How do you tell the inner loop from the outer loop?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have lived in this area for my entire life and I still have no idea.They both seem to be going clockwise to me- one headed toward 6 o'clock, one headed toward 12 o'clock. I also can't tell what is north, south, east or west. To me, north is always straight ahead of me. I am reading these responses to my husband, because he can't believe there are other people out there as directionally challenged as myself

1. To the PP and all others who complain about having a bad sense of direction - this has nothing to do with a sense of direction. Inner and outer are not directions.

2. Ho-lee crap. As others have pointed out, the beltway is a big circle. There are 2 lanes in the circle, one on the inside, one on the outside. The one on the inside is called the Outer Loop, and the one on the outside is called the Inner Loop.

Wait . . . that can't be right. Where did I get that wrong? Oh, yes. The lane on the INSIDE is called the INNER LOOP, and the one on the OUTSIDE is called the OUTER LOOP. Phew.

I simply cannot believe this is that difficult. And if it is, I weep for the future.

I think you don't get what people are saying. I fully understand that the inner and outer loop EXIST. I get that it is a big circle. I get that one is inner and one is outer. NONE of that is confusing. What I don't understand is how you are supposed to tell unless you see a sign or someone tells you.

[Anonymous]

If aliens picked you up and dropped you on the beltway, you probably wouldn't know. But you (presumably) know where you left from, and you know where you're going, and how you have to go to get there. Isn't it self-evident?

[Anonymous]

if you know where you are when you enter the beltway it makes easier to guess which loop you're following.

if you're coming from the burbs towards DC and look at the beltway the outer loop runs to the Right side and the inner to the Left.

if you're coming from DC to the burbs the inner goes R the outer goes L.

now another way. if the exit # increases as you go you're outer if it reduces you're inner.

signed:
FBFNF

[Anonymous]

I had NO idea they were one and the same HIGHWAY - 495! I moved here from Houston, where we had an inner loop, a beltway, and an outer loop. All were three distinct highways (610, Beltway 8, and Highway 6) that were like rings around the city.

I drive in this metro area every day from Annapolis to Richmond for sales, and although I know 495 is the only "Loop" or Beltway, I just figured everyone had a different name for it, and perked my ears up for any of those buzzwords when listening to traffic reports in the car.

[Anonymous]

Another dumb question: What interchange is the Mixing Bowl? It's not 495/270 right? Why is the Mixing Bowl the worst in the area?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Another dumb question: What interchange is the Mixing Bowl? It's not 495/270 right? Why is the Mixing Bowl the worst in the area?

It's where 395 and 495 meet. It used to be the worst because of its design. They re-did it though and its not so bad anymore. No more clusterfuck anyway.

[Anonymous]

I've lived here for 30 years and I never know unless I see the sign. I have a good sense of direction and have driven all over the country with little problem. It always makes me feel like a moron that I can't tell!

[Anonymous]

Add me to the list of no sense of direction here. I literall

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I've lived here for 30 years and I never know unless I see the sign. I have a good sense of direction and have driven all over the country with little problem. It always makes me feel like a moron that I can't tell!

Not to pick on you PP, but if you've lived here for 30 years and can't tell,... then you really don't have a "good sense of direction".

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Add me to the list of no sense of direction here. I literall

Oops. Was going to say that before GPS, I would get lost everytime I drove somewhere new. I really can't zoom out in my head and see the bigger picture of where I'm going. It sucks, but I simply lack this ability.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've lived here for 30 years and I never know unless I see the sign. I have a good sense of direction and have driven all over the country with little problem. It always makes me feel like a moron that I can't tell!

Not to pick on you PP, but if you've lived here for 30 years and can't tell,... then you really don't have a "good sense of direction".

Well, wait a minute, a PP said that inner/outer have nothing to do with sense of direction....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So is it simply inborn directional sense that makes some people always know they are innies or outies?

This is the 6:03 poster. I think the answer is yes. I can picture a map in my head to get a sense of where I am and what direction I am going. If you can't or don't do this, I don't see how dubbing the sides inner/outer loop is at all helpful.

This is me, too. I can imagine a map in my head anytime I'm trying to figure out where I'm going and I am usually spot-on. DH, on the other hand, is hopeless. He is also confused by the inner/outer thing, but his directional problems are far worse than inner/outer... when we met 12 years ago, I swear he didn't know how to get to Best Buy (5 miles away) on his own. Thank goodness for GPS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have lived in this area for my entire life and I still have no idea.They both seem to be going clockwise to me- one headed toward 6 o'clock, one headed toward 12 o'clock. I also can't tell what is north, south, east or west. To me, north is always straight ahead of me. I am reading these responses to my husband, because he can't believe there are other people out there as directionally challenged as myself

1. To the PP and all others who complain about having a bad sense of direction - this has nothing to do with a sense of direction. Inner and outer are not directions.

2. Ho-lee crap. As others have pointed out, the beltway is a big circle. There are 2 lanes in the circle, one on the inside, one on the outside. The one on the inside is called the Outer Loop, and the one on the outside is called the Inner Loop.

Wait . . . that can't be right. Where did I get that wrong? Oh, yes. The lane on the INSIDE is called the INNER LOOP, and the one on the OUTSIDE is called the OUTER LOOP. Phew.

I simply cannot believe this is that difficult. And if it is, I weep for the future.

I think you don't get what people are saying. I fully understand that the inner and outer loop EXIST. I get that it is a big circle. I get that one is inner and one is outer. NONE of that is confusing. What I don't understand is how you are supposed to tell unless you see a sign or someone tells you.

EX-AC-T-LY!!!

[Anonymous]

I am a life-long resident as well and only recently have begun to be able to tell which loop I am on due to my husband drilling me on it when we're in the car together. Now, I can get it so long as I am on the beltway, but if there is a traffic report that says there was an accident on the inner loop near a particular exit, unless I am really familiar with that stretch of the beltway and can visualize it, I have no idea which direction is the inner loop. And for those driving on the stretch between NH Ave and Wisc Ave, I agree - the curves there can really throw you off.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So is it simply inborn directional sense that makes some people always know they are innies or outies?

This is the 6:03 poster. I think the answer is yes. I can picture a map in my head to get a sense of where I am and what direction I am going. If you can't or don't do this, I don't see how dubbing the sides inner/outer loop is at all helpful.

This is me, too. I can imagine a map in my head anytime I'm trying to figure out where I'm going and I am usually spot-on. DH, on the other hand, is hopeless. He is also confused by the inner/outer thing, but his directional problems are far worse than inner/outer... when we met 12 years ago, I swear he didn't know how to get to Best Buy (5 miles away) on his own. Thank goodness for GPS.

Thirding this. I am HORRIBLY directionally challenged, and I've lived in this area nearly my whole life. I have spent a LOT of time with those map books, particularly MoCo since that's where I live, and I can now finally picture the inner and outer loops, but only because I can see the map in my head.