Does Canberra really have no traffic jams?

I live in Macgregor (North West Canberra) and work at the ANU. If I leave the house before 8 am I can be at work within 15-20 minutes. After 8 am it can usually take a little longer at about 25-30 minutes, unless there has been an accident which can dramatically increase the wait.

You do pay for parking at the ANU, but staff parking is significantly cheaper than the city at roughly $12.00 per fortnight for a parking permit or $24.00 per fortnight for your own parking spot in a parking station, but that can be a lengthy wait for one of those places. Depending on where you will be located, you should be able to get parking as long as your arrive at work before 9 am.

Thanks everyone so much for all your comments! It’s great to hear that rush hour isn’t too bad. We’re going to look into the suburbs you suggested. Again, much appreciated!

Rush “hour” in Canberra is actually “rush fifteen minutes”, from my experience peaking between 8:30 and 8:45.

What do you consider a long commute? This is a trick question of course, since people moving from Sydney to Canberra end up buying houses at the outer edges of Canberra due to perceiving 2 hours as a “long” commute, and the maximum 35 min drive from anywhere in Canberra to anywhere else in Canberra as “incredibly short”. Within about four years of moving here, they’ll be buying a property closer to the centre of Canberra, and will have come to view 30 mins to get anywhere as “unacceptably long commute time”.

You can get properties from $300/wk if you are willing to live in Gordon, which is about half an hour commute from the ANU, or Oaks Estate (which has associated social stigma).

Note that Canberra has many open spaces, so having a large yard may not be necessary if you are willing to take your child out to play in the parks – many of which will be a short walk from wherever you happen to live. Look at the maps, check out the local spaces using Google or Bing maps. We have ponds, play equipment, the occasional adventure playground (with slides and swings and climbing equipment), light forests, mountains, plains, the works.

Here’s a listing in O’Connor, for $435: http://www.allhomes.com.au/ah/act/rent-residential/105a-scrivener-street-oconnor-canberra/1316800787611

Here’s that street in Bing maps: http://www.bing.com/maps/?v=2&cp=-35.25554121817157~149.12233210676823&lvl=17&dir=0&sty=h&where1=Scrivener%20St%2C%20O%E2%80%99Connor%2C%20ACT%202602&form=LMLTCC

You’re within 5 min walk of shops, primary schools, high schools, churches of several denominations, nature park(s), and space to go out and just kick a ball around.

pete09 said :

No traffic jams is a myth. It’s more like slow heavy traffic on the majors for about 30 minutes each peak. Good compared to larger cities, but worse then country towns.

Depends where you live. Ainslie to Parliament House takes 15 minutes in the middle of rush hour, 8 minutes early in the morning ….

Conder to ANU, 30km, 25 minutes non peak, 40-50 peak maximum. Even then geting to the ANU by 8 it would be more like 30. Currently, if I plan for 8 start in the city it usually takes me 40 & that includes parking the car at the Canberra Centre & walking across the city centre to the bus interchange.

14km to ANU by car – worst case 25mins.
(depart at 8:30 and encounter a delay eg; traffic accident or heavy rain.)

11km to ANU by bike – average 25mins.
(more direct route – riding style; “fast & sweaty” – if you resemble Mary Poppins on a bike expect to take a bit longer!)

Parking is not free at the ANU, but it’s substantially cheaper than parking in the city. In my little corner of the campus, so long as you get here prior to 9am you can usually find a parking spot.

Just a heads up, ANU staff do not park for free (unless it is included as part of your salary package)

dundle said :

Traffic is really not bad, there is a peak hour but I’ve never been in a bumper to bumper standstill like you get in other cities. And going in a little early or late and you miss the peak and there’s basically nothing. Aranda, Cook, Macquarie, Bruce to ANU are all about 20 minutes, maybe 30 maximum if it’s a bad time. My friend in O’Connor says it’s 10 to drive from theirs to ANU in rush hour.

There is no way Aranda to ANU is 20 minutes. Maybe on a pushy.

OP may find the following useful 🙂

http://uncyclopedia.wikia.com/wiki/Canberra#Australian_National_University
http://uncyclopedia.wikia.com/wiki/Canberra#UniLodge

and Canberra traffic: http://uncyclopedia.wikia.com/wiki/Canberra#Industry

Traffic is really not bad, there is a peak hour but I’ve never been in a bumper to bumper standstill like you get in other cities. And going in a little early or late and you miss the peak and there’s basically nothing. Aranda, Cook, Macquarie, Bruce to ANU are all about 20 minutes, maybe 30 maximum if it’s a bad time. My friend in O’Connor says it’s 10 to drive from theirs to ANU in rush hour.

If you’ve got the money then get a place in O’Conner, Lyneham, Turner, Ainslie or one of the closer inner suburbs. It’s very possible you’d have to get somewhere by public transport, which is very ineffective here, so it’ll be bike or walking, and you don’t wanna do that from Weston.

la mente torbida said :

…or … a 10 minute drive ..or a 15 minute cycle …but what would I know, I live southside

Curtin?

That could be a good option actually. Nice scenic route along Lady Denman Drive should be reasonably free flowing I would have thought.

As my screen name suggests, I live in Latham and the commute to the ANU is about an extra 5 mins in peak traffic – so never more than 20 mins unless there has been an accident, usually closer to 15 mins. Agree with other comments – traffic is probably not your major concern, it’s the parking. Stick to northside and buy close enough to the ANU to cycle or walk if the traffic is still a concern.

If you’re planning in living in the inner north it should be easy; most inner-northicans ride their high horse everywhere.

May I ask what you will doing at the ANU? your situation sounds eerily similar to my Latin and Ancient History lecturers, they are married and one is Canadian and the other American with a child approaching toddler age.

45mins from Gungahlin, might be quicker now that GDE is finished. Takes 15mins non-peak hour.

Just did some checks on google maps and I think the travel times there are pretty accurate. I think you could add up to 50% on those times if you’re travelling during peek hour (8-9am, 5-6pm)

…or … a 10 minute drive ..or a 15 minute cycle …but what would I know, I live southside

It’s only a 20 minute swim from my place

Matt Sheppard said :

From North Lyneham to the ANU is probably around 20 mins at worst (just before 9am during school terms). Any other inner north suburb would be similar or better, but might be too pricy (don’t really know on that)

I live two suburbs from the ANU and at 8am if it took me more than 3-5 minutes to get to Barry Drive, opposite the ANU, I’d be pissed off.

Mind, if I worked at the ANU I’d be walking to work anyway, so it’s a moot point really.

To the OP, Turner/O’Connor will be the best options to have an almost guaranteed traffic-free run into work.

Lyneham/North Lyneham, Ainlsie and Dickson would be next.

Then Aranda or South Bruce.

Do the right thing and stay north of the lake. 😉

We live in the Weston Creek area and a drive to the ANU between 7:30am and 8am takes us about 15 to 20 minutes depending on the traffic.
You can also ride there on a bike from Weston Creek, that takes about 30 to 40 mins depending on your fitness level and it’s all on bike paths.

It will be interesting to see what the Creek is like with regards to traffic when the Molongloids move in.

Compared to Sydney or Brisbane we don’t have traffic. Certainly not traffic jams as I have experienced them in those cities. Peak hour is slower, but in my experience a 25 minute drive from my place in the outer suburbs to the city only turns into a 35 minute drive in peak time. If you choose to live in inner north or south, Woden or Belconnen you will be more than fine. If you work at ANU I would go Belconnen over Woden, simply as it is on the same side of the lake. Living in an inner Belconnen suburb like Aranda or Cook would be a quick trip to work.

You’re just in time! ‘The GDE is now finished’ so there will no longer be any traffic problems ever again

Until the Government tries some other roadworks.

If you find a place in the inner north, I’d recommend looking into cycling into work. Plenty of people have attachments on their bikes for taking their kids with them. It took me ~10 minutes to get to ANU from O’Connor, and with bike lanes and bike paths everywhere you don’t have to worry about traffic, parking or fuel costs.

pete09 said :

No traffic jams is a myth. It’s more like slow heavy traffic on the majors for about 30 minutes each peak. Good compared to larger cities, but worse then country towns.

It really depends on how you define a traffic jam. In most cities that would be defined as traffic standing pretty much still for a considerable length of time. Or averaging walking speed at most. That happens to me in Canberra only a few of times a year during exceptional circumstances. Admittedly, I usually have a very short commute.

Slowed down traffic you get every morning on working days between 8 and 9 on most major road. But you can still average 50-60kph quite easily usually.

For the price you’re willing to pay you could indeed find something in the Inner North and you’d have an easy 20 min max commute. It’s an easy bike ride too and if you’d live in O’Connor or Reid, you’d be just as fast on the bike than with the car and not have to worry about parking. There’s a cycle path that runs through the Inner North that will lead you there.

Though staff usually park for free at the ANU I thought, but you might want to double check that. I used to ride my bike from Watson to a daycare centre in O’Connor most days. My daughter preferred the back of the bike to the car, even on frosty mornings.

Hi Brider – if you have lived in those locations I am sure you will love it in Canberra. Peak hour is a pain but in reality only adds about 10 mins max to your journey depending on where you travel from. I travel daily from the far south to north of the ANU each day and that is generally the time difference between 8-9am and other times. This can extend in wet weather, with road works or when there is an accident but there is usually a way around one off obstacles if you know the alternative routes.

No traffic jams is a myth. It’s more like slow heavy traffic on the majors for about 30 minutes each peak. Good compared to larger cities, but worse then country towns.

I’d recommend moving into either O’Connor, Turner or Ainslie. They have a lot of beautiful old houses with large established gardens, within walking distance to ANU and Civic (which is the only shopping area you’ll need), and you could find a 3 bedroom rental for the price you’re asking.

Just make sure you find a place with central gas heating and air con, as a lot of the old houses have terrible insulation and can get incredibly cold in winter, and really bloody hot in summer.

The further out you go from Civic, the newer and cheaper you get, but at the sacrifice of space and transport. As for traffic jams, they really aren’t that bad. Expect a 30 minute commute to ANU if you leave at around 7:30 – 8 in the morning from a south side location around the Tuggeranong area. Parking in and around Civic is ridiculously expensive though (another bonus of living within walking distance), but most people who attend ANU usually park for free in one of the inner north suburbs and walk over anyway. Parking along Dryandra St in O’Connor, and just walking over Barry Dr to ANU is a popular choice for example.

From North Lyneham to the ANU is probably around 20 mins at worst (just before 9am during school terms). Any other inner north suburb would be similar or better, but might be too pricy (don’t really know on that)

“But I wonder how much of the “no traffic” story is a myth?”

Some of it is a myth, a lot of it is truth. Yes, traffic is heavy during peak travel periods and there can be delays. Outside of peak periods however, in my experience, there really is no traffic.

I live in a rural area in NSW about 30km from the city and commute to the ANU by motorcycle most week days. To be walking in to the lecture theatre at 9:00am, I generally have to leave at 8:25am, so 35 minutes door to door (including a few minutes to open gates and put on my motorcycle gear).

Another member of my household works on the ANU side of the city and it takes him about 23 minutes from when he exits the driveway to when he drives into the car park at work.

Your commute times from most parts of Canberra will probably not be an issue compared to the difficulty of finding parking at the ANU, I really hope you have an allocated parking space with your job.

As for where you should live, most of Canberra’s middle suburbs should suit you. The Belconnen, Woden and Weston Creek districts are pretty typical leafy 1970s suburbia and are mostly less than 10km from the ANU. I’d recommend Weston creek as it is located along the Tuggeranong Parkway which runs right next to the ANU, and should be a sub 20 minute commute.

Lastly, check out http://www.allhomes.com.au/ for rentals.

Much better commute than DC – I remember the joys of the beltway on a snowy winter day! Don’t know about Auckland, but better than Sydney or Melbourne. I used to average 60 kph door to door when commuting to work (without breaking the speed limit), but I worked odd hours.