WHC, Veteran Affairs, or Children's employees - How is your commute?

[opensails]

Does anyone work at WHC and commute from North Virginia (more specifically, Alexandria or Arlington)? I'm trying to look for a place in NoVA but I'm just afraid the commute might be unbearable. If anyone does commute, how long does it typically take you to get there and do you drive or take the metro? I'd prefer to drive but I've heard it'll be quite a pain. If I do take the metro, is it reliable? How are they with delays and safety? If I can't find a place in NoVA, I might go with Silver Spring or College Park in Maryland....any insight on commuting from there? I've been told to base my housing choice on commute rather than cost of living because it'll be almost the same regardless of VA or MD while DC itself is most expensive.

Thanks for any advice or suggestions!

[leenak]

Hi!

I live in Maryland and personally I like MD more than VA. I would say public transportation is the way to go if you are going to work in DC. Driving in the WMA (washington metropolitan area) can get crazy, especially inside the beltway.

Although I've walked near the area of the Columbia Heights metro without any issues, I've never worked near there or had any experience with it after dark. It is an area that is going through some gentrification. I do have a friend that recently moved out of the area and her place was burglarized but other than that, she didn't have any crime issues. (She moved for other reasons, she said she liked living in the area)

If you really want to commute, I'd recommend looking more in the Takoma Park/Silver Spring area. You could still use public transportation but could also drive if you are going against the traffic fairly easily (ie most likely if you worked nights, you wouldn't experience much traffic) Also, if you live in VA, you'd have to cross the potomac which limits any use of side roads in case of accidents and such.

[ittybabyRN, RN]

I live in Arlington and love it. I live near the courthouse metro stop. I work at Childrens and I alternate between driving and taking the metro. Driving takes about 20 minutes - I can leave at 615, grab coffee at starbucks and be at work by 650. If I take the metro it takes longer, I usually need to leave about 555, get the 605 metro to brookland (orange line to red line) then from brookland take the shuttle, this puts me at work at 645.

Either way I dont think its a bad commute, I don't mind the metro, sometimes its nice to just relax, sip coffee and read on the way to work

[MedicVeronica]

I live south east of Mt. Airy and commute to the WHC. It takes an hour, but is a straight shot down New Hampshire Ave. Anything near Silver Spring/Takoma Park would be a relatively easy commute.