Best alt route to avoid DC morning Rush southbound?

Run it all the time,its a good route.

 

Interstate 5

Stay as far from DC as you can.

 

SR15 south through Williamsburg instead of via Binghamton. Then, south via Harrisburg, Winchester, VA, then SR17 and on at 511 miles.
Just my $ .02

Let us know if that route won't work for you.

 

Best to miss the scales in Maryland. They are rough.

 

What I always have done, is use US 15. Bypass the entire DC Metro, 495 etc. All of it.

You will still get onto 95 near Fredericksburg 133b I think via 17 east near Opal VA which I think is the junction there at US 15. Im running off memory here. There is no toll. You do need to take care on the curves and so on through there, in my time it's a 55 mph road. If they raised it then you need to wait until you get past Manassas 66 on southward before you open it up from the Maryland Line bridge crossing at Tuscarora on down. Frederick Maryland will be what you go to access US 15 on down. Make sure you stay on 15. Do not stay on US 340 because that will take you to Harpers Ferry WVa, it will be a pretty good sized junction and it should be pretty clear to you to stay on 15.

I refer to 15 as a run through the woods. Most of it is forested and a quiet two lane road that's been in use forever by trucking. It completely and absolutely removes DC as a problem. About three miles past the river crossing from Maryland over to VA you will have a truckstop that is a sort of a mini Texaco on the left up on the ridge. You cannot miss this one. The moment you come out of the Balls Bluff Hollow and start pulling that ridge you will know you are coming up on it at the top there is a curve up there.

Manassas has a sheetz you can circle around the car pumps gently and park a minute to get coffee. There is also a small side road to get back on 15 below the light.

There is a US 50 going straight to DC. that crosses US15. It has the scales on the west side about 50 yards from that light. DO NOT go into that scale. You stay on 15. Once in a while DOT likes to do a little inspection at the gravel lot by the light on the corner.

Bridges are not a problem There was a old stone bridge replaced by a modern concrete span roughly spring of 1989. I got in trouble for crossing stone bridge overweight once.

Opal has a old truckstop on the left of the divided highway at or near the US 17 junction intersection. It's been rebuilt into a fast food type truckstop. There is another truckstop at the end of US 17 just before you turn off right onto 95 south. This one will be on your left. It's a independant. I don't know if they are still in business. They better be. The food, staff morale etc is pretty good.

I can go on. But there is also if you need to a small diner at Tuscarora prior to the bridge on the maryland side. You will have to take a left onto a state route and another left to access that little place. It has room for 10 trucks on the back lot up against US 15. You will see it on your left as you are on the last mile or so downgrade to the main bridge crossing into VA.

Be gentle on that 5 truss section bridge. It's used long ago to carry iron ore out of VA north and it's tired. If they have not rebuilt it yet, take it easy across there. You will be fine.

 

US15 from the Md.-Va line to just north of Leesburg,Va is truck restricted to 65',and they enforce it,been that way for a long time. See them sitting at the wide spot above Leesburg where it goes from 2 to 4 lanes,picking off big trucks.

 

Yep.. it’s good! That’s the way I go when I’m over there!