Newbie alert, commuter question

[Claff]

Just signed up, been thinking for about a year to find a southern MD forum, finally got around to it today. I moved down here to marry my sweetie in 2002 coming from western Massachusetts where I was born and raised.

Me and the missus rent in Waldorf but are house-hunting. Buying in Waldorf is pretty much out of the question dollar-wise with the wishes we have (I want a garage, she wants at least 1.5 baths)... $300K is our target.

Spreading our wings a little we've looked at places as far down 301 as Newburgh and as far down 5/235 as Lexington Park i.e. the other side of the base. Found some great places in Mechanicsville and Lexington Park but couldn't pull the trigger cause of one nagging question...

The missus works right smack in the middle of DC. Already she has to leave the house before 7AM to get a parking place at the Branch Ave Metro and she doesn't usually get home till after 7PM. Fathoming the additional commute to St.Mary's makes my head hurt, and I won't even be the one doing it (I work in town).

So the burning question is.. do people live in Lexington Park and work in DC? If so, when do they have to leave the house, and when do they make it home?

FWIW she says she doesn't think the additional commute will be so bad, she's on the alternative work schedule so every other weekend is a 3-day special, but I can't imagine it not taking its toll after a while.

[Softballkid]

My gf used to work in DC, she would actually drive all the way to the pentagon from our old house (California) , she would leave around 5ish, and get there around 6ish, but she also got to leave around 2ish, so she was home by 4ish....

But if she got a late start, she would hit traffic, both ways, make for a longer day....


If she can get it to where she can go in early (before 7, and get off before 3, it wont be TOO bad...but other than that, your looking at alot of traffic both ways...

[Dupontster]

Commuter bus from Charlotte Hall for upper part of County and I think it even starts farther on down in the County now....If she is a Fed employee they will give her some money to take the bus....Check it out

[SamSpade]

Take the Keller Bus. If your wife works for the federal government, they'll even pay for it.


www.kellerbus.com and check the schedules.

[SamSpade]

Oh and one of the upsides to taking the bus is, instead of driving, you can nap and/or read. It takes a little longer overall, but it's less gas - almost free, with the government subsidy - and less wear and tear on the car.

So you can get up at 5, but still sleep an additional hour into DC.

[sanchezf (Premo)]

I live in Mechanicsville and work in DC I commute on the Keller buses. I catch the 5:00am bus which gets me to DC 6:00am then I depart at 3:30pm and arrive Mechanicsville around 4:30ish. For a monthe worth of riding it is (I think) $160.00, my company pays for $105.00 of it, which seems to be pretty standard. If I can help you with anything else please let me know.

[Susan]

good luck hope you guys find what fits your needs...we are transplants from nyc area, and it was a big adjustment (actually sometimes it still is).

i want my cake and eat it too! hehe