[NewJeffCT]

How bad is traffic in the morning if one was driving 84 West into Danbury and had to take Route 7 South to get into Stamford?

[JayCT]

I haven’t driven it but I think it’s pretty slow. I-84 westbound in Danbury is slow to Route 7 south and Route 7 in Ridgefield and Wilton is a local road with lots of traffic signals that slow traffic. Finally once you get to the expressway section in Norwalk, you can move faster but then you will hit traffic on I-95 or the Merritt Parkway into Stamford. Not fun IMHO. Jay

[NewJeffCT]

Thanks Jay - looking for an alternative way to get from the Hartford area - Farmington Valley - to Stamford if the driver (not me) considers Route 8 to be too hilly and windy to feel comfortable.

[hvexpatinct]

I am a little rusty on my Fairfield County navigational skills, but if the goal is to avoid route 8, it would probably make more sense to take 84 to Newtown and then take 25 south to the Merritt.

[SteveM85]

I'd assume 91 to 95 was eliminated right off the bat? am I right? It might be the best option to downtown or the southern part believe it or not. Between RT 7 interchange tie ups then the High Ridge exit to lower Stamford stop and go crawls is an adventure in itself. Backroads through New Canaan's main arteries? forget it, the last thing you want to do is get caught in a snarl by the High School, Saxe, and Old Stamford Rd in the mornings, God forbid.
Google map it

[CTartist]

Originally Posted by NewJeffCT

How bad is traffic in the morning if one was driving 84 West into Danbury and had to take Route 7 South to get into Stamford?

I was born and raised in Stamford but now I am in Trumbull. When I was in Stamford I worked with a gal that lived in Brookfield. She was born and raised in Stamford too. She said the traffic was terrible coming to Stamford in Fairfield County on Route 7. I assume it still its. Here is how she used to come to work when there was no snow. Our company was on High Ridge Road. She would get on I-84 and then get to route 124 then to 137 which gets you into Stamford and High Ridge Road. This was more than 20 years ago so I don't remember how she got from I-84 to Route 124. She might have came down Route 7 for a little bit and then took Route 35 to 124. I think years ago Route 7 up near Danbury wasn't that bad at that time.

[NewJeffCT]

Originally Posted by CTartist

I was born and raised in Stamford but now I am in Trumbull. When I was in Stamford I worked with a gal that lived in Brookfield. She was born and raised in Stamford too. She said the traffic was terrible coming to Stamford in Fairfield County on Route 7. I assume it still its. Here is how she used to come to work when there was no snow. Our company was on High Ridge Road. She would get on I-84 and then get to route 124 then to 137 which gets you into Stamford and High Ridge Road. This was more than 20 years ago so I don't remember how she got from I-84 to Route 124. She might have came down Route 7 for a little bit and then took Route 35 to 124. I think years ago Route 7 up near Danbury wasn't that bad at that time.

Thanks - it looks like 124 would be West of Danbury, so the person would need to drive through Danbury to pick it up?

[kidyankee764]

Originally Posted by NewJeffCT

Thanks Jay - looking for an alternative way to get from the Hartford area - Farmington Valley - to Stamford if the driver (not me) considers Route 8 to be too hilly and windy to feel comfortable.

I would take 84 to 8 to the parkway.

[JayCT]

Originally Posted by kidyankee764

I would take 84 to 8 to the parkway.

I agree. I’m not sure what aversion this driver has to Route 8. Percent to a modern, well maintained expressway that provides an all expressway drive from the Hartford area to Stamford.

That said, depending where in the Hartford area they live, that would be a completely insane commute. It’s somewhere around 75 miles each way and they would have to drive through some pretty congested ares. I don’t have to tell you or anyone that knows our state that I-95 or the Merritt Parkway are the most congested in our state. I would want to drive it even if I lived 20 miles away, let alone another 55 on top of it. Jay

[hvexpatinct]

Originally Posted by JayCT

I agree. I’m not sure what aversion this driver has to Route 8. Percent to a modern, well maintained expressway that provides an all expressway drive from the Hartford area to Stamford.

That said, depending where in the Hartford area they live, that would be a completely insane commute. It’s somewhere around 75 miles each way and they would have to drive through some pretty congested ares. I don’t have to tell you or anyone that knows our state that I-95 or the Merritt Parkway are the most congested in our state. I would want to drive it even if I lived 20 miles away, let alone another 55 on top of it. Jay

I am not sure which parts of route 8 you are familiar with, but from Watertown down to Seymour it is elevated, twisty, has horrible sight lines, and is generally treated like a drag strip. It’s really difficult for someone who has vertigo or any issues with depth perception to drive that road unless they are super familiar with it.