How long from Crystal Lake to Rockford East side? (McHenry: insurance, neighborhoods)

[jolobro]

Hi , I have a job in east side of Rockford but we are planning to live in Crystal Lake, i have looked at distance etc on Google maps and it says approx 34 miles and will take approx 1hr. Is this realistic for a morning commute to Rockford (to arrive at 7am) and returning to CL approx 4pm?

[socaldream]

You might want to add 10-15 minutes to that, and more if the weather is bad. My sister lives in McHenry county and it always takes an hour and 20 minutes to her house. There is no absolute direct route, though, so that can slow things down, as well as construction and winter weather.

Originally Posted by jolobro

Hi , I have a job in east side of Rockford but we are planning to live in Crystal Lake, i have looked at distance etc on Google maps and it says approx 34 miles and will take approx 1hr. Is this realistic for a morning commute to Rockford (to arrive at 7am) and returning to CL approx 4pm?

[jlawrence01]

Originally Posted by jolobro

Hi , I have a job in east side of Rockford but we are planning to live in Crystal Lake, i have looked at distance etc on Google maps and it says approx 34 miles and will take approx 1hr. Is this realistic for a morning commute to Rockford (to arrive at 7am) and returning to CL approx 4pm?

During the summer months, you can get from Crystal Lake to the Clocktower in Rockford in slightly under an hour. I have to do it occasionally. Once you get west of IL-47, the only stops are at Marengo and you MUST slow down through Garden Prairie which is a speed trap. The traffic is fairly minimal heading in that direction.

Having said that, that is an absolute NIGHTMARE in the winter when there is bad weather. The snowdrifts along US20, even with the snow plows can be a real headache. Two or three hours is not unlikely.

Personally, I would not live in Crystal Lake if I worked in Rockford. You are paying higher taxes and higher costs in general (gas, insurance, etc.).

[jolobro]

Thank You both , we are currently looking into the belvidere area, seems more manageable!

[jlawrence01]

Originally Posted by jolobro

Thank You both , we are currently looking into the belvidere area, seems more manageable!

I work in Crystal Lake. When we first started looking, we suffered a severe case of sticker shock. That is, the housing costs were 2-3x what we encountered in other cities in the midwest.

We looked in Belvidere but that stretch of country roads scared us away.

Marengo would get you 10 miles closer.

[pvande55]

Generally traffic flows well in the direction you are going so you should be all right.

[offbeat61]

I would not move to Marengo. I have lived here for five years and have been burglarized two times. Police protection is not all that good and even some of the officers working here have been sued or arrested in other towns.

[sequoia14]

You can live in Cherry Valley or the far South East or North West side of Rockford and mostly stay out of harm's way and have a short commute. There are still some nice neighborhoods in Rockford but they are in short supply lately and getting even less and time goes on.