Valparaiso vs Schererville...commute to Chicago (pros and cons, rain, to work)

[domergurl]

Originally Posted by cd771

Can someone please tell me what the traffic is like in Valpo? We are going there in a couple of weeks to check out a couple of homes and the area and want to know about how long it would take to get to the South Shore. Does 49 get heavy traffic. One of the homes we are considering is about 11 miles from the train station. The other is 10 miles.

Thank you.
Christine

49 can get backed up a little bit ... but nothing like big city backed up. It can get gnarly around the toll road entrance ..

[cd771]

Thank you. So I can expect about a 15 minute drive to the train?

Are there any parts of Valpo we should be avoiding? We asked our realtor to make appts for us to see the two houses next Sunday. I tend to like unique homes. I'm hoping they are in good areas. Our realtor is a family friend and mostly concentrates in Lake County so not sure how much she knows about Valpo. My husband is very excited about one of the homes. This makes me nervous as I am not yet sure if I want to do this commute everyday. Also I haven't driven a car in 16 years (since moving to Chicago). Guess I would have to get used to it fast. He really likes the area. Ever since we started looking in Indiana he has been pushing me towards Valparaiso.

Thank you.

[TLReid]

Hi,
I have worked for The University of Chicago for 10 years. The everyday commute from the Portage/Chesterton/Lake Station area has made me old. I took the smelly train for awhile. Be prepared to deal with all type of peoples. I felt much safer driving. 45 min trip door to door (67th and Woodlawn) getting to work. My longest return trips was 4 hours.

Be prepared for the unexpected when you venture out of the city.

[domergurl]

When I taught at VU and lived on the south end of town, I didn't really get a feel for a "bad" part of town. There's college student housing near the university, but if you are going to drive up to the train, I'd try to get as far north and near to 49 as possible. From where we lived, it took upwards of 30 minutes to get to the train, which got really old.

I guess they are going to add double decker train cars in the fall with the booming train commuters, this makes me happy. I love train commuting over car commuting

[cd771]

TLReid: Thank you for your input. I haven't been on the South Shore in a long time. I have to say though I take the blue line everyday and anything seems nicer compared to the urine scented El. The commute is concerning to me but it would be nice to sit down and be able to read which I'm thinking would make it a little better.

Domergurl: Thank you for responding. I read about the double decker trains coming. I was very happy about that. Hopefully it will help. I figured with gas prices what they are, alot more people are probably riding the train instead of driving. We are seeing two homes on Sunday and driving around the downtown area. I have never been there so I'm really looking forward to it.

Thanks again. Sorry for all the questions.

[domergurl]

Originally Posted by cd771

TLReid: Thank you for your input. I haven't been on the South Shore in a long time. I have to say though I take the blue line everyday and anything seems nicer compared to the urine scented El. The commute is concerning to me but it would be nice to sit down and be able to read which I'm thinking would make it a little better.

Domergurl: Thank you for responding. I read about the double decker trains coming. I was very happy about that. Hopefully it will help. I figured with gas prices what they are, alot more people are probably riding the train instead of driving. We are seeing two homes on Sunday and driving around the downtown area. I have never been there so I'm really looking forward to it.

Thanks again. Sorry for all the questions.

We're here to answer your questions! Don't be sorry.

NICTD Board agrees to buy 14 two-decker South Shore cars

[TLReid]

Originally Posted by cd771

TLReid: Thank you for your input. I haven't been on the South Shore in a long time. I have to say though I take the blue line everyday and anything seems nicer compared to the urine scented El. The commute is concerning to me but it would be nice to sit down and be able to read which I'm thinking would make it a little better.

Domergurl: Thank you for responding. I read about the double decker trains coming. I was very happy about that. Hopefully it will help. I figured with gas prices what they are, alot more people are probably riding the train instead of driving. We are seeing two homes on Sunday and driving around the downtown area. I have never been there so I'm really looking forward to it.

Thanks again. Sorry for all the questions.

You're very welcome.
Hope you like the area.

I suggest you head east on Rt 20 after your viewings, and stop by Leroys Hot Stuff in Porter IN. It's worth the trip from Chicago just for their salsa.
They have live bands on Saturday.

[cd771]

So we went on Sunday and I thought the area was very nice. My husband loved one of the properties and we are waiting on some questions to be answered. We also talked to the neighbor and she seemed very nice and helpful. We drove to the train station to check how long it would take (about 14 minutes). We also drove around the downtown area. So I'm wondering about the South shore parking. On a Sunday the first lot was packed and second lot had cars in it. We were pretty surprised by this. Is parking difficult? do a lot of people commute? I currently work 8:00 - 4:30 but will switch my hours to 8:30 - 5:00 so I can ride the train with my husband. The commute is freaking me out a bit. Looks like we are in for a very long day.

[domergurl]

Parking can be tricky at the Dune Acres station because south shore ridership is booming. You'll probably have to rely on the second lot and I'd imagine that a new lot, or more parking spaces are going to have to be put in before long.

Count on 2 hours door to door.

[cd771]

Thank you. The commute is a bit daunting. I'm having a bit of a hard time with it. I know many others do it but geez is that a long time. Right now I live 4 miles from downtown. Big difference. I have 3 people I work with right now who have similar commutes and don't seem to mind it but they have been doing it for a while now. I guess we really have to think about this.