Ask the Local Experts - Interstate 95

[zgoodfella75]

I live just north of charlotte, and usually take 77-26-95 it is a nice ride...and when I head back HOME to NYC I always take 77-81 especially in the fall, the colors are so nice, NEVER traffic until you get into NJ.....

[mrs.mickey]

Originally Posted by OttawaWendy

EDIT - you didn't say where in PA you are, but if you are in the west, there are also routings that would take you south (i.e. the 79 from Pittsburgh, or the 99 from State College) to meet up with the 81 somewhere southwest of Harrisburg. These are worth exploring, if going to Harrisburg means going east only to come back west. It's always worth remembering that Florida is west, with regard to the eastern seaboard. It is almost due south of Detroit and Columbus.

We live outside of Reading which is about an hour away from Philly so we would just take 476 all the way down to 95 and keep on going. We were just looking at alternatives since we are leaving in the morning and I heard DC can be a pain.

[JaneBanks]

We used to do this drive when we were still stationed in PA.
I like the route OttowaWendy mentioned through Gettysburg. Many times though, we would leave around 10pm. So the kids would sleep most of the trip, and so there would be no traffic snarls around DC.

Thanks for that warning on South of the Border. We stopped there once, to have a look-see, and didn't stay long. Funny to look at when driving by........scary when you actually stop.

[mkhurley]

Originally Posted by mrs.mickey

We live outside of Reading which is about an hour away from Philly so we would just take 476 all the way down to 95 and keep on going. We were just looking at alternatives since we are leaving in the morning and I heard DC can be a pain.

I'm up your way ALOT. If your closer to Reading than 476. A better option for you....take 222 south to Lancaster and then 272 down to 222 again then to I-95. This will take you thru downtown Lancaster but you'll miss all the DE tolls and save a ton of time, downtown Lancaster isn't that big, 10 minutes at the most.

If your closer to 476 take that to Rt. 1 (Media Bypass) to Rt. 1 (Baltimore Pike) and follow it down toward MD, South on 272 just before the MD line, then to I-95. No tolls and Rt. 1 out of Kennett Square to MD is 4 lane with almost zero traffic.

I hate seeing people pay those DE tolls....of course you still pay at the Baltimore Tunnels ($3), but no short time saving way around those.

[mikemax32]

Cast - Me, DW, DD7, DD6 and DW's sister (SIL)

We went to WDW from CT in October. We left on a Wednesday night at 7:30PM with me behind the wheel and promptly hit traffic at 8PM. We decided to go over GW, but not via 95. We took 84 - 684 - Hutch and merged onto 95 right at the bridge. There is so much construction there, but it is really cool to look down 200 feet on everything being built. Traffic was ok - we were moving which is great for the GW.

The NJ turnpike had traffic moving above speed limit and I love the EZ pass lane where you don't even slow down. From there we moved south along 95 until we got close to DC. I took the western route around DC and headed toward the last major city, Richmond VA. The bridge in Richmond was out (does anyone know what that means, b/c I don't) so I just followed the 295 loop around. I crossed the border of NC at 4AM, stopped at the Welcome Center and let DW take over until breakfast.

My wife got through NC and partially into SC while I napped in the back of the van. We stopped to eat at 7:30 at Cracker Barrel and I hopped into the driver seat again at 8:30. From there it was a straight shot to I-4 with a stop at Burger King for a quick lunch and change into shorts for me. We hit traffic again in Orlando b/c it was 4PM on a Thursday, but we pulled into Animal Kingdom at 5:30 just as the idiot light, I mean low fuel light, came on in the van.

Overall - 22 hours including stops, 3 full tanks of gas, average of 23 mpg and ZERO child meltdowns. Seriously, the kids were great and traveled so much better than we even thought possible. And they were great on the ride home, too. We have another trip planned for April vacation that coincides with a wedding in Sarasota, so we'll be driving again. They'll be I-95 veterans before they're 10!

[DisneyEater]

Even though I have to wait longer between trips to save up the money to fly, I still can't bring myself to take 2 days driving to WDW.....just can't do it.

[PAJD]

I did it, and I might do it again in the future. But I'd have to mix in a visit to our friends in NC.

It worked out fine, and the kids were terrific. But after scoring cheap tix on AirTran this year twice and staying at BLT (therefore no need for a car), I don't think I can go back to driving.

I'll always have enough Capital One points or reward points/miles to knock out the cost of one or two tickets. So the savings from driving are minimal in the end.

[mouser2]

Originally Posted by mikemax32

Cast - From there we moved south along 95 until we got close to DC. I took the western route around DC and headed toward the last major city, Richmond VA.

if you're ever coming home from disney world, and take this route around the washington beltway (495) and you're in traffic. if you can remember this, it will save you 30 minutes. just past the 295-495 split, you stay to the right to remain on 495, sometimes this can the longest hold up. when you stay right to remain on 495 get into the far right lane. sometimes the back up will start just past the split. stay in the right hand lane no matter how the traffic flows. sometimes the other lanes will appear to be moving better, but in the end you'll be happy you stayed in that lane. you will see signs saying right lane ends, but you still a have a few miles to go before that happens. ride that lane all the way until it ends at the old georgetown road exit, and then merge. it will save you 1/2 hour!!!!

[mouser2]

we drove to disney a few times from baltimore. although like pajd i found ways to get airplane tickets cheap enough to make flying an easier choice.