Commute from downtown Austin to Temple (Round Rock, Victoria: apartment, rent, condos)

[jacst3r]

There is a job prospect in Austin for me which requires me to spend 2 days in UT Austin and 3 days up north in Temple. I am from LA and currently living near DC metro area. I am more of a city-gal living with a very much city-boy. We prefer to live in an area that has walkable bars and restaurants. Food is definitely a big deal for us (I love ethnic/fusion food).

After some research, I think it would be nice to live in downtown and Clarkville/old west Austin areas (hopefully walking distance to UT). I am trying to figure out how difficult is the drive from downtown Austin to Temple. I understand it will take about an hour, which I don't mind as long as it is a smooth ride without stop and go traffic (anywhere in LA takes about that long during rush hour).

How bad is the northbound traffic on I35 going away from downtown?

Is there any bustling area north of downtown you would recommend for active young professionals (late 20's and early 30's) to live in?

p.s. We love to travel, so somewhere closer to the airport would be nice too.

Thanks!

[JoninATX]

Hate to break it to you but your going to get stuck in traffic almost anywhere you go in Austin especially on IH 35. My best advise is to leave almost 2hrs earlier if your heading out. As for living I would try SoCo just south of downtown past the river which offers alot, also try downtown which offers everything bars, restaraunts, Art gallerys, theaters, ect.. It all depends on what you are looking for.

[Austin97]

Originally Posted by jacst3r

There is a job prospect in Austin for me which requires me to spend 2 days in UT Austin and 3 days up north in Temple. I am from LA and currently living near DC metro area. I am more of a city-gal living with a very much city-boy. We prefer to live in an area that has walkable bars and restaurants. Food is definitely a big deal for us (I love ethnic/fusion food).

After some research, I think it would be nice to live in downtown and Clarkville/old west Austin areas (hopefully walking distance to UT). I am trying to figure out how difficult is the drive from downtown Austin to Temple. I understand it will take about an hour, which I don't mind as long as it is a smooth ride without stop and go traffic (anywhere in LA takes about that long during rush hour).

How bad is the northbound traffic on I35 going away from downtown?

Is there any bustling area north of downtown you would recommend for active young professionals (late 20's and early 30's) to live in?

p.s. We love to travel, so somewhere closer to the airport would be nice too.

Thanks!

Going north on I35 is definitely doable. It is bad but not nearly as bad as inbound traffic. However I havent done that drive very often so I dont have a really good feel for how it does over time.

One thing to keep in mind is that we have no ethnic fusion food (well maybe one or two places).

If you come to austin you probably will need to change what you are looking for or you will hate it. Since you are from LA, austin is more like orange county (but maybe like just a couple of the cities - maybe irvine + santa ana). Our downtown is nicer than any of the orange county downtowns though, but still very small.

What austin is good for is small-er town feel, laid back pace of life and outdoors. You can be outdoors pretty much all year round (even in 100 degree heat). Most jobs will allow you to respect a work life balance.

[mark311]

Originally Posted by jacst3r

There is a job prospect in Austin for me which requires me to spend 2 days in UT Austin and 3 days up north in Temple. I am from LA and currently living near DC metro area. I am more of a city-gal living with a very much city-boy. We prefer to live in an area that has walkable bars and restaurants. Food is definitely a big deal for us (I love ethnic/fusion food).

After some research, I think it would be nice to live in downtown and Clarkville/old west Austin areas (hopefully walking distance to UT). I am trying to figure out how difficult is the drive from downtown Austin to Temple. I understand it will take about an hour, which I don't mind as long as it is a smooth ride without stop and go traffic (anywhere in LA takes about that long during rush hour).

How bad is the northbound traffic on I35 going away from downtown?

Is there any bustling area north of downtown you would recommend for active young professionals (late 20's and early 30's) to live in?

p.s. We love to travel, so somewhere closer to the airport would be nice too.

Thanks!

It's almost like you tailored this message to be the opposite of what Austin really is. At least you didn't mention that you need your apartment/house to be very affordable. Honestly, unless you're really open to some big changes, Austin is going to be a big adjustment for you. I don't mean to be overly negative, but coming straight from DC to Austin without stating that you want to experience a big change or you're tired of the big city life is a bit of a red flag.

With that said, maybe the Mueller development just East of I-35 would work for you as you could take the 130 toll road if needed. You definitely will not see a smooth ride every day even with a reverse commute. A little rain like we had today can make even a reverse commute painful in the Austin area. If you didn't have to commute to Temple three days a week, I'd be much more optimistic about you moving here, but I'd definitely put other options above this one with that commute. Three days a month would be alright, but that commute will get old quick.

Once you get past Georgetown, you shouldn't hit any more traffic, but with the way Round Rock keeps growing, you can definitely hit some traffic there in both directions. The 130 toll road would allow you to bypass all the traffic, but you can't really live in Clarksville or West of Lamar and walk to UT plus that puts the toll road out of reach. You could definitely ride your bike from there to UT if it isn't too cold or too hot during the summer.

[TexasHorseLady]

We live in the country outside of Jarrell, which is 15 miles north of Georgetown. We're 2 miles off the highway (our road goes straight to I35, no stops).

It takes us approximately half an hour to get to Temple during off-peak hours (depending on where in Temple we're going). It takes us 30 minutes to get to Round Rock. So, I'd say, during peak travel times, figure an hour and a half to get to Temple.

Off peak, much quicker, as I can get to our rent house in Barton Hills in South Austin in an hour from the ranch - I've timed it several times due to discussions on City Data. But, then, I avoid downtown like the plague to accomplish that.

[jacst3r]

Thanks for all of your responses.

I understand Austin is not going to be a big city with centralized amenities but I guess I was trying to look for a place with lots of independent mom/pop restaurants and shops nearby rather than those newly developed, posh, out-of-the-box, suburban trying to be urban, town-centers/condos/strip malls with a Starbucks at every corner. I see the commute as a compromise for the lifestyle in Austin. It would be nice at the end of the evening, after a long commute, to just walk down the street in jeans and t-shirts and grab a drink, rather than making a big production or fight through the rowdy college crowds. I don't mind biking to UT Austin as I could use the break from the long commute. Having public outdoor/sports amenities would also be very nice (without paying for ridiculous country club fees just to access the tennis court) since we are both quite active (day and night).

[mark311]

It sounds like you would like living in the part of Rosedale near Central Market or the other areas that you mentioned. You could take the shuttle/bus to UT during the days that you don't have to commute to Temple or possible ride your bike.

But, I think that every Austinite here would agree that even a reverse commute to Temple three times a week from Central Austin is just too far. You'll hate it. Unforunately, traffic in the Austin area is getting worse, not better. Toll roads have been built to try lessen it, but they couldn't be built in the most crucial areas due to existing infrastructure. Can you negotiate less days in Temple? One or two days a week could lessen the burden of that commute.

[verybadgnome]

Wherever you choose to live I would do a trial run for your commute to Temple. Too many move to this area and find out that first Monday that they chose the wrong part of Central Texas to call home. Then they call for more/expanded roads to make their commute quicker.....better to take matters into your own hands and try before you buy (or even rent).

[RooCeleste]

Ooh I would hate a thrice weekly commute to Temple and I live in Cedar Park, north of Austin! I definitely concur with a trial run first. I had a similar situation when I moved to South Texas. On a map, my drive from Victoria to Beeville (75 miles one-way, non-city traffic) didn't seem far, so I bought a house in Victoria and never made the drive to Beeville until my first day of work. I thought the drive was never going to end! I HATED that drive every single day I lived there - the wear and tear on my car and my body was unbearable, the cost of gas was outrageous even though I could get 28-30 mpg in my car, and I had no time to enjoy the new city where I was living. It was a fairly easy drive, in comparison to driving through Austin and Round Rock, because it was a state highway with no traffic other than Mexican convoys heading south and tractors, but it was still horrible. Think through your plan very closely!

[TexasHorseLady]

You might want to consider looking in Old Town in Georgetown. That would be a compromise on the commute, and you'd have access to Austin amenities, but you could also walk to the Square for a drink or dinner, or if you're in the right part, you could walk to San Gabriel Park or hike on the Goodwater hike and bike trail. Lake Georgetown is right there, too. UT isn't biking distance, but Southwestern University is. When you're testing the drive from Austin to Temple, check it out.

It's not a big city, it's a small town (about 50,000). But it might accomplish some of your goals.

Otherwise, resign yourself to a pretty grueling commute.