The easiest thing (because the buses AND trains run so frequently) is to park at
the Herndon-Monroe Park and Ride (off of Sunrise Valley) and take the 950/980 to
West Falls Church, then Metro in. During rush hour both buses and trains run
every 6-8 minutes or so.
I find it convenient – I work in Ballston, so it takes me 10-15 minutes to get
to the Park and Ride, 20-25 minutes bus ride, and 15-25 minutes to wait for and
ride the train (I get to Metro after rush hour).
Depending on where you work in DC, there’s also the 5A, which goes from Dulles
Airport to L’Enfant Plaza, stopping at the Park and Ride and Rossyln Metro on
the way. It runs every hour, so not quite as convenient.
The best resource out there is Metro’s Rideguide (http://rideguide.wmata.com).
You can plug in your addresses, and choose by least time, distance, etc., and it
will spit out several possibilities.
Working late’s not a problem either – the last 950 leaves West Falls Church at
12:10.
Route schedules:
950/980: http://www.co.fairfax.va.us/comm/trans/connector/pdf/950-980web.pdf
5A: http://www.wmata.com/timetables/dc/5a.pdf
[Originally published at NOVA-Games@yahoogroups.com]