Driving to Florida from Northeast after Christmas
 

We will be driving from Rhode Island to Florida leaving Dec. 30th. We are hoping to avoid as much congestion as possible and were thinking that New Year's Day should be quiet. What route would you suggest? Should we avoid 95 as much as possible? We could drive 81 from PA and head to Charlotte via Rt 77 through Columbia, SC. Thank you!!

IMO it would be helpful to know exactly where in Florida you are headed.

Yes, there could be congestion around the Washington, DC, area even on a day when you would hope it would be "quiet."

Do you have any sort of GPS capability which could alert you to the possible "traffic problems" ahead?

Even though it is only about 100 miles further if you use the I-81 option I'd suggest you do something now:

go to Googlemaps.com and input your staring and endpoints and use the options tab to pick both the I-95 and I-81 routes.

Click back and forth on each one on the map and look at ALL those supposed "traffic incidents" on BOTH routes.

Having lived in the Washington, DC, area, and having driven around NYC my advice would be to try to drive through them at some "0-Dark-Thirty" time (which you obviously cannot to in the same day unless you do it in the same night) and hope.

I'd pick one or the other.

Now somebody is going to tell you how one is "always better" or that "it was better" and that's fine.

Dukey is right.

It is hard to give advice if we don't now where you are going.

It would also be useful to know when you plan to leave and your tolerance for driving in weather.

The week between Xmas and New Year's is a traffic nightmare on I-95.

>>were thinking that New Year's Day should be quiet.<<

The problem is that your travel probably will be complete by then. It's the time before then that you should be worried about.

I haven't traveled 81 at that time of year, so I can't advise. However, from RI, you'll be going a helluva lot out of your way to get the 81. Now, if you're headed to the west coast of FL, that might not be so bad. But if it's the east coast, and especially the southeast coast, that's a long ride.

Providence to DC is about 400 miles or minimum 7hrs drive time. The detour via I-81 through Harrisburg then I-83 to Baltimore adds 100 miles. Not a short cut by any means.

No way would I drive through NYC / DC corridor on Fri 12/30. If it were my choice I'd leave home early Saturday morning 12/31 and take I-95 the whole way. Sat/Sun will definitely be quieter than Friday.

If you take I-81 then 77 to Charlotte, you still add the ~100miles to the total trip. Not a worthwhile detour to me.

We've done both 95 through and 81/77 and found that the time was almost the same in spite of the extra miles.

At this time of year I would be more concerned with the weather, 81 has lots of hills, with a slow lane for trucks, but in a snow storm it could be hairy. 95 is always going to have its slow spots and snow could make it beastly, but it is less prone to snow at this time of year than 81 is.

>>We've done both 95 through and 81/77 and found that the time was almost the same in spite of the extra miles.<<

From what city to what city and at what time of year?

One HUNDRED MILES, Vince. You're "hell of a lot out of your way" is <B>subjective</B> and probably, (gasp!) exagerrated as is your generalization about traffic on 95 as if it is "bad" 24 hours a day.

We went from CT to FL on both routes. Most often on 95 but several times on 81 to other places in the south also. Twice had wrong way drivers on 95, several times stopped for accidents on 95, once stopped for a car fire on81. There is no perfect way to go but in general 81 had less traffic than 95.

Listen to Dukey, not emalloy. Take I-95. Bring a pistol.