Questions about Mechanicsburg, Camp Hill and Carlisle (Harrisburg, Hanover: how much, houses)

[2001sorin]

Moving to the area and would like to live in one of these areas? Pros and Cons of each? Places to avoid living?

Traffic seems congested in Camp Hill, Carlisle seem a little more tolerable. Our Market and Main the busiest streets in Mechanicsburg? Would they be okay to live on?

Any help would be great!

[CHIP72]

All three of those towns are nice, with Camp Hill probably being the priciest and closest to Harrisburg and Carlisle (IMO) being the nicest but furthest from Harrisburg. One issue with Carlisle (and to a lesser degree with Mechanicsburg and Camp Hill) is there is a lot of truck traffic on Interstate 81, and Carlisle is a distribution hub, though most of the major facilities are located west of town. (Actually the entire Harrisburg area is a distribution hub, but Carlisle, located near two major truck routes in I-81 and the PA Turnpike, is a particular focus area.) Camp Hill especially and Mechanicsburg to a lesser degree can have a good bit of traffic on the major streets, and you'll want to avoid living along one of those streets for that reason.

[ki0eh]

For some reason I think Simpson St gets the most congested in Mechanicsburg Borough. Camp Hill Borough isn't so bad except for the US 11-15 32nd St "bypass" (another example of PENNDOT short-sightedness in the early 1960s) which can usually be avoided if one of your destinations is in the Borough itself and the other one isn't on 15 south of town.

Carlisle Borough is usually less congested except during the big car shows. The local congestion irritant is the "Miracle Mile" of Middlesex Twp, the stretch of US 11 between I-81 and the PA Turnpike (I-76), according to the Township website the second busiest stretch of road for trucks in the USA FAQ (http://www.middlesextownship.com/FAQ/tabid/62/Default.aspx - broken link) and one can use side roads around much of that if you have to get on the Turnpike.

The perception of congestion depends dramatically on one's point of reference.

[2001sorin]

Thanks. The wife really likes the camp hill and lemoyne areas. Even though the neigborhoods are very nice I'm concerned about a daily commute down 15 south each morning from those locations.

Traffic on 15 in Camp Hill reminds me of philadelphia, and not something that excites me.

Mechanicsburg and Carlisle seem a little more my speed. Mechanicsburg being nice because it would be a close commute.

There are some nice old houses on Main and Market, but not sure I would buy if traffic is similar to route 15 in Camp Hill of Hanover st in carlisle.

[DoubleHelix]

Are you looking to buy or rent? In the area of Bethany Village (Wesley drive off 15) their are quite a few nice places to live. I would not live on any major thoroughfares. Mechanicsburg becomes congested when the Navy Depo employees leave. 11/15 is becoming better due to a major overhaul between wesley drive/15 and the camp hill bypass. Most of the time 15 can be bypassed by side roads....

[Kit624]

Well Camp Hill traffic is truly pretty insane, but going north into the city moreso than south so you might be okay.

Side roads are true EXCEPT for that 15 drag through Lemoyne to Hbg, if you are trying to go the direct way.

I like Lemoyne and if I ever moved back MEchanicsburg is as far as I would go out. Carlisle is great, but it is pretty far from the city.

[ki0eh]

What location are you trying to commute to? It's hard to avoid the US 15 crossing of the Turnpike coming from Camp Hill because Old Gettysburg Road was severed at the Turnpike - would have been nice if they had at least restored a bike path connection between the two ends when they just redid the multimillion dollar interchange there 3 years ago but alas that didn't happen.

It's a little hard to say how much the US 11/15-PA 581 interchange rehab will really do for Camp Hill traffic, it may help a little to resolve the outbound PM bottleneck by taking out the last light, inbound it should be at least a bit easier for I-83 bound traffic to get away.

What's probably needed is a vertical grade separation to make the Camp Hill "bypass" a real bypass, as happened recently on NY 17/I-86 in Horseheads, NY, but I can't see that one in the cards as the homes and commercial properties on one side or the other of 32nd Street would have to go.

[2001sorin]

So looking to buy, but may not happen given the market right now. I will be working in Dillsburg.

Trying to find an old house, that's not a money pit, but not much on the market in that regard.

[Kit624]

I imagine if your wife likes Camp Hill, she doesn't want to actually live in Dillsburg or Wellsville hahaha!

If you're going to Dillsburg daily, I would choose Carlisle, as I think your commute would be much easier--you can take that back road if I remember correctly so you could avoid the highway.

ALso, have you considered Grantham? It's a bit of a bedroom community, very quiet, and a bit more expensive than the others probably, but it is PRIME location--you are only about ten/fifteen minutes to the Camp HIll area but you are also only a few from dillsburg. Kind of in the middle. Can still get land there too if you want, I believe.

[ki0eh]

Boiling Springs is an attractive community (I often wish I still lived there) and pretty close to Dillsburg on the back back road. South Middleton schools seem to elicit few complaints but right across the Appalachian Trail in Monroe Township is Churchtown (with Boiling Springs address) in the oft-recommended Cumberland Valley schools. Dillsburg Boro and especially surrounding Carroll Twp have fairly serious growth management issues by area standards.