I am flying out of IAD on the 9:55 pm flight to DEN. I plan on being downtown for the afternoon festivities and my wife thinks there is no way I'll get to IAD if I leave by 6:00. I think that once you get out of the core of the city, things should open up by then.
That said, I originally thought of flying out of BWI, but figured 95 would be a parking lot.
I doubt it is doable by car, since 66 Westbound will be HOV only until 9 p.m. and it isn't clear if the normal airport exception applies.
You might try the 5A bus, which is also a good deal - 3 bucks with a Smartrip card.
I thought flying out of DCA very early on Inauguration Day wouldn't be a problem, but many main roads will be blocked and Rt 1 will be the ONLY way in for those not using mass transit. Parking at some far away Metro station will be a royal pain. Do any of you know if airlines will allow you to reschedule given those conditions? More importantly, I don't see how even the employees at DCA or flight crew flying out that day will get there on a timely basis. Before calling the airline, I thought some of you have some real life experience with that miserable scenario.
i rethought it. (thinking is not one of my finer points)
i think alexandria rt 1 is open, not sure about gw parkway from alex to dca, but sort of think so. take 66 to beltway south, get off in alex, cross over to wash. st to Mt vernon mem hwy(always thought that was part of gw pky).
keep listening to 103.5 and check to see if still spaces at dca pkng lots.
i wouldn't be surprised to see some of the crews stay in the respective clubs. also, hopefully some of them are put up at the hotels in crystal city.
as for getting to IAD for the 9:35 flight or something like that...just take orange line to west falls church and hop on the washington flier. i'd be shocked if it took more then 2 hours, but then again, with the amount of metro trains planned on running, it could be a pain.
And this question makes me wonder whether DCA arrivals and departures will be suspended for some period around the time of the parade and inauguration...
Other than potential ground delay/ground stop programs for the normal reasons (weather, volume, etc.), air carrier operations will not be disrupted. There are significant restrictions on general aviation aircraft, including a complete prohibition of VFR flights within 30 miles of DCA, as well as a prohibition of IFR GA flights, except for those to/from IAD, BWI, and HEF (Manassas).
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i drove down(and up) washington blvd today from the north(not the same wash blvd as in alex. not a bad trip at all. gets real close to rt 1, which is supposed to be the only way into dca.
wonder if there is enough intelligence and advance planning to adjust or turn off the light to enter dca from rt 1.
