I used to commute from Arlington to Bethesda and I would take chain bridge and cut through town (past Sibley, etc). It left me out by River road heading into Bethesda....

It was about a 45 minute commute in rush hour traffic.

A good beltway shortcut is to take the first Maryland exit (cabin john/clara barton pkwy) and then take Seven Locks up to Democracy Blvd. That bypasses the backup that often happens at the 270 split.

I live very near to your new place.

If you have flexibility, it won't be a problem. Even in the worst part of rush hour it only takes 15 minutes to get to the beltway from there. Also, if the traffic is bad, you can actually loop around on the new hot lanes and save some serious time if you need it.


Again, if you have flexibility it is no big issue at all. The hardest part of your commute, both ways, will be from the bridge to your office.

I have family that lives in that part of GF (near Leesburg Pike) and we live in Bethesda. It takes 25-30 minutes without traffic because you either need to go down to Rt 7 or get off the beltway and follow Georgetown Pike all the way down past GF village. There are probably a few shortcuts on back roads I'm not familiar with, though.

So we’re interested in a house in Great Falls near Leesburg Pike and Springvale Road. My office is in Bethesda near the Montgomery Mall. Right now we’re in the Wheaton area and it takes about 20 minutes to get to work and 35 to get home.
I don’t want to live in a great place…and then spend all of my time in my car. A few questions:

1. Navigation estimates show it takes around 30-40 minutes each way during rush hours—does that sound about right?
2. Are there any times where it would be closer to 25 minutes? My job can be flexible-ish.
3. If you commute from Great Falls/Reston to Bethesda, what advice do you have?
4. Is living in Great Falls (space, great schools, quiet) worth the drive and being pretty far out of town?

Thanks in advance!

(Apologies for the cross-post)