I love the new super duties and I’m looking at getting one relatively soon, probably an 18 or 19 model year. Where I currently live, the south, for my needs a dually is a no brainer. I was going to get an f450 and the size would be zero issue here and I even have experience driving a dually. However, I recently found out that I may be getting an offer for a job that I may simply not be able to refuse. The problem is that it’s in the DMV (District, Maryland, Virginia) area. I don’t have any experience living there or any large city like that but I have visited several times and based on how tight everything is, I don’t know if a dually is such a good idea. I’m looking for anyone that has experience living and driving a 3/4 or 1 ton truck frequently in a city like this. What are your thoughts? I wold love to make the dually work because I would really like to have the capacity but if needed I could modify my needs to suit a 350 srw if that’s all I can make work. I’m buying the truck while I still live in the south and will use it down here for a little bit but if I move to D.C. I’m taking the truck with me because I have uses for it there and when I move out of the city (I’ll only live there for 4-5 years).

Also, this may be a dumb question because I simply haven’t experienced it before, but hows the stigma of other people surrounding big trucks in cities? I’m worried it will be kinda bad and a dually will just make it worse. Am I right to fear that? I normally don’t care about that kind of stuff but when my truck will constantly be in tight places with tons of people, I do a little.

 

I lived/worked in that area for a long time. I would spend 2k on a used compact commuter car if you need to go inside the beltway and keep the dually for when it's needed to do work

 

I'm frequently in and about the Greater Boston Berbs..... It's like a bull in a china shop.

 

Park it on the outskirts of the city, and buss or train in.

Get a motorcycle.

City people are jerks. Pretty unpredictable as well. You can't even wear a plain red hat in DC without triggering a moron.

 

FWIW - I drove a CCLB drw for 15 plus years. Drove it everywhere including big cities (Portland, Austin, San Antonio, Las Vegas, and others). You need to plan ahead and you're going to have to walk a little further. I now have a CCLB srw and honestly there is little difference between the two to me. The length of the truck is what you have to deal with, not really the width imo. You'll get used it but it can be a pain if it's an everyday thing. Going part way and then taking a bus is one solution or as other have said, a small commuter car could be a viable solution. I did the "commuter" car as well and that was certainly easier is has a cost that comes with it as far as insurance, parking a couple rigs at home, etc. Good luck.

 

I lived in DC/MD my whole life (until 5 years ago when I moved to FL for work). A DRW in and around the city is doable with planning, but also can be a pain. For example, there are various roads there that commercial vehicles are not allow on (GW Parkway for example), so NO DRWs are allowed on that road. Because I know the roads up there, I would not hesitate to do it. My .02.

Gus

 

Parking is a pain! We have several DRW at work and city parking lots seem to be tight, minimal turning space, and have small parking spaces. Between a DRW and long bed, there are lots in my area I couldn't get into, they are that small. That's why I went with a 350 SRW.

 

I recently sold my 16' F350 Dually after 6 months because it was a pain in the A-S-S to drive in Large City (Tampa) traffic. In and around our neighborhood traffic it was just ok. The Bank drive-thru's are out of the question. The curbs are not wide enough. Same as the Local Grocery Stores, Walgreens & Starbucks. The parking lanes are narrower than the truck is wide. You find yourself taking up 2 plus spots in a parking lot that is already full.

 

Live in MD, just outside DC. DONT take it in DC especially deep in. Take it to metro or get a beater.

 

Thanks for the responses so far, very helpful, please keep them coming. A couple more details I felt I needed to add. If I got a 350 srw, it would be a short bed. If I got a 450 obviously it would be long bed. Also I’m in construction management so some of the work I need the truck for will require me to drive it to a job site. However, I’m in management not the construction, so I only need a trucks capability for my job sometimes during special circumstances. I do need it for personal things as well. So yes I could have another car and I probably will, but sometimes I will be forced to drive it to unwanted areas. Definitely won’t take it downtown, but I could have to go closer than desired.

 

I am from Alabama and lived there and Florida most of my life. In 2011 I moved up to the DC area. I work in Ashburn, VA, just on the northern end of the Dulles airport runways. I am frequently in Herndon and Tysons and I do venture into DC but not daily. Trying to drive a CC Dually in NoVa and DC would be a PITA. I had an '07 F350 CC 8' bed, SRW and seldom drove it in DC or even in No Va due to the tight confines and congestion.

Parking is the primary issue. Forget most parking garages and street parking is a crap shoot in downtown DC. Trying to park that F350 anywhere was a problem due to length. Add the extra width of the dually and you have an even bigger PITA. Last September I traded the F350 on a '17 F250 CC, 6.5 bed, FX4 and even its not easy to park. Even the shopping center parking lots are tight. They are laid out for cars and SUVs and the truck is long enough to make it hard to manage in most lots When I drive the truck I just resign that I will have to park further out and walk.

My solution was to buy a small car for daily use in the congested areas. Also, Loudoun County Virginia (Ashburn, Leesburg, etc...) is the #1 market for Teslas. And I see Prius's everywhere. Its the only place I ever got "the finger" from a Prius driver who I had to pass on the right, on a 4 lane road, while driving 10 mph UNDER the speed limit. I HATE driving up here because the drivers are SO bad. Give me Atlanta, Orlando, Tampa, Dallas, etc... etc... Anywhere in the south or west and its waaaay better than the DC metro area.

Oh, and it may be your dream job but do your homework. Cost of living up here is off the charts. My home on the intercoastal waterway in St. Augustine Florida was only worth about half the price of a comparable home in a typical subdivision in Loudoun County. And Loudoun County property taxes are three times what I was paying in Florida.

There is also the problem of HOAs. The HOA for the subdivision I live in prohibits duallys. Others prohibit any truck "larger than a 250/2500. Some HOAs prohibit overnight parking in your driveway or on the street. All vehicles must be garaged overnight. I doubt your dually would fit in any of the garages in the area. And compared to Florida, the weather sucks.

 

I live in MD and commute to just outside Baltimore every day in my F450. It really depends on what you mean by MD/VA/DC. If you are working (and parking) in the city, I wouldn't want a dually. If you are working in one of the suburbs, a F450 isn't any issue for me. Where in the area are you considering?

 

I have a CCLB SRW and it is a bit of pain, but for the most part I don't find it too bad. They are all too tall for covered parking lots but street parking is fine as long as it isn't in peak traffic. A dually I would think wouldn't be fantastic. Even in my situation I get people pissed at me for over hanging a parking spot. Really ... what exactly could one do to mitigate that? its either extending into the other spot or sitting out in the lane. I would think if you are concerned about it and you can get by with a SB, SRW you would be golden. Just get a Dually LB when you move back to a more rural location. If you need a CCLB (as I do) SRW is certainly doable but a little more stressful.

 

I lived in Crystal City and the parking around D.C. sucks for any vehicle. I ended up leaving mine in the parking garage and riding the metro most of the time. The reality is that the best truck for the area is a Nissan Frontier.

 

The job was centralized in that area with most of the jobs I would be helping manage would be in that area. But specifically, I though college park or greenbelt looked appealing as a place to live. But generally I would like to live at that range from the city so at the end of a metro line. Any jobs at that range, definitely any further out, and a little further in, I would drive the truck. Using the green/yellow line that college park is on as a reference, I would not drive it to anything closer than the fort totten stop.