Germantown to Silver Spring Commute info (Bethesda, Gaithersburg: transfer, school, living in)

[Luis832]

Good morning, first I should start by saying that I am originally from the MD suburbs. I Grew up in Rockville and lived there for over twenty years so i am fully aware of the traffic nightmare that is the DC area. 5 years ago I moved to the Raleigh/Durham area and have been very happy here. Now I have taken a job in downtown Silver Spring and I am going to be living in Germantown. I was wondering if someone could let me know what kind of commute times I should expect. I won't be taking metro because I would like to keep some of my hard earned cash and as we all know rush hour metro is prohibitive. Oh, I should also mention that I am a single parent with two grade school kids that will need to be droped off picked up at school.

Thanks

[rsh56]

Expect an hr or so for driving. 270S in the am isn't great. When you get to 495 it gets better. However, in that same time or less, you can actually ride the MARC commuter train as Germantown and SS has MARC stations on the same line. The only difference is that you save more on gas and less wear and tear on your car. Though this may only work if you are a quick bus ride or walk to either MARC stations.

[Joykins]

I know people who take the I-270 express bus and then one of the Metrobuses (J2?) across to Silver Spring. If you do that it takes more than an hour on most days, I'd think. Might be cheaper than the MARC train or driving though--you'd have to price it out. 1hour average for driving during rush hour sounds about right--I usually tell people that commute reliably takes between 45 minutes and 1.5 hours.

[rsh56]

Originally Posted by Joykins

I know people who take the I-270 express bus and then one of the Metrobuses (J2?) across to Silver Spring. If you do that it takes more than an hour on most days, I'd think. Might be cheaper than the MARC train or driving though--you'd have to price it out. 1hour average for driving during rush hour sounds about right--I usually tell people that commute reliably takes between 45 minutes and 1.5 hours.

Sounds like they took the 70 RideOn to Bethesda then transferred buses in Bethesda to the J2 to SS.

Though I'd prefer OP would take commuter rail or the option you mentioned. You could be burning tons of gas and wearing the car out just by sitting in traffic.

[Joykins]

Originally Posted by rsh56

Sounds like they took the 70 RideOn to Bethesda then transferred buses in Bethesda to the J2 to SS.

Though I'd prefer OP would take commuter rail or the option you mentioned. You could be burning tons of gas and wearing the car out just by sitting in traffic.

Yes or the J7/J9 from Gaithersburg (depending where in Germantown you are this could be an option) then the J2.

[Luis832]

It sounds like maybe taking the job back in DC might not be such a good idea after all. With the housing cost, before and after school care cost and the commuting time and expense my supposed pay increase ends up being a negative, not to mention that if that is what I am supposed to do just to get back and forth to work I'm not going to have any time to spend with the kids.

[Joykins]

would it be possible to live closer to Silver Spring?