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Old 10-12-2007, 12:27 PM
 
3 posts, read 13,507 times
Reputation: 10

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I currently live in Larkspur, but want to buy a condo and found one near Santa Rosa. I know traffic bunches up in San Rafael where the lanes decrease, but is a 87 miles (round trip) a bad commute? Currently my commute is 5 mins . I want to move out of Larkspur so I can buy my own place and get out of renting.
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Old 10-12-2007, 01:25 PM
 
5 posts, read 43,247 times
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My dad did the trip from Healdsburg to Greenbrae, and sometimes it took him about 90 minutes to two hours to get home on 101. He'd run into major bottlenecks in San Rafael, and I recall him having problems with the traffic near Highway 12.
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Old 10-12-2007, 02:43 PM
 
Location: SF Bay Area
10 posts, read 43,208 times
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You CAN do it, but it's hard and getting worse. I see no relief in the near future. If you thought it was fairly temporary, you might consider it.
There is a commute train under consideration from north of SR down to Larkspur, but it may take a miracle to get it approved and operating. If you are going to work in San Rafael indefinitely, I would consider some hard bargaining fro something no further north than Novato. In the collapsing real estate market, you might score.
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Old 10-12-2007, 03:14 PM
 
Location: Los Altos Hills, CA
36,403 posts, read 65,915,707 times
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I live in Tiburon and spent the night up in Windsor at a friends and the drive back home the next morning was just hellacious. It took me about 2 hrs. If that's the norm then Id say yikes-no thanks.
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Old 01-29-2008, 05:43 AM
 
5 posts, read 30,382 times
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I don't think that train is going to happen for years, if ever. And never if Marin has anything to say about it. Oh yeah that's what's holding it up right now
The traffic is horrendous, I agree with an earlier reply, Novato is your best bet and probably cheaper than Santa Rosa. Now if you work nights, then your commute is tolerable. And there is the GG Transit Bus #80 route is non-stop.
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Old 01-29-2008, 01:08 PM
 
Location: Sonoma County
21 posts, read 106,854 times
Reputation: 15
Quote:
Originally Posted by karikats View Post
I don't think that train is going to happen for years, if ever. And never if Marin has anything to say about it. Oh yeah that's what's holding it up right now
The traffic is horrendous, I agree with an earlier reply, Novato is your best bet and probably cheaper than Santa Rosa. Now if you work nights, then your commute is tolerable. And there is the GG Transit Bus #80 route is non-stop.
#80 non-stop?! That route stops in every town multiple times! If you do use the GG transit for commuting from Santa Rosa, I would look into one of the commuter runs to get you as close as possible, then jump on the #80 to get you that last mile if needed.
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Old 01-31-2008, 03:19 PM
 
114 posts, read 812,390 times
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Oh no, you'll go mad. I did Santa Rosa to San Rafael as did my partner and traffic bunches up at the Hwy 12/101 interchange, Cotati Grade, Novato Narrows, and on most mornings, the San Rafael traffic will bottleneck up to Novato at the Vallejo/Napa exit. It can be a two hour commute but depending on the time you leave, you could probably make it in 60 to 85 minutes. I suggest Petaluma if price isn't an issue. Novato has no character but the commute would be easier.
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Old 02-08-2008, 11:58 PM
 
Location: 38°14′45″N 122°37′53″W
4,151 posts, read 10,881,317 times
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Just getting from the Petaluma Blvd South exit (1st exit for Petaluma travelleing North on 101) to my inlaws up in Santa Rosa at the Mendocino Avenue exit is approx. 13 miles...can take 15 minutes in the dead of night...or 50 minutes during most times of the day (not during commuter hours...then it's even worse) SRosa traffic is really the worst of it...esp. the HWY 12 exit area, and then there's the Cotati Grade, Rhonert Park Expressway ...etc...etc....
Look to buy Cotati,Petaluma or Novato for a way less hellish time.
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Old 02-24-2008, 12:22 PM
 
17 posts, read 51,672 times
Reputation: 15
How about kenwood to SF? I wont have to do it every day and it seems that you could bypass the 101 by going through sonoma. were moving to Kenwood in a month and my wife will most likely pick up a job at one of the hotels in Sonoma Cnty. Im a freelance videographer and photographer and will be all over but only about 10 to 15 days a month. If I had to be in downtown SF say at 8am, how long would it take from kenwood?
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Old 02-26-2008, 12:33 AM
 
Location: 9B, Idaho
2,136 posts, read 4,383,962 times
Reputation: 1562
Thumbs down No no no no no!!

I wouldn't do it. Traffic in this area is really bad everywhere. Highway 12 from Kenwood to Sonoma is only two lanes (one in each direction). The drive is pretty, but you'll be crawling through many traffic lights through Sonoma, then it's more time getting over to Napa (more two-lane highway with a couple of areas where there's an extra lane to pass), plus more time going on Highway 29 south from Napa to Vallejo--and then you still face trying to get over the Bay Bridge when you're on I-80. Don't do it. It could take you the better part of 3 hours. You'll tear up your car and pay an ungodly amount of money for gas just to idle in freeway traffic and at countless red traffic lights.

As bad as Santa Rosa to San Francisco on 101 is, that would still be better than Kenwood to San Francisco via Sonoma. Stick to Santa Rosa, or either Rohnert Park, Cotati or Petaluma--Petaluma if possible.
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