Specific Questions about Traffic in Denver (Westminster, Thornton: apartment complexes, renting, townhome)

[Meaga828]

My family and I will be relocating from the southeast to the denver area next month. My husband will be working in the commerce city area. After some research online we decided to look into the Thornton, Westminster, Northglenn areas. I gave him a whole list of apartment complexes to look at in those areas. Once he got out there he was under the impression that he would deal with a lot of traffic issues commuting from commerce city to thornton. He now thinks he will be better off south of commerce city as far as traffic and commuting.

-Does anyone have any input on this?? It is hard to tell traffic congestion from the internet 1700 miles away. It looks like he will be taking I-25 to E270 to I70 if that helps?

So I reset my search, looking in the greenwood village/stapleton/lowry neighborhoods. However this is looking like it will bump up our budget a few hundred a month. He is under the impression that this will be a much more manageable commute for him, but on mapquest it looks like it is only 5 minutes shorter. -Does anyone know if the traffic is much better coming from south of commerce city from these areas??
-Also, any recommendations for apartment complexes? He looked at bridgewater yesterday and liked it (just to get an idea of what we are looking for- we will also have a newborn by the time of the move and a 2 yr old and a dog).

Any help would be so very much appreciated, as he only has today and tomorrow left to secure us a place!

[jwiley]

Personally I would not want to drive from anywhere north west of I-25 to commerce city in the early mornings, depending on the exact area of work. 270 is usually highly congested during both rush hours, as is I-25 from 104th down to the I-76/270 exit.

Then again i would not look at Greenwood Village either, you are then dealing with getting across Denver and that can be pretty bad on most days.

Lowry, stapleton, also there are some neighborhoods north between I76 and I25 that are alright, and if you know the main roads can be an easy drive into commerce city.

[mic111]

You don't give your budget but you may want to look at renting a house or townhome in Reunion. It is a very safe but a little bit isolated newer neighborhood. Your husband could take Tower rd south to work or go around the west side of Rocky Mountain Arsenal Wildlife Refuge.

I don't think your husband will want to be driving across the city so I wouldn't look at Greenwood Village but Stapleton and Lowry would be good to look at.

[reed303]

If the commute is your top priority, then Stapleton is probably best choice. He probably won't need to use the Interstates at all. Just go north on Quebec or Peoria or Havana or whichever. Also, if Thornton/Northglenn was of interest, look for a location as far south and as far east as possible, so you don't use the Interstates to get into CC either. Go east on main roads like 104th, 88th, whatever. then south on , maybe, Colorado Blvd. Just avoid getting mixed up with traffic going to downtown Denver, or DIA airport via the Interstates!!

[Willy702]

Southern parts of Thornton are not that far away, you could take the streets if necessary in 20-30 mins. However its not the best part of town either so not sure if it would be a good choice for you. Not necessarily dangerous, just lower income and aesthetically not pleasing. I second the idea of Reunion if you can find the right place there. If you can afford Stapleton even better.

[harrison21]

I live in Thornton around 104th and commute to Commerce City around 64th for work. It takes about 20-25 minutes. For the Denver area I think that's a pretty short commute. I leave around 7:45-8:00. I-25 is slow but you're moving the whole time and never just sitting there. 270 is absolutely jam packed so I avoid it. I take 25, take the ramp to 270, and then get off at the first exit to commerce city and drive through there to get to work instead of staying on 270 waiting for my exact exit. Traffic is definitely less up north than it would be trying to go from the south to commerce city. I like some of the southern areas of the city better but wouldn't move there because of the awful commute. Stapleton is very close, but was out of my prince range.

[cowboyxjon]

Depending on where you live in Thornton (eastern parts, with the Brighton mailing addresses), your husband could commute to Commerce City without using the freeways.