The suburbs (Katy) have more traffic congestion than the City limits (Houston: homes, transfer)

[swopoe]

Originally Posted by Wasir

Most wives in Katy are stay at home soccer mom types, they don’t go to work and yes what you proposed in your last paragraph would really make a difference.

Seriously? Kids have no activities after school so only commuters can be on the road? Do you have any idea how selfish you sound?

[Zoo2000]

I do agree with you re: 99. It's always back up between 1093 and I10. Also, there are some choke points (i.e. Cinco Ranch Blvd by La Centerra, Fry @ 99, etc).

I do NOT agree re: Katy Freeway. I actually think it moves pretty fast. Do you guys remember what I-10 was like before the reconstruction/widening project. Think I45 but worse. I live way out in Fulshear, and my commute to Energy Corridor in traffic rarely ever exceeds 45 minutes. A 45 minute commute in a city of 6 million + people ain't bad.

My recommendation: Audible, podcasts, Satellite radio. Embrace the commute.

[Wasir]

Originally Posted by Zoo2000

I do agree with you re: 99. It's always back up between 1093 and I10. Also, there are some choke points (i.e. Cinco Ranch Blvd by La Centerra, Fry @ 99, etc).

I do NOT agree re: Katy Freeway. I actually think it moves pretty fast. Do you guys remember what I-10 was like before the reconstruction/widening project. Think I45 but worse. I live way out in Fulshear, and my commute to Energy Corridor in traffic rarely ever exceeds 45 minutes. A 45 minute commute in a city of 6 million + people ain't bad.

My recommendation: Audible, podcasts, Satellite radio. Embrace the commute.

45 minutes is considered a long commute. You might think it isn’t bad but in reality it is. Your not encountering 6 million+ people from Fulshear to Energy Corridor. That would be the entire Houston metro area.

A decent commute shouldn’t exceed 15 minutes without traffic or 30 minutes with traffic

[Redlionjr]

Originally Posted by AcresHomes44

It's hard for me to sympathize with those who have brutal commutes into the city when they make a conscious choice to live in the suburbs. Yes, you may get better schools and cheaper housing, but the lengthy commute isn't worth it. Where I live, I'm 2 miles from everything and wouldn't have it no other way. I deal in common sense thinking, live close to where I work.

I don't agree with this "logic" at all. In some cases people are not lucky enough to afford to live in a desirable area/have their kids go to a good school and work close to home. Not everybody is that fortunate to have all 3 of those options. What if you have a really good paying job but it's in a skeptical part of town? What if you can't afford the houses in the neighborhood next to your job? People have to make sacrifices to provide the best outcome for their family which is a safe neighborhood, good schools and a decent paying job. So the common sense thinking is I might have to endure a long commute if it means keeping food on the table. It's not that easy to chose a job either. Sometimes you get whatever job offers the most and try to figure out everything that comes with a long commute down the line.

I know in my case me and my wife decided to move back to Houston after our child was born to be closer to family. I was promised I would get a higher paying position with my company if I transferred to Missouri City. We didn't have a place set up because my wife wasn't working(just had our child) and I had to stay back in Atlanta for a couple of months till our lease was up so I suggested she move in with my mother-in-law in The Woodlands. Plus we could save up some money for our own place. So by the time I moved back to Houston I had a hour and 35 min commute from The Woodlands to Mo City 5 days out of a week because I had to keep food on the table and had no other option at that time. So it was literally either stay in Atlanta and miss precious time with my family, move back to Houston and not take the position due to commute, or suck it up and do what I had to do for a couple of months till I was able to switch to a closer location. I'm not looking for empathy or anything but it's not always as easy as you make it out to be especially when you have a family.

[AcresHomes44]

Originally Posted by Wasir

Your location says Willowbrook so your one to talk about suburb living and how exactly are you 2 miles from “everything”?

Willowbrook is in NW Houston, which means it's within Houston city limits. Chasewood Technology Park, where I work is in close proximity to where I live, close proximity to Bush Intercontinental Airport
Close proximity to upscale neighborhoods
Close proximity to dining, shopping, and entertainment. Including Vintage Park and Willowbrook Mall, and easy access to Beltway 8, 249, 290 and 610.

[lhafer]

Originally Posted by Redlionjr

I don't agree with this "logic" at all. In some cases people are not lucky enough to afford to live in a desirable area/have their kids go to a good school and work close to home. Not everybody is that fortunate to have all 3 of those options. What if you have a really good paying job but it's in a skeptical part of town? What if you can't afford the houses in the neighborhood next to your job? People have to make sacrifices to provide the best outcome for their family which is a safe neighborhood, good schools and a decent paying job. So the common sense thinking is I might have to endure a long commute if it means keeping food on the table. It's not that easy to chose a job either. Sometimes you get whatever job offers the most and try to figure out everything that comes with a long commute down the line.

I know in my case me and my wife decided to move back to Houston after our child was born to be closer to family. I was promised I would get a higher paying position with my company if I transferred to Missouri City. We didn't have a place set up because my wife wasn't working(just had our child) and I had to stay back in Atlanta for a couple of months till our lease was up so I suggested she move in with my mother-in-law in The Woodlands. Plus we could save up some money for our own place. So by the time I moved back to Houston I had a hour and 35 min commute from The Woodlands to Mo City 5 days out of a week because I had to keep food on the table and had no other option at that time. So it was literally either stay in Atlanta and miss precious time with my family, move back to Houston and not take the position due to commute, or suck it up and do what I had to do for a couple of months till I was able to switch to a closer location. I'm not looking for empathy or anything but it's not always as easy as you make it out to be especially when you have a family.

Doing a commute like that for a period of a few months is nothing like doing a commute like that because you choose to buy a house that far from your job.

But I do agree with you on your logic. There are other factors that do come into play when it comes to work and where you live. I would love for my husband to have a shorter commute. Currently it’s 30-60 minutes or so in rush hour depending on traffic/accidents. But we chose to live near my daughters’ school, which is a private school for kids with learning disabilities. And we chose highly rated public schools for my younger daughter - luckily both schools are within 1.5 miles of my house. So we live on the west side of Houston and my husband works on the East side because that’s what works for us. It would be great if he could work downtown, which would be 15-20 minutes, but that’s not an option right now.

[Arepa]

Originally Posted by AcresHomes44

It's hard for me to sympathize with those who have brutal commutes into the city when they make a conscious choice to live in the suburbs. Yes, you may get better schools and cheaper housing, but the lengthy commute isn't worth it. Where I live, I'm 2 miles from everything and wouldn't have it no other way. I deal in common sense thinking, live close to where I work.

This.
Why complain if it was your decision? Seems like you already know what to do.

[DavePa]

No matter how ~ W I D E ~ you widen this..... already the most lanes I believe anywhere in stretches.

Never will be enough.
Suburban sprawl is still
expanding and more vehicles
WILL get on it from further out ...

[WRM20]

Originally Posted by Wasir

Most wives in Katy are stay at home soccer mom types, they don’t go to work and yes what you proposed in your last paragraph would really make a difference.

Ah, so you are more important than your neighbors, simply because you are coming home from work. That's pretty arrogant. The streets are public, and available to all, at any time.

Originally Posted by Wasir

45 minutes is considered a long commute. You might think it isn’t bad but in reality it is. Your not encountering 6 million+ people from Fulshear to Energy Corridor. That would be the entire Houston metro area.

A decent commute shouldn’t exceed 15 minutes without traffic or 30 minutes with traffic

That's not really rational. I had a 10 to 15 minute commute, then my employer moved the office, and my commute is now 45 minutes to an hour. I love my job and I love where we live, so I tolerate the commute. It helps to be in a van pool, so I am not doing all the driving.

We live in the Greater Heights area, and have less traffic than most, but getting Downtown, the Galleria, or Medical Center is going to take more than 15 minutes, regardless of traffic.

[SugLandDAd]

Years ago I lived in Katy, and worked in the Energy Corridor, and it was about a 20 min commute. So I lived in the suburbs and yet still had a reasonable commute to work.These days I don't often take I-10 in from Katy towards Houston, and I suspect the commute may have gotten longer, but since the expansion was completed, traffic seems reasonable for the outskirts of a big city.

The Grand Parkway between 1093 and I-10 however is a congested mess pretty much any day of the week. This isn't really reasonable. A great many houses have gone in, for which, there are not a lot of easy alternative routes to taking The Grand Parkway North to I-10. Housing developments were approved, roads were not improved to stay ahead of the growth. The failure to widen that roadway sooner, or find some other way to deal with the growth they themselves created, was a lapse on someones part.

Its reasonable to be upset at that failure.

What is and isn't a reasonable commute is a decision we each come to individually, based on our needs, and whats going on with our lives. Doesn't help to judge others.