help me,about I66 early morning traffic (Alexandria, Manassas: house, depreciation)

[maggie85_11]

I lived at Manassas Park 20111 and my job at Crystal city. My work time is 6:30AM so I think maybe I need start off 5:30 AM from my home.I want to know how about the traffic at I66 in that time? busy traffic or is ok?
Or could u give me a good suggest how to go to crystal city?Thank you very much!!!!!!

[kevinm]

Take the VRE to Alexandria (40 minutes max) and then walk across the street and get on the metro. You will have time, money, and your SANITY!!! I loved the VRE when I used to commute from Manassas City to LeEnfant Plaza. I could sit in comfort and read the paper.

[VRE332]

Originally Posted by kevinm

Take the VRE to Alexandria (40 minutes max) and then walk across the street and get on the metro. You will have time, money, and your SANITY!!! I loved the VRE when I used to commute from Manassas City to LeEnfant Plaza. I could sit in comfort and read the paper.

Go kevin!!

[knopfler]

Seriously, the advice for the VRE is solid. (Virginia Railway Express Home Page) However, here's some more detail based on the information provided.

You can catch the train at the Manassas Park station at 5:56am and arrive at Crystal City at 6:43. This won't work if you need to be there at 6:30. Therefore I'd catch the 5:16am and arrive in Crystal City at 6:01, grab some breakfast, walk to your office, chill out, maybe even negotiate your start time to 6:15 so you can leave 15 minutes earlier in the afternoon. The schedule I grabbed this from is at Service Information - Virginia Railway Express.

Monthly fare is $204.60, which sounds like a lot. (http://www.vre.org/service/fares.htm) However (broken link), the drive is 30 miles each way, or 60 miles per day. 60 miles per day x 20 workdays a month is 1200 miles. 1200 miles on a car that gets 25mpg times $2/gallon is $96. Add in the additional incremental maintenance and car value depreciation for the extra 14,400 miles/yr on the vehicle and you're at around $150/month or more by any reasonable estimate for maintenance. So: You'll save your sanity for about $50/mo. If your new company has SmartBenefits, then it becomes (even more of) a no-brainer. (Service Information - Virginia Railway Express (http://www.vre.org/service/smartbenefits/faq.html - broken link))

A note: I-66 inside the beltway is HOV ONLY after 6am. You wouldn't be able to drive on I-66 to get to Crystal City - you'd have to take Route 50, or swing around on the Beltway and come up Route 1. This is another reason to consider VRE in your case.

I hope this helps!

[Newk]

Knopfer got the info on lock. One rep.

[rwb1]

I commute from Haymarket (exit 40) to Vienna Metro (exit 62) everyday. I leave the house at 6AM and am at the metro by 6:30. Leaving earlier should shorten the commute a little as the traffic will be lighter.

Originally Posted by maggie85_11

I lived at Manassas Park 20111 and my job at Crystal city. My work time is 6:30AM so I think maybe I need start off 5:30 AM from my home.I want to know how about the traffic at I66 in that time? busy traffic or is ok?
Or could u give me a good suggest how to go to crystal city?Thank you very much!!!!!!

[duckz]

Originally Posted by knopfler

Seriously, the advice for the VRE is solid. (Virginia Railway Express Home Page) However, here's some more detail based on the information provided.

You can catch the train at the Manassas Park station at 5:56am and arrive at Crystal City at 6:43. This won't work if you need to be there at 6:30. Therefore I'd catch the 5:16am and arrive in Crystal City at 6:01, grab some breakfast, walk to your office, chill out, maybe even negotiate your start time to 6:15 so you can leave 15 minutes earlier in the afternoon. The schedule I grabbed this from is at Service Information - Virginia Railway Express.

Monthly fare is $204.60, which sounds like a lot. (http://www.vre.org/service/fares.htm) However (broken link), the drive is 30 miles each way, or 60 miles per day. 60 miles per day x 20 workdays a month is 1200 miles. 1200 miles on a car that gets 25mpg times $2/gallon is $96. Add in the additional incremental maintenance and car value depreciation for the extra 14,400 miles/yr on the vehicle and you're at around $150/month or more by any reasonable estimate for maintenance. So: You'll save your sanity for about $50/mo. If your new company has SmartBenefits, then it becomes (even more of) a no-brainer. (Service Information - Virginia Railway Express (http://www.vre.org/service/smartbenefits/faq.html - broken link))

A note: I-66 inside the beltway is HOV ONLY after 6am. You wouldn't be able to drive on I-66 to get to Crystal City - you'd have to take Route 50, or swing around on the Beltway and come up Route 1. This is another reason to consider VRE in your case.

I hope this helps!

HOV inside the beltway starts @ 6:30am, not 6:00. If you are arriving at your desk by 6:30am, driving will probably be the fastest way, taking I66 all the way to 110/1. I would try both the train and driving to see which one works best for you. I live in Fairfax and my office is moving to Crystal City so I will be experimenting with vienna metro vs. burke VRE in.

High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) Systems
Inside the Beltway
Both lanes are reserved for HOV-2 eastbound in the morning and westbound in the afternoon.
From: Capital Beltway (Interstate 495)
To: Theodore Roosevelt Bridge
Days: Monday - Friday
Eastbound: 6;30 a.m to 9:00 a.m.
Westbound: 4 p.m. to 6:30 p.m

[fabinva]

I leave Bristow at 5:30am and arrive in DC usually by 6:30am, that's driving by myself exiting rt 66 at Nutley st and taking rt 50 because of HOV restriction.
VRE is good but takes longer and if you miss the train you'll have to wait a long time for next one.