Airport Question

I%26#39;m flying from Pittsburgh Internation to Philadelphia International on July 14th (Monday). My expected arrival in Philly is 2:35pm. I%26#39;m assuming after I%26#39;ve picked up my luggage and get my rental car it will be at least 4pm. I am traveling to Exton, PA for a Microstation training class for 4 days. What can I expect the traffic to be like on 95W from the rental car pick-up to the US-322 North Exit? I know what traffic is like at 4pm in Pittsburgh, just thought I%26#39;d see if there was any construction on that route. The hotel listed 2 directions - the one I listed and to also take I-476 North from 95W to I-76W. My experience with the Turnpike tells me the second might be a bad idea. I%26#39;m a 29 year old woman traveling alone in an unfamiliar city. I have a good sense of direction but I%26#39;m not wild about getting stuck in traffic. My class doesn%26#39;t start until 8:30am the next day, so if it would be better to wait until after rush hour I could do that too - but of course rush hour in different cities means different things. I now live in Columbus, OH (parents live in Pittsburgh, where I%26#39;m from originally) and our rush hour is about 1 hour in the am and 1 1/2 hours in the PM. Not too tragic.

I%26#39;m leaving on Saturday, expected departure at 5:40pm so I%26#39;m assuming I shouldn%26#39;t have problems then. I will then be flying from Philly to Jacksonville, FL for work - how many hours before my flight should I arrive at the rental return?

Any information would be helpful.

Airport Question

The short version? Ugh...

First of all, just to make sure you don%26#39;t have any issues, 95 goes N-S :)

IF you get out of the airport by 4:00, it won%26#39;t be too bad. 4:45 is when south really starts to clog and you will already be south of the city.

The problem with 322 is that for a decent distance off of 95, it%26#39;s one very crowded lane, so any kind of accident or incident locks it up. That%26#39;s still the way I would go, however, its just a matter of luck. I personally try to avoid 476-76 at all costs.

You will probably sit a little bit on 322 near Exton by the time you hit that as well.

If you find yourself getting frustrated on 322, when you hit Rt 1, you can turn right and drive about 10 mins to the Granite Run Mall and get something to eat and take a break. Traffic will still be icky, but most of it going the other way and the worst will have cleared up by the time you get out of dinner.

Airport Question

I kinda knew it wouldn%26#39;t be pretty. Thanks for your suggestions, and sorry about the 95 direction - at the point from the city to where I%26#39;m going it looks like it runs E-W - My bad.

I guess I%26#39;ll just have to put my patience cap on and deal with it. I%26#39;ve been looking into taking the SEPTA from the airport to Exton, then renting a car -but it all looks like a big mess. Easier to just get the car at the airport and deal with traffic. Originally the training was located in Tampa, FL (right near the airport), but it was canceled and Exton was my only other option. It looks to me it%26#39;s out in the middle of nowhere PA. But there seems to be a few malls and some decent restaurants nearby. I%26#39;m sure it will work out ok.

Exton%26#39;s not that bad, it%26#39;s just basic suburbia... Just a pain to get to at certain points of the day...

Here%26#39;s an option if you don%26#39;t mind taking back roads. I live by the airport and work in King of Prussia so I take this route every day to avoid the Blue Route (PA-476).

Airport to Exton:

Take 95 S to exit 9B - Prospect Park (PA-420)

Continue to follow PA-420 for about 5 miles.

Turn SLIGHT RIGHT onto W SPROUL RD/ PA-320 N. Continue to follow PA-320 N. (3.8 miles)

Turn LEFT onto N SPROUL RD/ PA-320. (3.6 miles)

Turn SHARP LEFT onto CONESTOGA RD. (2.3 miles)

Turn SLIGHT LEFT onto W LANCASTER AVE/ US-30/ LANCASTER PIKE. (0.2 miles)

Turn RIGHT onto OLD EAGLE SCHOOL RD. (2.3 miles)

Turn LEFT onto Swedesford Rd. and (almost immediately) turn LEFT onto ramp for PA-202 S. PA-202 S will take you straight to Exton.

Tip: the King of Prussia Mall (the second largest mall in the US) is right on PA-202 so if you want to avoid traffic on PA-202 S, this is a great way to do so.

What time does traffic typically slow down at night? I was thinking of taking Loonbeams advice and heading the direction of Granite mall, eat, maybe take in movie then heading to the hotel. Since I%26#39;ll be in town until Saturday afternoon, I was planning on hitting the King of Prussia mall on the way back to the airport (I had a friend that was from that area in college and told me if I was ever out that way I had to go!). I%26#39;ve been to a lot of malls (even the Mall of America), but I%26#39;ve been told the King of Prussia mall is something to see!

I can%26#39;t see that I%26#39;ll have time to see any sites in City Center while I%26#39;m in town (training is all from 8:30am to 4:30pm, T-F, but I%26#39;d like to see what I can while I%26#39;m there (and shopping is way more on my list to do!).

Is the security line at Philly International crazy on Saturday afternoons? Should I prepare to be at the airport earlier than 90 minutes before?

Traffic on 95 S and the Blue Route (PA-476) northbound usually gets better around 6-6:30 pm.

I%26#39;ve been to Mall of America as well and quite frankly, I found that the KOP mall is much nicer.

Regarding airport check-in, 90 minutes should be enough for a Saturday.