and 301 and the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel. 301 is nice if you don't mind hitting some traffic lights and slowing down that way. I got caught in a traffic jam coming home from DC last time I went on I-95 and it took me 3.5-4 hrs to get to Fredricksburg Va from Fairfax Co, Va. That theoretically should take an hour or so. The whole trip home from Fairfax Co, VA to Chapel Hill took 7.5 hrs.

[Voltige]

Originally Posted by C_Lan

On a related note, I had been doing my travels on Saturday mornings. How's the traffic on I-95 N on Friday mornings? I usually time it to be in the DC area at noon. So, I leave Cary at about 7:00 am. I take I-95 to just south of Philly and get off the head north.

On a Friday in August we left Cary at 5am and breezed right through Richmond, DC, and Baltimore. No Philly traffic either. It was perfect! We made it to Northern NJ for our scheduled stop by early afternoon.

The return trip was a nightmare through NJ. Avoid the NJ Turnpike at all costs. Horrific.

[michgc]

Originally Posted by C_Lan

On a related note, I had been doing my travels on Saturday mornings. How's the traffic on I-95 N on Friday mornings? I usually time it to be in the DC area at noon. So, I leave Cary at about 7:00 am. I take I-95 to just south of Philly and get off the head north.

I would try to leave earlier. Rush hour starts early in DC, especially on a Friday. So hitting it at noon on Friday could be a nightmare. It could be okay, too. Just never know. Getting there at 11 AM would be better.

Avoiding I-95 is great. What is it about I-81 that you don't like? We did it last Thanksgiving. And avoiding the DC/Baltimore/Philly corridor was awesome! Plus, it's a beautiful ride. We are doing it again this Thanksgiving, and we are heading just north of Philly, so it adds a good 1 1/2 hours to our trip, and it's still worth it to avoid DC and I-95 traffic, at least on a holiday.

[C_Lan]

Originally Posted by michgc

Avoiding I-95 is great. What is it about I-81 that you don't like?

I-81 through PA is at times a nightmare. We did that route 4 times and saw 3 fatality accidents. North of Harrisburg is OK, but from the PA border to harrisburg we've seen the worst driving skills of anywhere we've driven through.

If we do travel on 81 South we get off in Harrisburg and take 15S. Beautiful drive.

[michgc]

I would just leave Cary as early as possible then, but late enough that you don't hit morning rush hour into DC, which could last well past 9:30 AM. Traffic really is a 24/7 thing around DC, especially on a Friday if the weather is nice and everyone is heading out of town. Afternoon rush hour can start quite early (by 2 PM) - just a few hours after morning rush hour ends, in fact. And on Friday, people may cut out at noon.

One more thing - that I just thought of. If you are leaving THIS Friday, it is Yom Kippur starting at sunset, so you may have a lot of people cutting out early for that and heading up to NJ/NY, too. Something to keep in mind, anyway.

[MCeccarini]

We've gone up several times over the past 6 years we have lived here. We've found the best time to leave is around 6:30 pm drive for 4 1/2 -5 hours and make a stop in Maryland (most southern part - Jessup) and stay over at the Holiday Inn. - Start out around 9am and miss the Maryland/NJ traffic.

[mlhm5]

Originally Posted by jupiter

I usually leave early morning so that I can get through the DC/Baltimore area before lunch, but of course that sets me up for the late afternoon rush near NYC.

For my next trip up, I'm considering leaving around 3pm or so, which should get me to DC ~8pm, which I'm hoping will be clear sailing at that time. That departure time would put me in the Richmond area around their rush hour, but I'm hoping I-295 around Richmond (which I always take) rather than I-95 through Richmond will avoid any delays.

Thoughts?

I have made the drive many times and leave around 6PM. You will usually miss everything and arrive in no traffic.

[jupiter]

Originally Posted by poppydog

I have been I-95 to NYC and 301 and the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel. 301 is nice if you don't mind hitting some traffic lights and slowing down that way. I got caught in a traffic jam coming home from DC last time I went on I-95 and it took me 3.5-4 hrs to get to Fredricksburg Va from Fairfax Co, Va. That theoretically should take an hour or so. The whole trip home from Fairfax Co, VA to Chapel Hill took 7.5 hrs.

301 is definitely slower than I-95 if you there's no significant traffic/backups on I-95. But of course there is a LOT of variability with the I-95 route, and it's skewed to the downside. If I had to leave at a time that put me anywhere near DC during their very long rush hour, I would take 301.