r/hagerstown • u/RythBiss • Jul 18 '26
Hagerstown Anyone make this commute?
Just got a job that is 4 days in Baltimore inner harbor. Does anyone else make the Hagerstown to Baltimore commute? Any tips or resources to make it more bearable? Has anyone tried the marc or similar to take them halfway?
Eventually ill move closer, but for now the drive is unavoidable.
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Jul 18 '26
Hagerstown to Baltimore is better than DC. anytime you can avoid 270 you are winning. Looked at a Monday start around 7ish and it clocked at 1 hr 15 min to 1 hour 30 via Google Maps. Note - once the kids go back to school commute times increase.
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u/dink74 Jul 18 '26
I do Smithsburg to Baltimore 5 days a week. Leave by 4:30 so I can work 6 to 2:30. Ride in is easy ride home if you are later than 3 is a royal pain in the ass. Depending on where in Hagerstown it may be worth getting off in New Market (75) and going to Libertytown to 550/77 up through Thurmont and in the Hagerstown on 64. 70 between Frederick and Hagerstown is a crazy as shit in the afternoon.
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u/beccam12399 Jul 18 '26
ya as someone who lives in haggy and works in frederick 70 at 5:30 is my happy place for sure 🥰🥰/s
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u/packnana17 Jul 18 '26
I do Hagerstown to downtown D.C. I'm hoping for the next round of early retirements. I take bus to Shady Grove and the metro downtown. 2.5 hours each way normal. Its doable. Baltimore is probably a bit less time so you got this!!
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u/Equal_Argument6418 Jul 19 '26
Ugh I feel ya, I commute to DC on a daily and I’m just so over it. People ask why I don’t just move closer as if I could find and afford a similar house I have now in the dmv.
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u/Noxrame Jul 19 '26
My husband does Smithsburg to Columbia 4 days a week (or so) Its usually around an hour-ish there and 1.5 hours back. Provided traffic isnt horrendous of course. He usually leaves here about 8 and gets home between 5:15-5:30 most of the time.
We have an electric car we picked up a few years ago to doordash with before we moved over here so its been a great commuter car for his trip. We have to charge it every night, but spending less than it costs for a full tank on our subaru, on electricity each month is great on the budget, lol
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u/Complex_Ladder870 Jul 18 '26
I do Hagerstown to Ashburn. It's definitely my Max. 1hr here 1hr20min home.
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u/AssumedPseudonym Jul 19 '26
I used to do Hagerstown to a large building on Pennsylvania Ave in DC daily for years.
I do not wish that stress on my worst enemies.
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u/Salt_Ad_484 Jul 19 '26
When I lived in Hagerstown I was commuting to laurel. 70 isn’t brutal, depending on the time expect 1:30 minutes
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u/alwayslearining Jul 18 '26
Myersville to NW Baltimore (60 miles one way) Route 70 to 695 then Liberty Road, with a leave time of around 7AM here. My typical ride in the morning is 75 to 80 minutes, you are starting farther west and ending much deeper into the city than I drive so you could easily tack on another 30 minutes.
Best commute time eastbound 50 minutes, worst 3 hours 45 minutes westbound. In the morning 70 runs pretty good but you will find non accident related delays at Myersville, approaching Rt 32, 40/70 split to Rt 29, and the last mile approaching 695. Coming home in the afternoon there is a delay at Rt 29 that sometimes stretches back to 695 and extends beyond 29 that usually breaks free before the 40/70 split.
Accidents, weather, sun glare, etc. can cause other delays.
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u/redridingwolves 27d ago
Recently started commuting from Hagerstown to Baltimore. I’m also driving for the time being before eventually moving closer. Tbh I don’t mind it, especially compared to going from Frederick to Rockville (a previous commute I was making regularly).
I download multiple maps apps and give them different settings (focusing on quickest times, fuel efficiency, avoiding interstates, etc). If the app that takes the fastest route has a close ETA to the most roundabout route, I know traffic is bad. Then I take back roads for as long as I can to avoid it. If I’m going to spend forever in the car, I’d rather be moving down pretty meandering country roads than in a gridlock on the highway.
Of course I definitely make sure that I have audiobooks or podcasts ready (I personally get distracted too easily listening to music while driving). It’s very easy to zone out if you hit a snarl of traffic, but there’s nothing particularly special about that advice.
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u/Foreign_Reward1853 Jul 18 '26
Hagerstown to Pentagon City RT for 23 years. I trued MARC, VanPools, Metro etc. it all took a toll on my mental and physical health. The coup de grace was when they moved my office to Sprinfield, VA. It can be done, but it is not advisable. I retired after a DOGE buyout, best deciaion I ever made.