Expert: David Beckett - 9/2/2009

Question
We are considering taking a job in St Albans.  My wife would prefer to live right in Burlington.  What do you think the viability of commuting to St Albans is, particularly in the winter?  Thanks

Answer
Thanks for your question about that commute from Burlington to St Albans.
I'll start by saying that my answer is really biased: I live in Downtown Burlington, and drive throughout Northwest Vermont to assist sellers and buyers of houses, condos, etc. But I don't have to travel every day...and I am willing to make sacrifices to live in Burlington. For me, there's no substitute for being able to walk to get the out of town papers, walk to the library, the Flynn, the lake, the parks, the Church Street Marketplace, the bikepath and all the rest. So your wife and I may have similar priorities. Perhaps it's even worth mentioning that I really like visiting St Albans, but would find it hard to live so far away from all the arts, business, and cultural happenings in Burlington. But again that's entirely from my own perspective, and wouldn't always be anybody elses...

I've assisted buyers and sellers in St Albans over the years. Since housing is relatively inexpensive in St Albans(compared to many towns in and around Burlington#, and since it's only about a 35 minute drive #29 or 30 Miles# you wouldn't be the first people to commute to St Albans from Burlington to work. In fact the last couple I found a home for in St Albans both work in Burlington, and do the reverse of the commute you're pondering. I haven't heard complaints from them about the commute, but I'm sure it's a significant factor for them.   

In the Winter, driving to St Albans from Burlington is simply going to take longer. If there's a snow storm over night, you'll probably find the first few feet to be the most time consuming: the drive is mostly interstate, and you'd likely find shoveling your own driveway the most time consuming part of the whole journey. The roads in Northwest Vermont are quite well cleared.

Finally, you might just want to take a look at #parts of# Colchester, and Winooski. They are both much closer to Burlington #bicycling distance in some parts of both these towns#, and also #because of the fact that there's good access to Interstate 89 from parts of both of these towns# you're significantly closer to St Albans when you begin your drive in the morning - again, depending on where exactly you're living in these towns. Finding a place to rent #or buy# can be harder in these 2 smaller towns though, simply because of thier size...

I'm happy to sit down with you with a map and show you the lay of the land.

Please let me know how I can help. Best of luck!

David Beckett
david #at) askdavidbeckett.com
Burlington, VT