Commute time between Oak Ridge and Sequoyah Hills (Knoxville, Farragut: best neighborhood, real estate)

[mevasius]

Hi all,

My husband is pursuing a job opportunity in Oak Ridge, so we are considering moving to the Knoxville area in the not so distant future. From reading about it on this forum and others as well as looking at real estate listings, we think Sequoyah Hills would be a great neighborhood for our family. I know that it is about 20 miles from Oak Ridge and, based on Google Maps about a 30 minute drive, but I'm wondering what a realistic commute time would be when factoring in traffic.

We currently live in Northern Virginia where a 15 mile distance can turn into an hour commute and we really want to avoid a long commute should we move out there.

Any one that knows about or does that commute who could provide some information, it would be greatly appreciated!

[NJDevil]

what part of Oak Ridge? During rush hours, it would definitely be more than 30 minutes, wouldn't it, west Knoxville experts....

[mevasius]

My husband's job opportunity looks to be right in the center of Oak Ridge, off highway 62. I fear the commute to Sequoyah Hills might be too long, but any other feedback would be great. Thanks!

[Barking Spider]

More than 30 minutes on a good day.

[hiknapster]

It really depends. I live in west Fountain City and get to Hardin Valley in 20 minutes and back and both during rush hours unless there is an accident. Traffic around here isn't bad at all. It moves along.

[oldmanbob]

Congrats, and all depending on the time of departure. It will take about a normal 10 minutes to reach the Papermill and Weisgarber ramp, then usually about a 20 minute drive into Atomic City. You will face a little more traffic on Kingston Pike, and early in morning, not too bad. Once you get off 140, onto the the connector, should not be too bad. The Thp will slow you down and as you enter Solway, beware of the speed drop as the City of Oak Ridge patrols and get a lot of speeders. Good luck and have fun searching.

[BushyMule]

I agree with Hiknapster and live in the same area as her. I can get to Lovell Rd/Pellissippi in 20mins from North Knoxville. Thursday and Friday traffic may cause the commute to take a bit longer but unless you're going to live in OR then I wouldn't really worry about the commute time.

BTW, I LOVE Sequoyah Hills. I love the boulevard and, if I stay in Knoxville, have full-intentions to live there myself. Personally, I think it's the best neighborhood in Knoxville because it has a fantastic park along the river, loads of character and beautiful old homes, and is close to the social and cultural heart of Knoxville which is UT.

Congrats to the husband on the new job.

[mevasius]

Thanks, everyone, for your replies. Hold the congrats for a bit as he doesn't have the job yet but they are pursuing him pretty hard . We're just trying to decide if it would be a good move for our family. I'm really tired of the DC/NOVA congestion and his current commute is killing him.

I visited Knoxville as a child at the 1982 (?) World's Fair and remember it being a beautiful area. I'm originally from St. Louis and my folks are still there, so it would be nice to be within driving distance to see them, as well.

From what I've seen on the internet, Sequoyah Hills looks exactly like what we would want (I've already found a few "dream homes" there). We love older homes with lots of green space. And, we have a young daughter so the excellent elementary school sounds great. If there are any other comparable areas a little closer to Oak Ridge, I'd love to hear about them as well.

Thanks again for all your help!

[airen123]

Many people who consider Sequoyah Hills also look at Farragut/Bearden areas as well. Farragut would be the closest to OR, depending on each of the points. But the houses are definitely not older like Sequoyah's. As for the elementary, relativley all the Knoxville schools are good.
But if you do choose SH, traffic is nothing like DC/NOVA.

[DaveC20853]

As a former DC metro (Rockville Md) resident I can assure you that no matter where you live the commute to OR will be a brezze compared to DC/NOVA/MD.