Commute times in Silicon Valley and Peninsula (San Jose, Fremont: to rent, to buy)

[gmkarr]

I have been offered a job in San Jose, and my husband looks like he will work in Redwood City or Foster City. I am trying to figure out commute times for cities somewhere in between. This is a slight overlap with my old post, but the difference is my husband's job location.

By the way, it would be great if there was a website where people can post commute times to different locations! Maybe there is one that I haven't seen yet? If anyone has done any of these commutes, I am interested in approximate time it takes during rush hour:

Los Gatos to Redwood City or Foster City
Saratoga to Redwood City or Foster City
Sunnyvale to Redwood City or Foster City
Campbell to Redwood City or Foster City
Mountain View to Redwood City or Foster City
Cupertino to Redwood City or Foster City
Fremont to Redwood City or Foster City
Palo Alto to San Jose
Menlo Park to San Jose
San Carlos to San Jose
Fremont to San Jose

Thank you!

[sonarrat]

Google Maps can estimate how long a given route will take with traffic, and it's usually not too far off. Of those, Cupertino to Redwood City is the most pleasant commute, because you can get almost all the way up on 280. Then it's just a matter of how far you need to go on surface streets. Cupertino to Foster City isn't bad either, that's reverse commute so 92 East should be a breeze in the morning.

[Sharks_fan]

I commuted from Campbell to Foster City for a year. It took me about 35-40 mins. I usually left around 8-8:30am and took 280 to 92. Avoid 101. The commute on 280 is tolerable. There were rarely accidents and 280 is pretty smooth. The later you leave, the better the traffic gets.

[gmkarr]

Thank you sonnarat and sharks-fan. Getting your commute estimates based on your experience is so helpful!

I spent some time yesterday looking at the various areas, and still trying to figure out best commute times for us to San Jose and Redood City/or Foster City. I have a child, and so am keeping schools plus child-friendly locations in mind. I looked at Google Maps, but I don't have complete confidence in the commute time estimate, so I am still interested in how your actual experiences compared.

Los Gatos to Redwood City, Google maps says 32 minutes with up to 45 minutes with traffic. The route they highlight is on 101. Seems like 280 would be a better commute, but they estimate that as 37 minutes (but don't give a commute estimate). How is 280 Northbound traffic in the morning? Is that going against traffic?

Palo Alto or Menlo Park to San Jose, Wool Creek Drive, the Google estimate is 30 minutes, with 50 minutes in traffic. Sounds like Caltrain would be great, though sometimes I would need my car.

Seems like Sunnyvale would be the ideal commute location for both of us, but I am not completely sold on it. Sounds like the best schools in Sunnyvale are in the Cherry Chase area?

Would Willow Glen in San Jose actually be faster to Redwood City than Los Gatos (because of proximity to 280)?

Also,

If anyone has done the above commutes during rush hour (or at other times), I am interested in how your experience compared. Thank you!

[sonarrat]

Oh, you're the one who's commuting to south San Jose. Does your employer have a shuttle from the Tamien station? If so, that would certainly be doable. It's a long walk from there to Wool Creek & Senter though.

As far as northbound 280 in the morning, it can be heavy from San Jose up to Cupertino. After that it eases up and the rest of the way to Redwood City is at (or well over) the speed limit even during rush hour.

For Los Gatos to RWC, I would take 17 or 85 to 280, definitely not 101. And yes, west San Jose to RWC would be faster than Los Gatos.

[Palindromed]

I personally have worked in Foster City on two occassions (Electronic Arts and a defense contractor) and drove from SJ to Foster City every day. Depending on the area in San Jose, it can take you an hour to get there and IT IS NO FUN during rush hour commute. You'll be extremely lucky to pull it off in 30 minutes even in non-commute. Because I was a consultant, I had my own hours but still even in off hour commute I hated the drive. That usually took about 40 minutes. I used to also do the drive to Redwood City on Friday nights from SJ to see my girlfriend and that took at least 35 minutes on a good day.

That commute pretty much sucked if you ask me. I can tell you it wore on me over time. If were you, I would strongly recommend moving in closer to San Jose. You can find plenty of affordable housing nearby. Besides, as you move up toward the Penninsula, housing and rent prices tend to be higher than the South Bay. Just food for thought...

[sonarrat]

Really? I've found it's not as expensive to rent in Redwood City, San Carlos, or Belmont as it is in the south bay. To buy, sure it can be pricey.

[gmkarr]

How long do you think the commute time would be from San Carlos or Redwood City to San Jose during traffic? Sorry to be so uber focused on the commute times, but it will really drive our decision of where to live.

Google says that if you use 280, it would be about 40 minutes from Redwood City, and 1:00 plus in traffic.

It also says from San Carlos, it would be 45 minutes, plus an hour plus in traffic as well.

Does this sound about right?

Thanks!
-Grace

[sonarrat]

Originally Posted by gmkarr

How long do you think the commute time would be from San Carlos or Redwood City to San Jose during traffic? Sorry to be so uber focused on the commute times, but it will really drive our decision of where to live.

Google says that if you use 280, it would be about 40 minutes from Redwood City, and 1:00 plus in traffic.

It also says from San Carlos, it would be 45 minutes, plus an hour plus in traffic as well.

Does this sound about right?

Thanks!
-Grace

That sounds excessive. I do the opposite of that trip a couple times a week (Redwood City to Campbell at evening rush hour), and the traffic is much lighter in the other direction. But on the other hand, 280 takes a square corner going into San Jose, so as far as distance travelled, it's fairly long if you're going to be getting off at 11th Street just before the 101 interchange. There's no good way around that, either.

[jcp123]

Milpitas to Palo Alto was about 30-35 minutes, but we used the carpool lanes. I would think depending on the part of San Jose you lived in that it would be about equivalent with carpool land usage.