Reagan National Airport across the Potomac River from Hains Point in D.C. (Photo by eschweik

Anyone in D.C. bound for San Francisco faces a menu of unappetizing choices when making travel plans, and we don’t mean the ridiculously priced junk food sold mid-flight. Currently, the only way to get a nonstop trip between the D.C. area and San Francisco International Airport is to hoof it to and from Dulles International Airport, 26 miles of highway drudgery west of the District, or trek up to Baltimore-Washington International Airport

But that’s changing soon, with United Airlines introducing the first nonstop trip between San Francisco and Reagan National Airport in May. The San Francisco Chronicle reported yesterday that beginning May 14, United will start offering one flight per day on 124-passenger Boeing 737-700 planes in each direction along the route.

San Francisco-bound flights will depart Reagan at 8 a.m. and arrive at SFO at 11:10 a.m. D.C.-bound flights will leave San Francisco at 12:30 p.m., landing at 8:45 p.m. Currently, United and Virgin America offer nonstop routes between Dulles and SFO, but anyone seeking to avoid the schlep down Interstate 66 and fly out of Reagan must book a trip that includes at least one layover.

The new flight, the Chronicle notes, is the result of recent Federal Aviation Administration legislation that allows for as many as 16 exemptions from the longstanding “perimeter rules” around Reagan, which prohibit nonstop flights originating from more than 1,250 miles away. As a result of that, frankly, oddball regulation, coast-to-coast flights have been restricted to Dulles and BWI, each of which require a much longer commute than the Metro-accessible Reagan.

The new route is still subject to final government approval.