Alternate Route (trying to avoid 95 and 81…NJ, PA, VA)

[nomoretslt]

Already fretting the trip home from NJ. Coming up we stay on 95 until Fredericksburg then take 17, 15, 581, 83, 81, 78. It adds miles and time, but 95 is horrific North of Richmond. When we get on 81, it’s only for 18 miles. I’m trying to get on 95 south either at Richmond or a bit below. I know we could take 81 south to 64 to Richmond, but two lanes with lots of tractor trailers has its own set of issues. I was thinking of staying on 15 south through Opal, VA and head for the Charlottesville area and get on 64 there. 64 used to be a pleasant roadway but haven’t been on it in years. We’d rather be slow on 15 than being like a parking lot on 95. Anyone familiar with this route I’m thinking of?
Im surely not used to this cold weather any more. It’s 2 degrees here.

 

[amycurl]

You can take US 29 from DC down through VA and NC (29 connects to 85 in my town, and 40 if you need to scoot east.) it’s a beautiful drive and my GPS takes me through the Rockfish valley in VA to avoid having to drive through Charlottesville. You pass numerous wineries and distilleries in the valley; we’ve often thought about making a weekend trip just to stay there, it’s so lovely.

29 has raised there speed limits since I first started taking this route 30 years ago, and there are far fewer trucks then 81.


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[nomoretslt]

@amycurl thank you for that info. A neighbor also gave me their tips (NJ refugees also). I’m going to figure out a combo of yours and theirs. We live close to the beach in NC. Thank you very much.

 

[joestein]

Just get up and leave at 1am. You wont have much traffic.

I do it all the time when I am traveling down south - the key is to get past Washington DC before it gets too busy.

 

[Brett]

I agree, try leaving very very early
I use Route 29 to Rt 17 to get around the south of Washington I-95 traffic back when I was commuting to Northern Va

 

[nomoretslt]

I’m closer to 70 years old than 65. No way I’m leaving at 1 am. Not a fan of driving in the dark either. leaving at 6 am, hoping to be home by 5 pm. We are not far from Easton PA so 78 to 81 and then we will make a choice.
Thanks for the input.

 

[simpsontruckdriver]

As a former trucker (20 years), I also never liked the I-95 area between Baltimore and Fredricksburg VA. It can be as bad as, if not worse than, I-95 through NYC. The toll lanes are great if you're on them, but there is always a bottleneck where they dump back onto I-95. Taking US highways, regardless of state, is usually more scenic with less traffic.

TS