Great article on the terribleness of DC area driving

[Goodspeed]

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://oppositelock.jalopnik.com/screw-nyc-and-la-dc-is-hell-for-drivers-1529880107/@pgeorge">http://oppositelock.jalopnik.com/screw- ... 7/@pgeorge</a><!-- m -->

I read this earlier today and thought it was a pretty excellent summation of driving in the DC area. I've thought about this more and more lately as I'm wanting but currently without another fun car - I remember how hard it was to have an enjoyable drive in this area when I had the Miata, and I'm starting to think I'd feel the same way in any non-appliance car you're supposed to have fun with.

So now that we have some alumni around here with some nice street cars - Evan's Lotus, G's Cayman, etc, what say you? Are you able to get a grin as you deal with everything mentioned in that article or are you resigned to dodging potholes and sitting in traffic, with the occasional weekend trip out to the country to keep you sane?

There is a ton of car culture around here, but to me it's still a wonder people are able to enjoy the hobby in this area with literally everything stacked against them. Maybe I'm just jaded and this goes for most metro areas? Discuss.

[Senor_Taylor]

This is what I'm worried about when I graduate. Big cities are where the IT jobs are, but I'd love to live out in the country. Having a truck is just not going to work anywhere near a city.

I'm sure someone is going to say "Not really, Taylor X, Y, and Z" but I just don't want to drive anywhere near a city. Harrisonburg irritates me enough.

[Jake]

Alright, so I grew up around these parts, so my opinion is probably jaded. I'm also a diehard three-pedal fanboi. My old job had me commuting 15 miles each way against traffic. So, it was not all bad because we moved the whole time at a decent pace. The new gig is in Arlington. I currently drive from my house to the Vienna Metro, and take the train the rest of the way in. It takes an hour to travel about 15 miles, roughly double what it took when I drove cross-traffic.

I avoid 66 like the plague. Fortunately, we live right on 29, so I take that to and from the Metro station. It's not an awful drive but you have to keep your eyes up and not be afraid to drive your own line (hmm, sounds like an HPDE). The daily Metrocross is not too bad in my opinion. I would much rather do the drive in my nice, comfy-yet-sporty 1-series than a snoozefest automatic Camry. It's got heated seats that are supportive, a great sound system, a huge sunroof, and good power. And there are those moments where the music is cranked and you do a little shoot the gap move and really wind that straight six out in traffic with the windows down... And it puts a smile on your face.

So yeah, I'd say it's possible to be an enthusiast and enjoy your daily driver up here. Traffic is not for everyone, the potholes suck, and driving through DC is reasonably lousy. But if you manage your expectations and learn how to best commute where you live - take Metro, drive at off hours, find alternate side roads - then it's not all bad.

I'd rather commute here than in LA.

[Senor_Taylor]

For reference. my drive to work back home is 15 miles in 20 minutes. 3 stoplights.

[*insertusernamehere*]

:vomit: I had to go up there twice for when I was buying the BMW and I absolutely hated it. 7 is the worst road in all of history. There. Was. No. Movement. Simple, nothing else to it. We just weren't gonna drive that day. On the opposite end, I was on some other road (same trip) and you would think the apocalypse was happening in the opposite direction we were going. I don't think anyone was doing less than 80. In all 4-5 lanes. Including the trucks and the moms in the minivan and the dude in his ricer honda, that all couldn't keep their lane, bumper to fuckin bumper. It might sound great, but it was really really heavy volume that was just moving way too fast and the highway was all curving back and forth and what not... Obviously I held my own and didn't ruin my newly acquired car on the first drive, but damn...i was on guard.

I suppose it's more of what Jake said though, just knowing where best to go. I was just following phone directions before. Now I know I'll have to hit up some alumni for all the secret ways for when I'm up there

[ScottyB]

There is a ton of car culture around here, but to me it's still a wonder people are able to enjoy the hobby in this area with literally everything stacked against them.

almost exactly why i bought the RS instead of a WRX when i was living in atlanta. unless i was doing something retarded i could never even wind out of 3rd before coming to the end of an on-ramp. 3 hours to the mountains or any fun roads. i just got sick of having to care whether i was getting "my money's worth" out of all the wasted power that i wanted, but couldn't have used.

if i was living in DC, i think my ultimate combo would be a shithoused P71 interceptor for cheap no-care DD duty and RWD hooning, and some kind of motard urban attack bike like a WR450 with road tires and giant brakes. i don't even like bikes but it would be so hard to argue how easily you could dice up traffic with one and basically drive over the worst quality roads and not care. if i didn't have much of a commute, i'd use a ruckus instead. love those things.

[Beej]

I was always against traffic, so it wasn't the worst...just pretty bad.

For me, it was the opposite. Having a fun car made more sense because I spent that much more time in it. And at the end of the day, walking to it and getting in was something to look forward to, and it made the traffic more tolerable.

I still trek up there once in awhile during the week for work...but I have a real hard time thinking about doing a commute up there every day again. As much as I love my 3 pedals...I'd consider one less if the transmission was any good, like DCT or whatever.

Live in Arlington or something and commute "against" traffic.

[Jake]

Having a fun car made more sense because I spent that much more time in it. And at the end of the day, walking to it and getting in was something to look forward to, and it made the traffic more tolerable.

Yep, this. I love walking to my car after a long day, hitting the unlock button and having the lights come on/mirrors flop down as I walk up to it.

[Goodspeed]

I'd rather commute here than in LA.

I figured someone would draw the parallel to LA given that we go back and forth with them for the #1 Most Terrible spot, and it probably does suck hard, but I've always had a bit of a problem believing that it could be as bad as here, given that they have this:



and this



within reasonable driving distance. Granted, most popular scenic routes are probably clogged 24/7 but there are so many of them, and more car stuff to do than you can shake a stick at - tracks, museums, meets, shops, clubs - I think the sheer quantity of stuff to do as a car-person dwarfs pretty much any other part of the country.

But they have CARB (and Cali government in general) and fermented cat-piss for gasoline, so it may be moot. But I still think I'd prefer there to here (dat weather).

On the opposite end, I was on some other road (same trip) and you would think the apocalypse was happening in the opposite direction we were going. I don't think anyone was doing less than 80. In all 4-5 lanes. Including the trucks and the moms in the minivan and the dude in his ricer honda, that all couldn't keep their lane, bumper to fuckin bumper. It might sound great, but it was really really heavy volume that was just moving way too fast and the highway was all curving back and forth and what not... Obviously I held my own and didn't ruin my newly acquired car on the first drive, but damn...i was on guard.

Sounds like you were on the beltway between Silver Spring and Tysons. It's insane - I've never had to go 80-0 in succession so many times before on one trip.

i just got sick of having to care whether i was getting "my money's worth" out of all the wasted power that i wanted, but couldn't have used.

That's kinda what I'm worried about. If it sucks to drive around here, can you really justify purchasing something that exists for the fun of driving? I was floored when I first took the Miata back to Hburg and blasted around after being in DC for a while...it was sad what I had gotten used to. I'd love to find a way to move to an area like that again.

[WRXtranceformed]

My brother lives in Arlington and commutes into DC. He sold his APR stage 2 S4 and picked up a new grand Cherokee Laredo if that tells you anything. You flat out can't enjoy a car like that up there. Honestly a lot of Charlotte is getting that way now too. Fortunately we are close to SC where plenty of hoonable roads abound

[Apoc]

Nova convinced me a Legacy was a good daily driver. Now I drive a '76 911. The math kinda does itself.

[Maengelito]

manage your expectations

This is all you need to know when driving in NOVA and you'll be fine.

[D_Eclipse9916]

I guess since I have lived in Tysons Corner/Vienna area my entire life it doesn't bother me as much? I commute in a 22' diesel land yacht and have no problem going 11 miles in 25 minutes. I now live in Reston and commute to Tysons (not counter commute), and even at peak hours it takes me 28 minutes. The big thing is, live in the right place and find the right roads and you will rarely encounter traffic. It is all the numb nuts that take Rt 7/66/495 at peak hours where you will "sit for hours".

I got lucky/searched for the right place to buy a house and accepted a job with a good commute (not the job with the highest pay). Quality of life for me....

[.RJ]

1.5 mile commute FTW #yolo

[SlimKlim]

Big cities are where the IT jobs are, but I'd love to live out in the country.

This is exactly how I felt when I was graduating. Following the jobs won out, and I'm glad I made that decision. I think you pretty much need to be in an area like this to grow your career when you're just out of school. It's also nice to know you're in one of the busiest job markets in the country if you lose your job.

I grew up in the sticks. Like way out there. The first few years of my driving career were a golden age. I'd leave my house immediately get a few miles of empty back roads, then hop on the highway for a few minutes, and if I really wanted to I could take the parkway into town and pretty much never have to stop the car until I got where I was going. The couple of summers I had the M3 and still lived down there were awesome.

Moving up here was a huge adjustment in my driving expectations. The roads are in horrible condition and beat the shit out of the car. All of the roads are simply overcrowded, so little things like rain, or the couple of snowflakes we got this morning, can cause you sit in a gridlock for 30 minutes just to go 3 miles. The drivers are unpredictable, I get cut off constantly, no one uses their headlights, etc. Despite all that, I stuck it out and continued to DD the E36 for 2 years after I graduated and was saving up to buy the GTI. It wasn't fun, but I've always been determined to hold onto that E36 at all costs and traffic of all things wasn't going to make me give it up.

A huge part of it is where you live and work. I avoid anything east of Fairfax at all costs. I work in Sterling right across from Dulles airport and my current commute is usually 20-30 minutes in moderate traffic, pretty much the best situation you can ask for in Nova. Occasionally, like this morning, I still end up 20 minute jam for no apparent reason, but you just come to expect that every once in a while.

So anyway, I wouldn't DD a stripped out race car, stiffened miata, classic Porsche with a deadlift clutch or something like that up here because the roads and traffic will exhaust you before you get home. However, fuck giving up your passion because of where you live. You can rock a cheap automatic beater and keep an older fun car around for the weekends. Or you can find a car that does it all pretty well like Jake's 128i, light clutch pedal, comfy seats and stock suspension.

There are tons of us up here that still have enthusiast cars and there's a pretty good scene of car people. DavidL DDs his S2k, DavidM DDs a modded STi in a fixed back seat, Cabell still has his XJ, DJ DDs a truck with it's own zipcode so he has a racecar tow rig, Jake and I both adopted the 2 car method, etc.

Nova is free parking for me, I'm here to incubate my career for 5ish years and then I'm getting the hell out of here to settle down in a place with normal traffic levels and a reasonable cost of living. There are definitely a lot of drawbacks to this area, but there are also a lot of perks, and I'd encourage current students who don't have a direct line on a job out of school to seriously consider starting out up here. I don't think I could've gotten a job in my field if I wasn't in a major metro area to be honest.

[Jake]

The roads are in horrible condition and beat the shit out of the car.

Go spend a weekend in Virginia Beach and then reconsider that sentence :wink: There are definitely potholes a'plenty up here (I think this winter has really made them worse, they're seemingly everywhere now) but from Fairfax to points west, it's not all bad. VBeach/Norfolk is absolutely horrendous by comparison.

[SlimKlim]

I bought my car in VA beach, no reconsideration necessary. I meant the DC Metro area in general, not my personal commute. I've hit bumps on 495 that knocked my alignment out. You've slid my car into a car-sized pothole. The one time I drove the M3 in DC I was genuinely worried that I might not make it back out, what with scraping the subframe on the actual road because the surface is that uneven at stoplights.

[Jake]

Oh, yeah. DC proper is really bad. My strategy the few times I've driven through has been to squeeze the throttle and play potholecross. It goes from frustrating to amusing, with a side of "my poor shocks".

[Maengelito]

This is why you get a Sport Activity Vehicle...

[RawrImAMonster]

Yep, I've had to drive through rush hour traffic in Nova/DC a few times to pick up cars. It's enough of a pain in the ass to me that I wouldn't consider moving up there unless I was making double what I am now, and even then I probably wouldn't.

For you Richmond people, how bad is the traffic in Richmond during the morning and evening commutes? I'm planning on getting out of Harrisonburg (finally) next summer and trying to figure out where I want to go. Richmond seems most likely since I know a bunch of people there and I don't think the traffic is quite as bad as nova.