[abs39]

I'm going to be working in Waterbury and thinking of living in the Hartford area. I have heard that the traffic is very bad at rush hour. I just wanted to find out how bad it really is, i.e. commute time etc. Is there any time in the morning/evening when you can avoid the worst traffic? Thanks.

[Rich Lee]

Originally Posted by abs39

I'm going to be working in Waterbury and thinking of living in the Hartford area. I have heard that the traffic is very bad at rush hour. I just wanted to find out how bad it really is, i.e. commute time etc. Is there any time in the morning/evening when you can avoid the worst traffic? Thanks.

Where in Waterbury will you be working? I don't believe that your morning commute (West Hartford to Waterbury) will be all that bad. However, getting on I-84 East toward West Hartford from WEST OF ROUTE 8 can be a bit of a pain from 5:00 - 6:00 pm (worse on Thursdays and Fridays). However, this congestion lasts from Exits 23 to 25A. After that, it opens right up!

[sunshinecities]

The commute would take you on Rt. 84E - that can get very busy after 3 -3:30p.m. Yet, it's not like in L.A. or anything - I'm guessing it's about a 20 mile commute - but when it's busy hard to say. You see around Chesire (not far from Waterbury) there is construction that will soon be going on. They had made the road wider and it was quite good BUT apparently there was some type of drainage problem and the state has to redo it all over again!!! So, that will cause delays. Hope this helps some.

[Iska]

Originally Posted by sunshinecities

You see around Chesire (not far from Waterbury) there is construction that will soon be going on. They had made the road wider and it was quite good BUT apparently there was some type of drainage problem and the state has to redo it all over again!!! So, that will cause delays. Hope this helps some.

This very dangerous construction has been going on for years. Do they ever plan to complete it?

[abs39]

I'm going to be working at St. Mary's Hospital. Seems like exit 22 on 84. I'm just trying to get an idea of how long the commute would take starting out between 6-6:30 am and returning home probably between 5:30-6:30 PM.

[Rich Lee]

Originally Posted by abs39

I'm going to be working at St. Mary's Hospital. Seems like exit 22 on 84. I'm just trying to get an idea of how long the commute would take starting out between 6-6:30 am and returning home probably between 5:30-6:30 PM.

The morning commute won't be a problem. The evening commute has the potential to be hectic (as a rule, Thursdays and Fridays more than other days) but only to about Exit 25 or 25A.

At the moment, construction isn't in progress. But that will change...as mentioned above...to fix a few boo boo's.

[boby2]

Every time I have driven through that area during the afternoon I have been buried in traffice

[sun]

On the way home you might consider taking Route 69 through Wolcott. In Wolcott you can still detour another route to I-84 or continue to Bristol and then West Hartford. There are some alternate routes to learn once in Bristol too. At least you can always hop onto I-84 after taking Pine Street to Forestville. This used to be a route used by a commercial bus from Waterbury via Bristol some years ago, and that's how I learned about it. The detour from Wolcott to I-84 goes down a long steep hill but it's a good road. Route 69 shouldn't be too bad of a route overall, and even going on to Bristol would work out for you. Good luck and let us know how it works out.

[abs39]

Thanks for all of the response. I still haven't made up my mind about where to live. Does anyone know of any safe and affordable apartment complexes in the Waterbury area, in case I can't deal with the commute?