Is commuting from Hillsboro to downtown Vancouver feasible? (home, transfer to)

[ownedbyshelties]

I generally work from home or take the Max to my downtown office, so I don't really know the traffic patterns very well. I'm considering applying for a job in Vancouver, near Esther Short Park. Is this an insane idea? As far as I know my only options are to drive or take the Max downtown and then transfer to C-TRAN, both of which sound like they'd take forever. Is there a better way, or is one of those not as bad as it sounds?

[texasdiver]

Originally Posted by ownedbyshelties

I generally work from home or take the Max to my downtown office, so I don't really know the traffic patterns very well. I'm considering applying for a job in Vancouver, near Esther Short Park. Is this an insane idea? As far as I know my only options are to drive or take the Max downtown and then transfer to C-TRAN, both of which sound like they'd take forever. Is there a better way, or is one of those not as bad as it sounds?

Google maps is very accurate in its estimate of driving times. Simulate your commute on your phone for the next couple of days. At 7 am or whenever you would be making the commute, run the route on your phone and see what the travel time is and where the red spots are. Do the same thing for your return commute and check it out at different times over the next few days to get a good sample size.

My guess is that the most congested part of your drive will be driving 26 up to 405 and once you hit 405 North it will likely be fairly fast sailing up I-5 to Vancouver against the traffic. On the return trip it will be the same, reasonable traffic on I-5 and lots of traffic on 405 and 26. But check for yourself.

[ownedbyshelties]

That's definitely useful to do, but I'd still like to hear from someone who actually does the drive. They'll know the patterns throughout the year, the back roads that Google or Apple maps may not suggest, and whether there are public transportation options that makes sense.

My inclination would be to not take 26 at all - Germantown road to St Johns and then back roads to Marine Drive to i-5 is how I would normally go. But that may not be the best route at that time.

[nestvine]

Move to the Vancouver area and take advantage of a shorter commute and no state income taxes?

[ownedbyshelties]

Not an option; my husband does not want to move.

[psichick]

Had to attach a picture for you

You didn't talk about the time of day you'd be commuting, so I'm assuming you'll work the normal 8-5pm shift. The fun part about Google, is you can chose when to arrive/leave and what day, AND you can adjust the route (I did it for freeway and Germantown, back way, it was the same). I'd say, for the most part, your commute will be about an hour long, assuming normal traffic, no accidents/delays/etc. Add in too much rain, maybe some ice, an accident and you'll easily be looking at a 2 hour commute (my co-worker was going the opposite way and she said 2-hours was becoming normal. At least you're kind of going against it).

All the shortcuts you spoke of, everyone takes. And as you know, those winding back roads, one accident or stalled car and you could be stuck for awhile.

Hopefully someone that travels those roads will be able to give you a better idea.