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4 pm is the start of rush hour, and while the traffic going out of DC into Virginia is worse than the other way, it is still not great. DC supposedly has even worse congestion than Atlanta, I have read.
I thought you would be driving to school, not taking public transportation? Glover Park or Cathedral Heights is a really quick drive to school, much much faster than from Virginia. You don't have to take public transportation just because you live in the city. Because there is no metro serving Glover Park, more people own cars there than in many other parts of the city, and like I said it really has a more suburban feel overall.
But in any case, there is nothing to fear about public transportation in DC. Crime can and does happen anywhere but crime is usually lower on public transportation here than on the street. I know in Atlanta the MARTA gets a bad rap for being used by poor people but you have to understand there is no stigma against public transportation here because so many people of all classes use it. You'll see tons of affluent professionals riding the metro or even taking buses.
Are you really going to drive to Georgetown? That is crazy. Live in the city and take public transportation. Don't go to school in a city and try to pretend you are not. It will only make you miserable. If you insis on bringing your car, which is ridiculous and unnecessary for most in your position, learn to park.
I don't think it's "crazy" to drive to Georgetown if parking is really as cheap for students as the OP said. Just because you live in "the city" doesn't mean a car doesn't come in handy. It definitely does in most of the neighborhoods north and west of Georgetown such as Glover Park because there is no metro and there isn't as much stuff to walk to. Most of the people I know who live around there have cars.
If you're already going to have the car and you live close, you might as well drive if the parking isn't a problem.
Are you really going to drive to Georgetown? That is crazy. Live in the city and take public transportation. Don't go to school in a city and try to pretend you are not. It will only make you miserable. If you insis on bringing your car, which is ridiculous and unnecessary for most in your position, learn to park.
I don't think it's "crazy" to drive to Georgetown if parking is really as cheap for students as the OP said. Just because you live in "the city" doesn't mean a car doesn't come in handy. It definitely does in most of the neighborhoods north and west of Georgetown such as Glover Park because there is no metro and there isn't as much stuff to walk to. Most of the people I know who live around there have cars.
If you're already going to have the car and you live close, you might as well drive if the parking isn't a problem.
He has a $1300/month budget. Yes, I think it is crazy to keep and drive a car if you have to be in the city everyday with that kind of budget. It sounds like he might be trying to get an internship elsewhere in the city also, which would make this plan insane. If instead he already has one outside the city, that would be a different story, but then we would need to know the location before knowing anything else.
OP, having lived in DC and Atlanta metros, let me provide my 2 cents...
1. Riding the Metro (DC) is a completely different experience than MARTA (Atlanta). Riding public transportation is much more a way of life for many people in DC, MD, and NOVA compared to Atlanta. Please give Metro a chance before you can it. I found the Metro to be far safer than MARTA (including late at night).
2. Atlanta gets (unnecessarily congested) during peak rush hour but the traffic in the DC metro is just freaking awful. It is not the same so just be prepared to adjust your schedule accordingly for commutes (or just ride Metro when possible).
3. You are going to have to parallel park at some point....just start practicing now.
Arlington is extremely popular for people in their 20's. I hear Courthouse and Clarendon are among the most popular areas as well as Pentagon City and Crystal City. There is also, Bethesda, Rockville, and Gaithersburg in MD and Reston and Fairfax in VA. My preference is to live in DC but these towns are nice and provide easy access to DC. Since you'll be attending Georgetown bear in mind the closest metro is Foggy Bottom so you'll have quite walk from here unless you take a metro bus that will get you closer to the campus.
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