Summer traffic is definitely bad and getting worse. Most of our roads here are set up for commuters, which assume that X% of traffic will exit the interstate when you get a decent distance from DC, but summer traffic, generally more long distance in nature, tends to bunch up where the roads narrow outside of town. The lack of a DC bypass means that we end up sharing this valuable road space with people just passing through.

My advice for a good weekend trip is to leave at a different time than everyone else, which means you can stay on the normal routes and generally have a drive with less stress.

If that is not possible, here are my outer banks/Virginia Beach suggestions:

From the western half of the Metro area, take I-66 west to Route 29 south at Gainesville to Route 17 south at Opal. This merges with I-95 at Falmouth until the Massaponax (recently renamed Spotsylvania) exit. Even though it can be a painful few miles on I-95, its better to tough it out than to try to get through Fredericksburg. At Massaponax, take Route 17 south again towards Tappahannock.

From the eastern half of the Metro area, take the Beltway to Branch Avenue (Route 5) south. This merges into Route 301 north of Waldorf. Stay on 301 through Waldorf and La Plata and cross over the Potomac into Virginia ($3 toll southbound). When you intersect Route 17 in Port Royal, turn left heading south towards Tappahannock.

Now regardless of where you started, you should be on Route 17 in Tappahannock. Stay on 17 south across the Coleman Bridge (free southbound, $2 toll for the return trip), and you can either stay on that until I-64 (it intersects at mile marker 258) or turn right onto Fort Eustis Blvd, Route 105, which intersects I-64 at mile marker 150. I-64 widens from 2 to 4 lanes at mile marker 255, so you can either tough out those last 5 miles or deal with a bunch of traffic lights, pick your own poison. I-664 is almost always better than I-64 heading out to Norfolk and Virginia Beach.

Unfortunately, there is not too much in the way of shortcuts to avoid traffic heading into Duck, since all traffic pretty much funnels through that one intersection at the east end of the Route 158 bridge.

If you are heading further south on the outer banks, a friend suggested taking Route 17 south from I-64 in Chesapeake instead of Route 168. Take Route 17 into North Carolina and stay on that around Elizabeth City. Between Hertford and Edenton, turn left onto Route 37 south, which merges in with Route 32 south and crosses a rather large bridge over Albemarle Sound. When the road forks, bear left onto Route 94 south, and take that to its intesection with Route 64 and head east to Manteo and the OBX. I've never tried this, but my friend claims it works.

Two common themes here: 1) Route 17, and 2) sometimes longer and moving is better than shorter stop and go.

Upper Marlboro - Alexandria

First, Pennsylvania Avenue is the Sousa Bridge. I've never taken that way into the city, but I know it's a solution. I'd suggest looking at a map. I'm sure someone else knows about this way too.

Other options are to take Pennsylvania Ave to 295S to one of two places:

1. Exit 3 (Howard Road-Downtown, the first of the two exits). This will dump you onto S. Capitol. Stay in the left lane and get onto 395S. Then get off at any of the 395 exits, depending on where you are in Alexandria.

2. Exit 3 (The second exit). Take this as a turn around, take the exit back onto 295 going north, and then take exit 4 (to 395), and follow the directions as above.

These aren't going to be any shorter than taking the WW bridge, but they are back ups if needed.

A suggestion for the Duck vacationer....

We used to go when I was a teenager (early to mid 1990s). Mom discovered that the traffic is *drastically* reduced on Sundays, and we started looking for Sunday-to-Sunday rentals. Traffic was no longer a huge problem.

For getting to the GW Parkway from Upper Marlboro, follow the suggestions Kate posted above to get across the Anacostia. Then take the Southeast-Southwest Freeway (this is simply called "the Freeway" on all local traffic reports) west to the 14th Street Bridge. Don't get in the express lanes; stay to the right as you cross the Case Bridge (the high bridge with the view of the Jefferson Memorial), and then get over to the right on the bridge over the Potomac. The first exit is for the GW Parkway northbound (towards Rosslyn and McLean); it is NOT marked as the GW Parkway because the District of Columbia maintains the signs on the 14th Street Bridge and refuses to add this notation. The second exit is for the GW Parkway southbound (Reagan Airport and Alexandria); it's a loop-around ramp and IS marked for the GW Parkway because Virginia maintains that sign.

Note that during the evening rush hour this area can be a total mess. Sometimes when I come out of DC and want to go to Alexandria I stay on I-395 a little further down, take the Clark Street exit (a loop-around), pass back under I-395, then take the next exit on the right (another loop-around to head back towards DC) and then immediately exit to the right again onto the ramp towards Reagan Airport (keep left where the ramp splits). This route also leads to the southbound GW Parkway.

Dr. Gridlock's correspondent doesn't say whether the goal is to go north or south on the GW Parkway. For going north, another alternative is to exit the Freeway at the Maine Avenue exit and follow it to the exit for Memorial Bridge. Take this and then just keep turning right, both before and after crossing the bridge. Just be careful because these roads are a bit of a tangle and people who know them tend to be very aggressive.

Want to beat holiday traffic? Get your pilot's license, rent a Cherokee, and fly yourself. 50 minutes from Gaithersburg to OC, day or night, middle of February or 4th of July weekend.

For Duck NC

In northern VA try going 29 south to 17 south joining 95 south near Frederickburg. then from 95 south take the 295 bypass at Richmond to 64 East.

I travel this twice a month and depart NoVa after 9 PM Friday night and Sundays are usually good also to travel south.

Alternate routes along the way would inlcude route 1 and route 17.

An alternative to I-64 is to continue south on I-295 to US-460 near Petersburg, then follow it across to the Tidewater area. Be careful on this road, though. I believe the speed limit is 60 mph, and there are a lot of cops running radar. Use the cruise control if the traffic permits. I'm not one to respect most speed limits, but on that road I do.

US-460 also dovetails well with the NC-32 route mentioned by "Woodley Park," but you'll have to look at a map to confirm how to make the connection because I don't recall the route. NC-32 up to US-460 worked out well on the way home from a trip to Edenton last year.

I know there are probably thousands of different ways, but here is my dilemma. Sunday, June 3, I am planning to head to Myrtle Beach for a couple of days with my parents and my girlfriend. Now, I will be leaving the area around GMU sometime around 6 p.m. What is the best way to go? 123 to I-95S and all that? Braddock west to Rte. 29 in C-Ville and down to 17, etc.? 28 south into PW to 234? Once I'm into SC, passing South of the Border, then where? Do I drive through SotB or continue further south on I-95. I remember my parents driving us through SotB and on down to MYB that way, but I really can't remember.