Transportation question Dulles to DC Hotel

[thymegirl08]

Hoping someone who is familiar with the DC area on this board can help me. I am flying into Dulles airport and staying one night at the Marriott near Foggy Bottom. (22nd St. NW). Would it be cheaper for me to take an airport shuttle or a taxi to the hotel? Also thinking about the time difference between the two. (sometimes those shuttles take forever). Thank you for any help!

Lynne

[vavasmom]

Cabs at Dulles are going to be Washington Flyer Cabs. They are metered. I would expect to pay at least 55 - 60 to get to Foggy Bottom http://www.washfly.com/Taxi_rate.htm . As far as shuttles I know there is Super Shuttle (http://www.supershuttle.com), it was about $28 when friends used it a few years ago but you should check their prices now. You do need to wait for the shuttle to come and it will make multiple stops but the cost was about 1/2. You see other shuttle companies but I don't have any experience except with the Super Shuttle or the Washington Flyer Van Shuttle (I think that is only for a large group). I also know you can take a bus from the airport to the subway at West Falls Church (orange line) but that is a major hassle with luggage.

 

The travel time is going to vary based upon traffic. You do have the advantage of the transportation can take the airport lanes until they end at the beltway.

[RHefley228]

Shuttle.

[megr1125]

you could also take the #5 (or maybe 5A) bus from IAD to the Rosslyn Metro, then take the orange line to metro center to the red line to foggy bottom....(IIRC)

 

not really luggage friendly (the bus part) but it's cheap...the bus is about an hour depending on traffic.

 

shuttle MIGHT be faster.....

 

www.wmata.com for info

[GTJ]

Use the 5A bus from Dulles to the last stop, L'Enfant Plaza. It takes 48 minutes and costs $3.10. Get the schedule here: http://www.wmata.com/bus/timetables/dc/05a.pdf?n.

 

Once at L'Enfant Plaza, either get a taxi for the short distance to your hotel, or ride the Metro (orange or blue) to Foggy Bottom.

[BND]

Use the 5A bus from Dulles to the last stop, L'Enfant Plaza. It takes 48 minutes and costs $3.10. Get the schedule here: http://www.wmata.com/bus/timetables/dc/05a.pdf?n.

 

Once at L'Enfant Plaza, either get a taxi for the short distance to your hotel, or ride the Metro (orange or blue) to Foggy Bottom.

 

It takes 48 minutes in theory, dependent on weather, traffic levels and time of day. I live 5 miles from Dulles. L'Enfant Plaza is in the middle of office buildings and finding a taxi could be difficult at times. There is a hotel so you might be able to get one there.

 

I would take a taxi or hire a shuttle at Dulles for door to door service.

[mochuck]

We arrived at Dulles on a Sunday and were staying at the Fairmont at Foggy Bottom. We had friends pick us up but the traffic was horrendous. Apparently its always like that, so a shuttle might be the more economic option. There is nothing worse than sitting in a taxi thats not moving and watching the meter tick over

[read52]

Yes the traffic is always slow. Then throw in rain or snow and you are really moving. I was at the National Geographic book sale at the armory by JFK on Sat. Nov.21. Traffic was not too bad on that day.

[BND]

Yes the traffic is always slow. Then throw in rain or snow and you are really moving. I was at the National Geographic book sale at the armory by JFK on Sat. Nov.21. Traffic was not too bad on that day.

 

I think you mean RFK. The old Redskins stadium. Traffic can be horrible or moving just fine.

[GTJ]

It takes 48 minutes in theory, dependent on weather, traffic levels and time of day. I live 5 miles from Dulles. L'Enfant Plaza is in the middle of office buildings and finding a taxi could be difficult at times. There is a hotel so you might be able to get one there.

 

Indeed, the scheduled running time varies, and 48 minutes is the weekday midday running time on the 5A route from Dulles via Tysons-Westpark transit station. During peak periods the 5A bypasses the transit station but the traffic requires additional scheduled running time, totaling 57 minutes in the A.M. peak and 54 minutes in the P.M. peak. On weekends the scheduled running time varies between 47 and 49 minutes. Best thing to do for determining scheduled travel times is to take a look at the timetable.

 

But as with any transit travel times, actual running times will vary from scheduled running times. For this reason schedulers insert recovery time into the schedule between subsequent trips so that even if any given trip takes longer than scheduled the subsequent trip will most likely start on time. Thus, looking at the amount of recovery time between trips gives a fair estimate of anticipated variations in running time. Some transit systems set an on-time performance goal, and if, say, a system has a 90 percent goal, then their recovery time would be set so that at least 90 percent of the time the scheduled running time plus recovery time is greater than or equal to the actual running time. In the case of route 5A, it appears as though 7 minutes is scheduled as midday recovery time, 21 minutes as P.M. peak recovery time, and varying amounts at other times (this is, admittedly, assumed as WMATA might be doing their run blocking in a less obvious manner, or otherwise interlining the service), thereby giving a total running plus recovery time of 55 minutes in the midday, 75 minutes in the P.M. peak, and other amounts at other times. Thus, unless the WMATA schedule is obsolete (unlikely since the 5A is a relatively new route) or the scheduler is totally inept (unlikely given the high exposure of the 5A route) it is very likely that the actual journeys will exceed 75 minutes on only rare occasions with exceptional traffic.

 

I realize that this was a somewhat lengthy explanation of transit bus scheduling theory, but hopefully it presents some explanation of how actual travel times vary from those that are scheduled without resorting to a simple wave of the hand and conclusory explanation that "the buses never run on time." Further details on the theoretical and practical aspects of bus scheduling can be had in the recently-issued report no. 135 from the Transit Cooperative Research Program, http://www.tcrponline.org.

 

In Washington the bus stop is on Seventh St S.W., at its intersection with Maryland Av S.W. It is indeed a government office building environment, not a commercial area, but you might still find a taxi heading north on Seventh St. If not the Holiday Inn is two blocks away on C St S.W., just off of Sixth St S.W. Easier is probably just hopping on the Metro right where the bus lets one off and heading directly to Foggy Bottom.

 

The question of which option to take largely depends on how much luggage you have with you (if any), and your ability to handle that luggage independently. If you are independent then I would ordinarily suggest using the 5A bus; if you are dependent then you'll probably want a hired vehicle.

[read52]

I think you mean RFK. The old Redskins stadium. Traffic can be horrible or moving just fine.

 

Sorry, I always get the initials wrong. I would still suggest the shuttle because it is less of a problem. My daughter and her boyfriend flew out of

National/Reagan about two weeks ago. They left their car at our house and took the metro to airport. We were going to pick them up but we had problem with our car. So they took the shuttle which they caught at the airport. It was $39 for both of them from National/Reagan to Silver Spring.

[dlb237]

If door-to-door service is what you want, Super Shuttle is probably a better bet than a taxi, as explained by the other posts. Do this if you want/need help with your luggage.

 

If you can handle your own luggage, the focus on the 5A bus has given short shrift to a better public transit option: Take the Washington Flyer coach (bus) to West Falls Church Metrorail station(nonstop) - the Orange line runs directly from there to Foggy Bottom. This is a bit more expensive - the coach is $10 one-way and the Metrorail fare is $2.90. This avoids all traffic problems as the coach uses the central lanes (to/from airport only) on the Dulles Toll Road, and should be more comfortable.

 

--David

[mochuck]

Indeed, the scheduled running time varies, and 48 minutes is the weekday midday running time on the 5A route from Dulles via Tysons-Westpark transit station. During peak periods the 5A bypasses the transit station but the traffic requires additional scheduled running time, totaling 57 minutes in the A.M. peak and 54 minutes in the P.M. peak. On weekends the scheduled running time varies between 47 and 49 minutes. Best thing to do for determining scheduled travel times is to take a look at the timetable.

 

But as with any transit travel times, actual running times will vary from scheduled running times. For this reason schedulers insert recovery time into the schedule between subsequent trips so that even if any given trip takes longer than scheduled the subsequent trip will most likely start on time. Thus, looking at the amount of recovery time between trips gives a fair estimate of anticipated variations in running time. Some transit systems set an on-time performance goal, and if, say, a system has a 90 percent goal, then their recovery time would be set so that at least 90 percent of the time the scheduled running time plus recovery time is greater than or equal to the actual running time. In the case of route 5A, it appears as though 7 minutes is scheduled as midday recovery time, 21 minutes as P.M. peak recovery time, and varying amounts at other times (this is, admittedly, assumed as WMATA might be doing their run blocking in a less obvious manner, or otherwise interlining the service), thereby giving a total running plus recovery time of 55 minutes in the midday, 75 minutes in the P.M. peak, and other amounts at other times. Thus, unless the WMATA schedule is obsolete (unlikely since the 5A is a relatively new route) or the scheduler is totally inept (unlikely given the high exposure of the 5A route) it is very likely that the actual journeys will exceed 75 minutes on only rare occasions with exceptional traffic.

 

I realize that this was a somewhat lengthy explanation of transit bus scheduling theory, but hopefully it presents some explanation of how actual travel times vary from those that are scheduled without resorting to a simple wave of the hand and conclusory explanation that "the buses never run on time." Further details on the theoretical and practical aspects of bus scheduling can be had in the recently-issued report no. 135 from the Transit Cooperative Research Program, http://www.tcrponline.org.

 

In Washington the bus stop is on Seventh St S.W., at its intersection with Maryland Av S.W. It is indeed a government office building environment, not a commercial area, but you might still find a taxi heading north on Seventh St. If not the Holiday Inn is two blocks away on C St S.W., just off of Sixth St S.W. Easier is probably just hopping on the Metro right where the bus lets one off and heading directly to Foggy Bottom.

 

The question of which option to take largely depends on how much luggage you have with you (if any), and your ability to handle that luggage independently. If you are independent then I would ordinarily suggest using the 5A bus; if you are dependent then you'll probably want a hired vehicle.

 

It might be just me but I think "the buses never run on time" makes as much sense as your post. I certainly didn't understand it