What is a good midpoint suburb between Aurora and Chicago

[fusillirob1983]

Originally Posted by KerrTown

Honestly the best solution for the OP would be to live in Aurora and Naperville and commute to The Loop. At least you have an option that doesn't end with a worn-out car (unlike in Sunbelt cities). If one is looking for express trains, the BNSF line is the Metra line with the most express trains and the heavy usage. Other suburbs wish their lines could have as many express trains to the Loop as Aurora/Naperville. Perhaps that explains why Aurora-Naperville is so popular (or the reverse; a classic chicken-or-egg situation).

The express train from Aurora is like 50 minutes just on the train. Build in the commute to the train and the commute from Union Station to Northwestern. One person would be sacrificing a lot of time out of their day.

[chet everett]

Originally Posted by fusillirob1983

The express train from Aurora is like 50 minutes just on the train. Build in the commute to the train and the commute from Union Station to Northwestern. One person would be sacrificing a lot of time out of their day.

For folks accustomed to the haphazard arrival / departure of the CTA L an actual timetable may be a foreign concept but the BNSF has an ON-TIME percentage of greater than 94% and the UP-W line is at 96% -- https://metrarail.com/sites/default/...pagination.pdf The FACT is fastest EXPRESS trains from Naperville to Union Station is NOT "like 50 minutes" but IN FACT 33 minutes -- https://metrarail.com/sites/default/...fm70_tt_ap.pdf

The fastest express from Downers Grove is ONLY six minutes faster, but the OP needs to understand that the DRIVE from basically ANYWHERE in DG to employment centers in Aurora will almost certainly be significantly longer than the drive from a spot in Naperville, on average that probably would double if not triple the "6 minute" differential in a way that is VERY negative because it is not on a nice orderly train but in nightmarish TRAFFIC.

The speediest express from Lombard is 33 minutes,https://metrarail.com/sites/default/...nge_100216.pdf but AGAIN the trade-off is very likely to result in a worse drive to Aurora. Though quickest travel on same Metra UP-W line from Oak Park is 16 minutes to the Loop the combined CTA L & bus trip to NWMH is still over 50 minutes, https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Harl...9!2d41.8946238

There is no value in deliberating extending the DRIVE from Oak Park to Aurora, which is going to be easily THREE or FOUR TIMES as time consuming as the trip from Naperville that only makes both parties suffer...

[chet everett]

Originally Posted by KerrTown

Honestly the best solution for the OP would be to live in Aurora and Naperville and commute to The Loop. At least you have an option that doesn't end with a worn-out car (unlike in Sunbelt cities). If one is looking for express trains, the BNSF line is the Metra line with the most express trains and the heavy usage. Other suburbs wish their lines could have as many express trains to the Loop as Aurora/Naperville. Perhaps that explains why Aurora-Naperville is so popular (or the reverse; a classic chicken-or-egg situation).

It is not just a "chicken and egg" situation. The reasons why there are so many express trains from Naperville AND why they are so fast AND why this makes sense for the OP and others is because of the PLANNING that happened long ago:

1. The layout of the BNSF, which goes through NO major rail yards AND has full triple track, if best suited to express trains.
2. The large population of Naperville warrants larger trains than any other suburb.
3. The differential between driving and train commute is best from Naperville to the Loop
4. Nearby employment in Naperville / Aurora / Lisle afford the best options for two income families

There is a decent concentration of employment options around Downers Grove / Lombard / Oak Brook too, but since the OP is NOT working there but in Aurora that really makes the most sense to minimize the total commute for the driving spouse. Given the FACT that no other town / train really shaves much time off the commute to NWMH this ought to be an easy decision. I would even go so far as to say that if the OP and spouse enjoy after work activities that are in Chicago that would NOT be enough to tip the scales away making Naperville a top choice.
Think about it -- there is a 7PM performance at CSO. It's a Wonderful Life Spouse "a" working at NWMH is NOT going to head back to either Naperville or Oak Park, that would be too much back tracking. They'll probably come from work with no need to really alter their schedule, save for bringing a change of clothes. Spouse "b" working in Aurora would likely appreciate being closer to home in Naperville where they might drop off things / change before heading into Chicago and that would not change very much if they lived in Oak Park as they'd almost certainly prefer DRIVING the 20 minutes from Oak Park vs relying on public transit that is going to be TWICE AS LONG to CSO. MAYBE this equation changes if the OP is a "hard drinking couple" neither of whom is safe behind the wheel, but I would hesitate to recommend that such folks also venture through Chicago's West Side on either the Green or Blue lines heavily inebriated...

[fusillirob1983]

Originally Posted by chet everett

For folks accustomed to the haphazard arrival / departure of the CTA L an actual timetable may be a foreign concept but the BNSF has an ON-TIME percentage of greater than 94% and the UP-W line is at 96% -- https://metrarail.com/sites/default/...pagination.pdf The FACT is fastest EXPRESS trains from Naperville to Union Station is NOT "like 50 minutes" but IN FACT 33 minutes -- https://metrarail.com/sites/default/...fm70_tt_ap.pdf

The fastest express from Downers Grove is ONLY six minutes faster, but the OP needs to understand that the DRIVE from basically ANYWHERE in DG to employment centers in Aurora will almost certainly be significantly longer than the drive from a spot in Naperville, on average that probably would double if not triple the "6 minute" differential in a way that is VERY negative because it is not on a nice orderly train but in nightmarish TRAFFIC.

The speediest express from Lombard is 33 minutes,https://metrarail.com/sites/default/...nge_100216.pdf but AGAIN the trade-off is very likely to result in a worse drive to Aurora. Though quickest travel on same Metra UP-W line from Oak Park is 16 minutes to the Loop the combined CTA L & bus trip to NWMH is still over 50 minutes, https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Harl...9!2d41.8946238

There is no value in deliberating extending the DRIVE from Oak Park to Aurora, which is going to be easily THREE or FOUR TIMES as time consuming as the trip from Naperville that only makes both parties suffer...

I definitely didn't say Naperville's train is 50 minutes. My quote actually says Aurora. It's 33-34 minutes from Naperville, like you said. I can't dispute facts from Metra's website. I was disputing the poster that suggested Aurora. Aurora's is approximately 50. I think that's a noticeable difference to Naperville, but again, that's just time on the train. I think for someone traveling from the western suburbs to Northwestern, it's best to give them every minute possible to reduce their potentially 85-90 minute door to door commute. As you mentioned though, the driver adds more time than is subtracted from the train commuter spouse.

What would you estimate the commute is from Downers to Aurora is and vice versa? What about Elmhurst or Lombard - both morning and evening rush (on a normal morning and evening rush)? Obviously there's no catch-all as Elmhurst, Lombard and DG are decent sized towns so times can vary. You mentioned yesterday they're not good, what's a rough estimate? Where does the congestion occur from Elmhurst or Lombard?

I feel like the commute from Union or Ogilvie isn't being accounted for much. Assuming the spouse working at Northwestern takes the express train that arrives at Union at 7:40 am, given the time it takes to walk off the platform and what not, assume they catch a bus at 7:50 am. They still have a 23 minute bus ride to Northwestern.
https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Unio...1481097000!3e3

They arrive at work around 8:15 and they left the house - when? If they aren't in walking distance of the downtown Naperville train, they probably leave the house at 6:45-6:50. So, about 85-90 minutes. It sucks, but it could be worse. If they take the train out of Aurora, they probably leave the house around 6:30 am to make a 6:47 am train. That's an hour and 45 minutes.