Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Illinois > Chicago
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
Reply Start New Thread
 
Old 01-24-2014, 01:49 PM
 
Location: Los Angeles, CA
555 posts, read 800,153 times
Reputation: 1174

Advertisements

Hi. Thanks to everyone who responded to my previous inquiry. I continue to contemplate a move to Chicago and have a few more oddball questions. I'd appreciate your feedback. Thank you!

HORSEFLIES
A while back, I asked about mosquitoes. Now, it's horseflies. Odd question, I know. But apparently, the crazy tiger mosquitoes I'd been plagued with while living on a tropical island that gave me massive, allergic welts were actually horseflies. (I *thought* they looked unusually bulky and large....) Anyhow, thanks to your feedback, I understand you will get lots of mosquitoes in the suburbs and sometimes in parts of the city, depending on how much water has collected on the ground. Do you guys get horseflies there as well? How bad is it?

TRAFFIC
I've heard traffic in Chicago is bad. Obviously, if there's snow or ice, traffic is going to slow down (and maybe even stop). But what about non-snow/ice days? Just how bad is it, whether from the suburbs or just within the city? What hours realistically qualify as morning and evening rush hour? Is there any traffic downtime when freeways are flowing? How safe (from crazy drivers) do you feel driving on your freeways?

BTW, I've seen the commute time stats, but I don't pay much attention to them; I don't think they give the whole picture. For example, one study ranks Los Angeles as being somewhere in the middle of the pack, yet ranks the San Bernardino/Riverside area as being really bad. Well, a lot of those San Bernardino/Riverside people are actually commuting *to* Los Angeles. You can't really divide the two since they're so interconnected. So in my mind, Los Angeles's commute times are a lot longer than the numbers indicate.

PUBLIC TRANSIT
On paper, Chicago's train routes look quite good. Their reach is far, they actually go to downtown, many suburbs, and even the airport (!), and they run late into the night. So if that's the case, why do so many people continue to drive? Is there something bad about the trains that I don't know about?

(For example, parts of Los Angeles's public transit system are really good. They get you to your destination reliably, quickly, and safely. But not all are. And because the majority of the population centers are not serviced by the train lines (silly, yes), you still have to take the bus usually -- and the buses are incredibly unreliable (as in not showing up on time, not showing up at all, routes changed without warning, leaving you stranded downtown late at night (yes, this happened to me) even as the online bus tracker keeps telling you the bus is about to arrive. Our Metro agency ignores any inquiries when things like this happens. Are your buses known for this kind of erratic behavior?

KID FRIENDLINESS
A lot of single people w/o kids talk about the ease of commuting, going to the store, and enjoying the nightlife via train. What do people with small children think? Do you guys also run errands via train/bus with your kids in tow? And what's that like? Also, how easy or difficult is it for you to find a safe public place to change diapers, to nurse in public, to find a park or some other public place of interest (a fountain, heck even an empty disabled access ramp will do) for your kids to take a break from the long walk and have a snack/explore? (As a point of reference, I've done all these things in rural/suburban/urban places. I did feel unsafe nursing at a park in San Francisco once, but that's only because people were doing drugs nearby. So it doesn't have to be totally immaculate or anything, but I just want to be physically safe.)

RELATIONSHIPS
I've heard the generality that people in the Midwest value family ties and as a result, are less inclined to make friends with newcomers. How un/true is that in Chicago? FWIW My family (from Los Angeles) is pretty close. We hang out often (as traffic allows). We also have good friends from our grade/high school days, college, the workplace, community organizations, etc. (Kind of weird how people always say L.A. people only have superficial relationships with each other -- maybe that's the case in the trendier and more transient parts of town?) I do wonder, though, when you move to a different place, do you put yourself at a disadvantage because you no longer have those kind of deep ties, especially if you're moving to a place where those ties supposedly matter more?

HOUSING
It sounds like housing in the city has gone up in value. How much of this is the result of investors and trustafarians? Do you expect the quality of schools to improve in the city as a result?

TECH SECTOR
I've been reading quite a bit in the news about Chicago's up and coming tech efforts. Lots of positive press quoting Mayor Emanuel. So...truth or hype? (BTW, I think much, though not all, of Los Angeles's tech scene is overhyped.)

POLITICS
How much longevity do you think Rahm Emanuel has as mayor? Is this a temporary stop on his way back to D.C.? And does it even matter if he leaves? How much of a good/bad impact has he had on the city? Will it change dramatically once he's gone, or does the political machine in place maintain status quo no matter who's in charge?

Thank you so much for reading my long post. I appreciate it!
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 01-24-2014, 02:21 PM
 
Location: Upper West Side, Manhattan, NYC
15,331 posts, read 23,787,911 times
Reputation: 7419
Quote:
Originally Posted by sydlee View Post
Do you guys get horseflies there as well? How bad is it?
In the city? I don't recall many times, but it depends on where you are I'm sure. If you're near the river or something, then I'm sure there will be more. Other than that, I can't recall a single time I've run into one in a dense area of the city.

Quote:
I've heard traffic in Chicago is bad. Obviously, if there's snow or ice, traffic is going to slow down (and maybe even stop). But what about non-snow/ice days? Just how bad is it, whether from the suburbs or just within the city? What hours realistically qualify as morning and evening rush hour? Is there any traffic downtime when freeways are flowing? How safe (from crazy drivers) do you feel driving on your freeways?
Traffic depends on where you are going, what route, etc. At various times, the interstate system in various parts can be bad. Other interstates are free flowing traffic in various areas a lot (i.e. 90/94 south of 35th street can be fairly free flowing at almost anytime of the day, on average).

Quote:
PUBLIC TRANSIT
On paper, Chicago's train routes look quite good. Their reach is far, they actually go to downtown, many suburbs, and even the airport (!), and they run late into the night. So if that's the case, why do so many people continue to drive? Is there something bad about the trains that I don't know about?
Chicago is a big city both population and area wise. The public transit here is good, but the train system does not reach to every single point of it. Still, it's the second largest train system in the US. With that being said, there's jobs spread out all over the city of all types. The Loop (and increasingly River North, and in the near future West Loop - both are adjacent to the Loop) has perhaps the greatest concentration of white collar type of office jobs of anywhere in the city. The population there swells to somewhere between 500,000 and 750,000 (possibly more) during a normal weekday with an increasing number in the other areas I mentioned. There are also a handful of small/small-ish colleges in the area too. Most people who work/go to school in this area (I'll count myself) either take public transit to work, or bike/walk. Many workers also come from the suburbs who use the Metra rail commuter system (which also has a small handful of stops throughout the city). Parking in this area can be expensive too if you need to do it everyday. Some people do drive to work in these areas, but it's a pretty small percentage of people.

The bus system here is quite extensive, but if you live in an area where the train doesn't come by for 3 miles, and your work place is 1.5 miles down the road, you have a car, and you can find parking..then why wouldn't you drive? Most people will.

Still, daily ridership of the CTA is 1.7 million. If 80% of those are rides go to unique people (ridership is a count of rides, not unique people riding), that's 1.36 million. If 300,000 of those unique people aren't residents of Chicago, then that's still 1.06 million unique people riding public transit in some way per day. That is still almost 40% of the population who take public transit at least once a day for *something*.

There are many walkable areas in Chicago too for which you don't need to take public transit. For example, you could live in Lake View and you could be a 500 ft walk from 100 bars, restaurants, shops. There's absolutely no need to drive or take public transit. Walking or even biking is more sufficient. That's one of the problems with just looking at public transit statistics. People think you're either taking public transit, or you're driving. There's other modes of transit that many people prefer or enjoy here - biking, walking, and even the water taxi when it's nicer out. There's also thousands of cabs and uber/lyft cars in the city always driving around. Pretty easy to catch one in various areas too and many people take cabs.

Chicago also has a bike sharing system that has a few hundred bike stations and a few thousand bikes. It's been very popular and ridership numbers will probably go down as a result, but that doesn't mean the decline means everyone started driving.
Divvy | Your bike sharing system in Chicago

Here's a look at commute by census tract in Chicago. The map is not the greatest because it only gives weight to the #1 mode of transit and shades it in accordingly. It's more useful to click on each shape to get the percentages. For example, I'm looking at one shaded in red now (driving). I am trying to collect this data and put it into my own map to show things better:

http://www.transitized.com/commute/#12/41.9490/-87.6960

There are people who use their cars quite a bit, and there's also a lot of other people who have cars and don't use it. I know one person who has a car for the sole reason of visiting their parents 3 times a month in the suburbs. She doesn't really use her car any other time, literally. I know another person who only uses their car for a reverse commute to a near suburb. That is the only time they use the car. Other people may have a car and may use it once a week to get to like an intramural soccer match for a league they play in on the other side of town.

Quote:
RELATIONSHIPS
I've heard the generality that people in the Midwest value family ties and as a result, are less inclined to make friends with newcomers. How un/true is that in Chicago? FWIW My family (from Los Angeles) is pretty close. We hang out often (as traffic allows). We also have good friends from our grade/high school days, college, the workplace, community organizations, etc. (Kind of weird how people always say L.A. people only have superficial relationships with each other -- maybe that's the case in the trendier and more transient parts of town?) I do wonder, though, when you move to a different place, do you put yourself at a disadvantage because you no longer have those kind of deep ties, especially if you're moving to a place where those ties supposedly matter more?
I have had mixed experiences with this. First off, while Chicago is not as global as Los Angeles, there are people here from all over the world. Just because you're in the midwest doesn't mean your values or personality changes all of a sudden. There are particular areas that have a lot larger percentage of midwest transplants in them such as Lincoln Park and Lakeview (though I have personally known many people to live in both of these places from all over the world, but that's more in the minority). Half of my family is from LA by the way.

When I first moved here, I didn't know anybody. I started to hang out with my work friends, but decided they were into a scene I wasn't into (stereotypical Lincoln Park frat scene). For the next 6 months I was kind of alone. I met a bunch of people but I am kind of picky with whom I keep close as my friends and hang out with. All of a sudden I was at a bar and this English guy started talking to me. I was introduced to his friends and voila. Whenever I'm out though - it depends on where you are and the situation. I have had tons of random people talk to me on the train, out on the street, at stores, etc. It really depends. There can be the "I don't want to talk to you attitude" amongst many, but there's many others who can be pretty social.

As far as marriage stuff goes, it may surprise you that there's a lesser percentage of married people in Chicago than Los Angeles. There are many people here who live the single life for a long, long time on purpose. Only Philadelphia has a lesser percentage of married people of any US city.

Quote:
HOUSING
It sounds like housing in the city has gone up in value. How much of this is the result of investors and trustafarians? Do you expect the quality of schools to improve in the city as a result?
Part is probably due to investors bringing nicer and newer stuff to some areas, or renovation work of older stuff. There's been a decent number of white collar jobs to come into the city, and crime has been going down in many areas for awhile. Hence, it gets more expensive. However, it's still a bargain compared to NYC, DC, Boston, SF, and most of LA.

Quote:
TECH SECTOR
I've been reading quite a bit in the news about Chicago's up and coming tech efforts. Lots of positive press quoting Mayor Emanuel. So...truth or hype? (BTW, I think much, though not all, of Los Angeles's tech scene is overhyped.)
As someone who works in the tech sector - I'd say it's both. The tech sector here is growing, but it's still nowhere near the bay area, Boston, or NYC. However, the outlook IS looking good for it.

Last edited by marothisu; 01-24-2014 at 02:40 PM..
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 01-24-2014, 05:10 PM
 
Location: Chicago
319 posts, read 601,601 times
Reputation: 400
Quote:
Originally Posted by sydlee View Post
Hi. Thanks to everyone who responded to my previous inquiry. I continue to contemplate a move to Chicago and have a few more oddball questions. I'd appreciate your feedback. Thank you!

HORSEFLIES
A while back, I asked about mosquitoes. Now, it's horseflies. Odd question, I know. But apparently, the crazy tiger mosquitoes I'd been plagued with while living on a tropical island that gave me massive, allergic welts were actually horseflies. (I *thought* they looked unusually bulky and large....) Anyhow, thanks to your feedback, I understand you will get lots of mosquitoes in the suburbs and sometimes in parts of the city, depending on how much water has collected on the ground. Do you guys get horseflies there as well? How bad is it?
Hiya Sydlee,

I fish.

I've never had a problem with horseflies. The ones that are bad are generally up in Wisconsin, or further north into Canada. You *are* talking about the ones that can bite through jeans, yes? I know how evil those are, and have never encountered one here.

We get some mosquitoes, but they generally aren't that thick. If you are close to the Fox River/Dupage River you can get zounds of them though, suburbs with ponds/lakes will have plenty. Illinois does spray insecticides in some areas to control mosquitoes. The main issues are later in the season (Aug/Sept) when there are hybrid mosquitoes and those can carry West Nile. Great link below to look at different outbreaks. We very rarely will have cases of St. Louis Encephalitis in this state, and that is much more serious than West Nile. The mosquito abatement districts actually catch mosquitoes and sends them to a lab that pulverizes them and then does a type of analysis to look for live WNV/SLE viruses. They also do a similar thing with birds. They are caught and then released after a tiny bit of blood is taken for tests.

West Nile Virus Maps - Human - USA

I've had ticks latch on at Busse woods, now they didn't bite, but latched on to hair. I thought that was a little odd, they must have been full but wanted a ride, they were larger lone-star ticks. The place I got them was fishing on a bank directly above some kind of hole, which in retrospect was a likely animal den. But the Bass were right there!!! They were big visible ticks and you can find them in the forest preserves. There are deer ticks here, but they are pretty rare and not within the city of Chicago limits normally, but in the suburbs closer to lake county. Those are the ones that can carry Lyme disease.

Lyme Disease in Urban Areas, Chicago - Volume 13, Number 11

We do have a variety of wasps/bees/hornets. The coolest I've seen is the Eastern Cicada Killer. They are huge but are non-violent to people (generally). The males don't even have real stingers. Generally they will make burrows in soil that has higher sand content in it. They catch a cicada, kill it, and lay their egg on the corpse. Pretty awesome biology.

Paper wasp - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Sphecius speciosus - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 01-24-2014, 05:43 PM
 
846 posts, read 1,392,868 times
Reputation: 1020
Quote:
Originally Posted by sydlee View Post
PUBLIC TRANSIT
On paper, Chicago's train routes look quite good. Their reach is far, they actually go to downtown, many suburbs, and even the airport (!), and they run late into the night. So if that's the case, why do so many people continue to drive? Is there something bad about the trains that I don't know about?

(For example, parts of Los Angeles's public transit system are really good. They get you to your destination reliably, quickly, and safely. But not all are. And because the majority of the population centers are not serviced by the train lines (silly, yes), you still have to take the bus usually -- and the buses are incredibly unreliable (as in not showing up on time, not showing up at all, routes changed without warning, leaving you stranded downtown late at night (yes, this happened to me) even as the online bus tracker keeps telling you the bus is about to arrive. Our Metro agency ignores any inquiries when things like this happens. Are your buses known for this kind of erratic behavior?
I can speak to this well. I moved from Phoenix to Chicago in May 2013. We came with a vehicle, but live right off of the pink line. Personally, I think some of the car culture here is that many people move here from more car centric cities (like myself, Phoenix is very car dependent) and still have an attachment to a vehicle for whatever reason. It was about $400 to switch everything over to Illinois--drivers license, plates, registration, etc. But my girlfriend wanted it, so we did it.

But we never drove it. From May to December, we put maybe about $50 in our huge SUV because the train got us everywhere. Was it late from time to time? Sure. By no more than 5 minutes though. Two lines run 24 hours a day (blue and red) and the others run about 20-22 hours a day. I've never had a problem getting anywhere... having a long layover (more than 10 or so minutes), anything.

And guess what? We sold our truck last month.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 01-25-2014, 07:29 AM
 
Location: Los Angeles, CA
555 posts, read 800,153 times
Reputation: 1174
Thanks, everyone, for your thoughtful replies. I appreciate the time you've put into your responses. Much to think about. I'm planning to visit your city this year. People think I'm nuts for wanting to move to Chicago especially with all the news of the current freeze. Midwesterners keep telling me I'm going to regret it; West Coasters keep telling me they're intrigued by the idea. The hard part will be convincing my significant other -- a former Midwesterner. Thank you again!
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 01-25-2014, 07:36 AM
 
4,152 posts, read 7,885,757 times
Reputation: 2727
Horseflies are not a big problem here. Mosquitos are in my opinion, see above threads. Transit system is good but most people still retain cars except those living in the inner city. Its too cold and hard to get around with groceries and shopping without a car. I don't recommend it. I don't think the quality of the schools will change. That is a big reason why people leave the city and move to the suburbs. Its been a bad winter, not all are this bad, but they can be. Keep in mind the really bad part of winter is really January. Hopefully it will let up a bit in February and it will still be cold but not near zero. Of course if you are one who thinks fifty is cold then maybe Chicago is not for you.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 01-25-2014, 08:56 AM
 
Location: Upper West Side, Manhattan, NYC
15,331 posts, read 23,787,911 times
Reputation: 7419
Quote:
Originally Posted by sydlee View Post
Thanks, everyone, for your thoughtful replies. I appreciate the time you've put into your responses. Much to think about. I'm planning to visit your city this year. People think I'm nuts for wanting to move to Chicago especially with all the news of the current freeze. Midwesterners keep telling me I'm going to regret it; West Coasters keep telling me they're intrigued by the idea. The hard part will be convincing my significant other -- a former Midwesterner. Thank you again!
This winter's weather has not been normal. Anybody who looks at the weather and thinks Chicago is -10 degrees usually is not very smart, and needs to do their research. I'll give you a hint - that day the other week was basically the lowest high temperature Chicago has *ever* been. It's not normal. Winter can be cold, especially if you aren't used to it, but this winter has been more messed up than usual. Normal temperatures in the winter are more like mid 20s to 30s and it can dip down lower of course and it happens, but on average it's in the least the mid 20s for a high.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 01-25-2014, 09:29 AM
 
Location: Los Angeles, CA
555 posts, read 800,153 times
Reputation: 1174
Default bugs, shopping in winter

Quote:
Originally Posted by ToriaT View Post
Horseflies are not a big problem here. Mosquitos are in my opinion, see above threads. Transit system is good but most people still retain cars except those living in the inner city. Its too cold and hard to get around with groceries and shopping without a car. I don't recommend it. I don't think the quality of the schools will change. That is a big reason why people leave the city and move to the suburbs. Its been a bad winter, not all are this bad, but they can be. Keep in mind the really bad part of winter is really January. Hopefully it will let up a bit in February and it will still be cold but not near zero. Of course if you are one who thinks fifty is cold then maybe Chicago is not for you.
I'm going to assume I have issues with mosquitoes as well. And that means I'm going to have to go to Chicago and just walk around the city and suburbs without bug spray and see how badly I get bitten. Fun. FWIW, I've been been to Detroit and inner-ring suburbs and never had a problem while outside during the summer. I was a mosquito magnet in the forest areas immediately alongside Lake Huron, though. I wonder if I will be able to handle the bugs, considering how bugs love the heat and humidity Chicago is known for in the summer (though I know wet but cool areas can also be plagued by truly aggressive mosquitoes -- not sure re: horseflies).

Re: shopping, so the people without cars in the inner city -- how do they get to the market in the winter? If it's too cold to go around with a backpack or granny cart, do they get a taxi?
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 01-25-2014, 09:35 AM
 
Location: Los Angeles, CA
555 posts, read 800,153 times
Reputation: 1174
Default cold

Quote:
Originally Posted by marothisu View Post
This winter's weather has not been normal. Anybody who looks at the weather and thinks Chicago is -10 degrees usually is not very smart, and needs to do their research. I'll give you a hint - that day the other week was basically the lowest high temperature Chicago has *ever* been. It's not normal. Winter can be cold, especially if you aren't used to it, but this winter has been more messed up than usual. Normal temperatures in the winter are more like mid 20s to 30s and it can dip down lower of course and it happens, but on average it's in the least the mid 20s for a high.
Yes, I definitely understand this winter has been unusual. It's been odd out here in California as well. I'm still wearing sandals! Some people on the other side of the country might think I'm bragging, but really, I'm not. Because if I'm wearing sandals, it's because it's not cold and there is no rain and snow in the mountains. No rain/snow in the winter = no water for the rest of the year. We are really worried over here.

As always, marothisu, I appreciate your data-driven responses.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 01-25-2014, 10:02 AM
 
Location: Upper West Side, Manhattan, NYC
15,331 posts, read 23,787,911 times
Reputation: 7419
Quote:
Originally Posted by sydlee View Post
Yes, I definitely understand this winter has been unusual. It's been odd out here in California as well. I'm still wearing sandals! Some people on the other side of the country might think I'm bragging, but really, I'm not. Because if I'm wearing sandals, it's because it's not cold and there is no rain and snow in the mountains. No rain/snow in the winter = no water for the rest of the year. We are really worried over here.

As always, marothisu, I appreciate your data-driven responses.
No problem. Yeah, half of my family lives in LA and I have friends in San Diego and the bay area too. My friends in San Francisco have been telling me everyday how they've been sitting on their deck in short sleeves, grilling, etc. My friends have also been worried about a drought in SF after they get done saying how great the weather has been. It was around 80 around Christmas in San Diego, which is above average. On the flip side, most of the country has had weird times below average. My friend is a meteorologist in Virginia and two days ago had a Facebook status how it was only 7 degrees for a low where he is. Dallas is supposed to be in the low 40s on Tuesday with a low not even reaching 20. I have another friend who's a grad student at Texas A&M who had a status the other day about things being cancelled due to snow.

So yeah, while Chicago can get cold and it will be cold for you if you end up moving here, this is pretty abnormal. The average January high near O'Hare airport, 1980-2010 is 31.5 degrees. The wind is what can get you here (note: Chicago is not necessarily called Windy City for the fact that it can be kind of windy sometimes). I guess the positive thing for you is this - there's people from all over the world living in Chicago from areas just as hot as the Valley. Many are used to it - it may take a little bit of time, but they get used to it eventually. And remember - there are much worse places even in the country than Chicago for winter
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:


Settings
X
Data:
Loading data...
Based on 2000-2020 data
Loading data...

123
Hide US histogram

Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Illinois > Chicago
Similar Threads

All times are GMT -6.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top