Want to Know Your Opinions on Commute Times

Jennifer - welcome to Seattle. Hope you love it up here. It's a far cry from Texas in a lot of ways but I have a number of LoneStar friends who seem to have adjusted. :)

I live in Greenlake. I love it - it's a great neighborhood for families and for children. The schools are good and you'll have easy access to everything downtown has to offer as well as the city zoo and,as you know, one of the greatest inner city parks around.

That said, commuting to the eastside isn't going to be much fun. My friends who do the commute say it takes about 45 minutes but, as everyone else has indicated, it depends a lot on the time of day and even the weather. We actually have slowdowns for sunshine here (mostly because it can be so low on the horizon it is directly in the windshield)!

If you and yours decide on Greenlake and you want to get together for coffee - or have any other questions - please let me know. I'm one of the last reamining Seattle natives and think it's in my job description to help out transplants. Good luck!

Kirkland to Greenlake is not thirty minutes at those times. It might be thirty minutes in no traffic at all, but it's easily half an hour just to get across the bridge, not to mention getting to the bridge. It would be against traffic to go north on 5 then pick up 405, but then he's with traffic again and it can be at least 45 minutes to get down to Kirkland from the interchange. It helps that he's going slightly later, but in my experience, traffic doesn't really clear up till 10, sometimes 10:30. I think if you want a half hour commute you need to look on the east side. Greenlake's crazy expensive anyway.

But Kirkland is a lovely area - right on the water - super pricey the closer you get to the water, but I don't know that it's any worse than Greenlake. You might check out Woodinville - they are doing some nice things near the winery there.

Hi,
I grew up in Seattle and currently live in Maple Leaf area which is close to Greenlake and Northgate Mall. We are about 6 miles north of down town Seattle. I think your commute would be hit or M. b/c he is leaving at a later time but you never know I do not drive it everyday. Maple Leaf is a cute neighborhood that is close to the freeway acess and to Greenlake. There are a lot of kids in the neighborhood with a few of the older couples left too. I walk to the parks and coffee shops. Since living here our house has only gone up in value and as a whole is very popular.
Good luck :)

I'd live in Kirkland not NE Seattle, better commute and better schools.

And no, you couldn't do Greenlake to Kirkland in 30 minutes across the 520 bridge.

We live in Redmond and it takes us a minimum of 30 minutes to get from here to appointments at Children's Hospital which is in the U-district if there is absolutely no traffic.

F.

Hello, and welcome to Seattle :)
Yes, the traffic is often awful. Public transportation is improving, however. As mentioned, a lot depends on where in Kirkland your husband will be working and where you live in relation to the bridges and/or north end of the lake. My recommendation is that you rent for a bit before you decide where you want to buy, and that'll give you a feel for the traffic, etc, as well as giving you a chance to get to know more of the city. Many factors go into commutes, and in my own experience I've found that learning the surface streets works much better than relying on the interstates to get places.
Greenlake is a beautiful area, as are many places in Seattle. If you're looking for a place to live and want to be in Seattle instead of on the eastside, you might look at Wedgewood, Sand Point, Northgate, or Lake City, as these would put you a little closer to the 520 bridge as well as giving you a better option of driving around the north end of Lake Washington to get to Kirkland.
http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/traffic/seattle/ is one of the best resources I know for traffic information.
Best to you! :)
S.

He would be going in on the tail end of commute traffic both ways. There are lots of nice areas on the eastside; Kirkland, Bellevue, Redmond and Woodinville are wonderful.

Please be prepared for a bit of a shock your first year, especially coming from sunny Texas. When my husband and I moved up here, I was appalled at the pasty idiots wearing tank tops and shorts in 65 degree weather--a year later I was one of those pasty idiots. Also, the lack of sun was really rough my first winter--120 straight days of rain--waaaaaaah. There was not enough dark chocolate in the world, let me tell you.

I lived in the Austin area back in the early 80-s. Where in Texas are you?

Plus, nobody is mentioning the fact that they are going to eventually replace the 520 bridge so you may not want to purchase property. It should be happening in the next 10 years. It definitely wont be any fun when they are doing that project.

Hi Jennifer,
First, an early welcome to the area and good luck with the move. Second, at those times, he should be able to make it to Kirkland (depending on what part of Kirkland he's going to and how close you are to the 520 bridge that takes you across the water), in 30 minutes.
Also, if you'd ever consider living a bit south, we're putting our house up for sale in the next week (moving to So Cal). We live in Renton, near a ton of parks, a new mall (still in process, but will have a Trader Joe's, etc. and is five mins away), are 15 minutes from the airport, Seattle and 10 minutes from Tukwila (more shopping) and Bellevue. He could definitely get to Kirkland in 30 mins or less at those times from here.
We have a fabulous house in a VERY family-friendly neighborhood with a quiet cul-de-sac, a green belt in the back (huge fenced backyard), a view of Lake Washington, air conditioning....4Bdrm 2-1/2 bath...new carpet, new paint...
Anyhow, if you're at all interested, it's priced to sell. We're out of here in June and would love to have another family move in. =0)
Let me know,
L.

Hi Jennifer,

It all DEPENDS...
1. How much you would prefer urban vs. suburban living
2. Where in Kirkland he will be commuting to daily
3. daily traffic patterns

I do the commute from Ballard (all the way on the Northwest side of the city) to Bellevue daily. I drive right to the exit for Kirkland on the 520 bridge and I can say that it's about 30 minutes most days. In zero traffic, it's about 20 minutes--and also a fantasy because on the Eastside there is no such thing as zero traffic, except for early on a weekend morning! If there is an accident or bright sun in the commuters' eyes as they approach the bridge (oddly enough), those two things will stack traffic up quickly.

If he is leaving the house at 9:30, it would probably be better than if he is leaving the house at 9. The worst hour for commuting is between 7:30 and 8:30am.

For the return trip, if he is leaving Kirkland at 7:30, he should be okay--sometimes if there are professional sporting events (MLB, NBA) Westbound traffic can be pretty clogged in the evenings..but by 7:30, it's pretty clear.

My husband and I could probably get a much nicer house with a bit bigger yard if we were willing to move to the Eastside...but we LOVE living in the city so much. We only use our cars for commuting to work and enjoy walking, taking the bus, and riding our bikes most places. We are also very close to the zoo and Greenlake which are fantastic.

Good luck on your relocation. Feel free to send me a private message if you have any questions!

Honestly, that is a nice area, but there is no way I would want to drive across one of the bridges in morning traffic! I would not add extra stress to your or his day dealing with that. I would recommend trying to find something on the east side of the bridges. And depending on expense, Seattle Greenlake area I think will be very expensive for a house..maybe that is not an issue for you. But I will tell you, it is not worth the stress of having to commute across one of the bridges!

If your husband is working in Kirkland, he should live in Kirkland if he wants to be at work in under half an hour. If you have to cross the lake at all for work, you're in trouble. I've never seen traffic as bad as it is here and at all times of the day - doesn't seem to be a set rush hour, but it's definitely worse in the mornings, I suppose, and the bridges across the lake are definitely the worst. Anyway, Kirkland's nice and on the lake.

The area around Green Lake is called Ballard and is part of the city of Seattle. From there, it is more than 30 minutes commute time even when it is outside rush hour. My husband runs basically the opposite commute as you will (we live in Kirkland and he commutes to downtown Seattle) and it is never less than 40 minutes during rush hour (9:30 in, 7:30 home). The main problem is that you have to either go across the bridge over Lake Washington, or around the lake (it's 20+ miles long). So there are only 2 main routes for everyone who does the commute that you are talking about. It's not impossible though. Lots of people do it. You spend a lot of time on the road though.

I'm going out on a limb here, but you might like Lake Forest Park or Kenmore, both of which are closer to Kirland and offer a similar community feeling (though not as quaint as Ballard). Good luck!

I live in Seattle and I can tell you the commute everywhere at any time is bad to terrible. Especially in the area you are looking at. I suggest that you take a look at one of the traffic maps to get an idea of what the traffic is like. King County Metro has one. So does do the local TV stations, (http://www.king5.com/traffic/index.html)for one. Don't for get, traffic will probably get worse. We do have a real push for mass transit here. That might help you make your decision. Kirkland is nice, but Green Lake is nicer. But only if you get home earlier enough to use it. Good luck. W. C.

Dear Jennifer,
there is nothing more wonderful than Kirkland. It is a darling little city/town on a beautiful lake.

Stop looking in Seattle......you can always visit Green lake.
Trust me, I have lived both places......you will LOVE Kirkland!

Yes, the traffic is horrendous. Your husband will love Kirkland too. There is a beautiful park along the lake and lovely trees and walking paths and art and great community.
We have friends who just moved from New york to Kirkland, a young couple and love it. M. S