Rush hour drive from Wicker Park to Oakbrook Terrace? Anyone do it?

[Alacran]

Please don't injure anyone when you decide to crash into a fiery death.

[prairiestate]

After and 8 hour workday and a 3 hour plus commute, are you really going to be going out drinking all night? Perhaps it would be wiser to live closer to work and commute to the city on weekends.

[IAmEverywhere]

A thread I started might be useful to you if you're traveling to Oakbrook Terrace along the Ike. It discusses alternate routes for when the Ike is backed up.

Safety of alternate routes for I-290 in near west suburbs?

Is Oak Park completely out of the question? Many people who want an urban lifestyle but who work in the western suburbs live there as a compromise to avoid spending 2-3 hours per day just to get to work. How much time would it save to live there compared to living in Wicker Park?

[Dupont]

Thanks very much!! I appreciate it.

[Dupont]

Originally Posted by Vlajos

90% of suburbs will bore you to tears.

Where is the 10% that won't?

[chirack]

Originally Posted by IAmEverywhere

A thread I started might be useful to you if you're traveling to Oakbrook Terrace along the Ike. It discusses alternate routes for when the Ike is backed up.

Safety of alternate routes for I-290 in near west suburbs?

Is Oak Park completely out of the question? Many people who want an urban lifestyle but who work in the western suburbs live there as a compromise to avoid spending 2-3 hours per day just to get to work. How much time would it save to live there compared to living in Wicker Park?

Oak park would be a much better place to stay. It would save atleast 20-30 mins to wicker park. Napervile would also be a better location that has a simdgen of night life.

[IAmEverywhere]

Originally Posted by Dupont

Where is the 10% that won't?

There are a few suburbs just outside the city which are, in practice, more like the city than like the typical suburb. These areas have a fair amount of nightlife, culture and things to do on their own. It's also quick and easy (outside of rush hour) to get from them into Chicago proper if you have a car.

Just west of the city, these areas include Oak Park, Forest Park and Berwyn. Additionally, River Forest, while mostly residential, is similar to and just west of Oak Park. Note that if you're concerned about schools, Oak Park and River Forest are far preferable to the other two towns.

Just north of the city, these areas include Evanston. Evanston additionally has the advantage of having a university which is comparable to the Ivies. Of course, living in Evanston would actually be a much worse commute for you than living in Wicker Park - but it is an answer to your question.

@chirack: Naperville(*) does have a vibrant downtown area with some decent restaurants and a few nightlife venues. Just outside of downtown, there's a pleasant walking path along a river and a liberal arts college. Other than these assets, Naperville is typical suburbia. It's also not convenient to the city. It's about 30 miles from the Loop. And while it's possible to go most of the distance on expressways, some of the expressways in question tend to get congested. Specifically, you have to merge from I-88 onto I-290, which is itself problematic. And then you have to continue east on I-290, which tends to be slow from that junction to roughly the Chicago city limits. The bottom line is that I don't recommend Naperville to someone who is looking for an urban experience or who wants to be able to visit the city of Chicago on a regular basis.

(*) Was the omission of an "L" intentional? (-: