commute time west chester to southern nj (King of Prussia, Doylestown: tax rates, living in)

[luv.new.england]

I have been reading through the different posts here for a couple weeks now trying to get as much info. as I can about relocating to the Philly burbs. I currently reside in southern NH, but lived most of my life in the Boston suburbs.
My husband has a job opportunity in Southern NJ (pennsauken) and we have been looking at the communities in the Philly suburbs for relocation. I've heard lots of great things about Media - we visited last week and I did really like it. I have also heard nice things about West Chester....and it sounds a little more "country" which is what we are used to here in NH. I am wondering if it is realistic to think that someone could commute from West Chester to Pennsauken everyday? Google maps says that the commute is 59 minutes...but I have no idea what the traffic will be like...
Any thoughts??? Thanks

[Duderino]

Originally Posted by luv.new.england

Google maps says that the commute is 59 minutes...but I have no idea what the traffic will be like...
Any thoughts??? Thanks

A commute from West Chester to South Jersey on an average morning, being that you would be hitting Philly traffic head on, would likely take you at least an hour and a half. You'd primarily be taking routes 202 and 76, which both get very congested during the morning and evening rush hours. West Chester and Media are very nice areas (not as country as some may say, due to the increasing urbanization) but living in Media would definitely shave off about half an hour of commute. If that is not short enough, you may want to consider somewhere in South Jersey, which does have some nice towns (Cherry Hill, Voorhees, Deptford, to name a few areas). Keep in mind, however, that New Jersey does have higher tax rates than PA. Good luck in your search!

[rainrock]

I would agree with duderino. The commute would be closer to 75-90 minutes in rush hour. West Chester would be a tough daily commute, it's possible but
would get old pretty quickly imo.

Route 3 to 476 to 95 would be your best bet. You would want nothing to do with 76 which is a 20 mile long parking lot through Philly into NJ.

A mile north of Media the landscape gets very countryesque. The area around Ridley Creek State Park(Upper Providence-Edgemont) could easily pass for New Hampshire or Vermont without the big Mts of course. Theres a few flowing streams a lake and great hiking biking trails. That would take 15 -20 minutes off your commute.

Pennsauken always appeared a litlle rough around the edges to me but there are some beautiful tight knit small towns in South jersey right outside Pennsauken. Haddonfield,Moorestown,Voorhees,Mount Holly,Medford Lakes,Woodbury Heights,Gibbstown are outsatanding. They might be worth a look. I personally like the landscape of Pa. suburbs better but south jersey does a nice job with designing their small towns.

[luv.new.england]

Thanks for your feedback.
I have heard that about the NJ taxes
Would Bucks be a better commute for him? We did see some of Bucks County when we were there recently but seemed to like the Media area better.

[rainrock]

I personally think you are better off in the Media area.

Central Bucks and Upper Bucks County towards New Hope + Doylestown are very nice areas but the commute would be absurd. The Media area is a good central location and you'd only be 1/2 hour from Pennsauken. 20 minutes to Center City Philly , 20 minutes to West Chester, 20 minutes to King of Prussia, 20 minutes to the Mainline, 2 minutes from Ridley Creek State Park.

[Duderino]

Originally Posted by luv.new.england

Thanks for your feedback.
I have heard that about the NJ taxes
Would Bucks be a better commute for him? We did see some of Bucks County when we were there recently but seemed to like the Media area better.

Unfortunately, you would see the same kind of commute living in Bucks Co. Although you might be about 10-20 minutes closer to South Jersey, you're bound to hit some bad traffic on I-95. I'm not as familiar with Bucks as I am with Chester Co., but even if there was an obscure route that crossed into Jersey directly and bypassed Philly traffic entirely, it would take just as long because of the greater length. The only other option, which I would think would be quicker from PA, is to use public transportation. Here are the links to both SEPTA and NJ Transit to give you an idea of how that may work out:

http://www.septa.com/

http://www.njtransit.com/sf_tp_rc_camden.shtml (broken link) (shows routes to Pennsauken)

Hope everything works out for you.

[moneyguy]

In my opinion, your best bet is staying in South Jersey. Yes, the taxes are high, but the price tag is often lower, reflecting that high tax. There are areas in the Southwest part of Jersey, Gloucester County for example, that are quite "country". You would be looking at about a half hour to Pennsauken. I'd be happy to offer more information if you think it would even be a remotely possible interest.