Driving Habits/Dealing With Traffic Around Chicago...share your tricks.
08-26-2005, 08:39 AM
#1
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Driving Habits/Dealing With Traffic Around Chicago...share your tricks.
For example:
* During morning traffic on I-55 (NB), I always cut over into the right lane before Harlem where it's an "exit only" lane. Then I do a mad dash to the left right before the exit.
* Similar move on the 290 (WB) -- for the Austin Blvd. exit.
* NB on Halsted between Division & North...right after the Mobil station on the west side of the street is Kingsbury (I think) - it goes NW and ends at North Ave, right by Weed St. Great time saver.
* Grand/Milwaukee intersection - the N/S street right before Thyme is a great shortcut. Cross Hubbard (SB) and hang a left onto Kinzie. Takes you all the way into River North.
* I NEVER take the express lanes on the NB Kennedy. Where they end at the Edens/Kennedy merge always seems to get backed up. Plus it's only two lanes. I'd rather have 4 lanes where I have more control.
* During morning traffic on I-55 (NB), I always cut over into the right lane before Harlem where it's an "exit only" lane. Then I do a mad dash to the left right before the exit.
* Similar move on the 290 (WB) -- for the Austin Blvd. exit.
* NB on Halsted between Division & North...right after the Mobil station on the west side of the street is Kingsbury (I think) - it goes NW and ends at North Ave, right by Weed St. Great time saver.
* Grand/Milwaukee intersection - the N/S street right before Thyme is a great shortcut. Cross Hubbard (SB) and hang a left onto Kinzie. Takes you all the way into River North.
* I NEVER take the express lanes on the NB Kennedy. Where they end at the Edens/Kennedy merge always seems to get backed up. Plus it's only two lanes. I'd rather have 4 lanes where I have more control.
08-26-2005, 09:06 AM
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I take a deep breath and....
... focus all my attention on resisting the urge to stab myself in the face with that old spork that's been sitting on the floor of the golf for about 6 months.
That, and I enjoy being that ***** that refuses to let late mergers get away with late merging. I hate those people more than anything. I'm insured and my commuter car is a roach - I dare you to try. If I had my way I would pull them out of their POS SUV and beat them with a 6 iron..... or maybe that spork...
That, and I enjoy being that ***** that refuses to let late mergers get away with late merging. I hate those people more than anything. I'm insured and my commuter car is a roach - I dare you to try. If I had my way I would pull them out of their POS SUV and beat them with a 6 iron..... or maybe that spork...
08-26-2005, 10:18 AM
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I agree...
...regarding the late mergers. And that definitely includes the *&^$ers that use the on-ramp as another lane.
If you are going from the Western burbs to the city, you can get around a good chunk of the I88/290 backup taking Butterfield to Roosevelt to Harlem back to 290. Saved me many, many times.
If you are going from the Western burbs to the city, you can get around a good chunk of the I88/290 backup taking Butterfield to Roosevelt to Harlem back to 290. Saved me many, many times.
08-26-2005, 10:48 AM
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Edens and the Kennedy (long)
1. (observation) due to the increase in tolls, all the fv*k'n truckers are now using the Edens and Kennedy to go thru Chgo. They line up in the center lane, forcing the 70mph drivers into the left lane, pissing off everyone that want to do 80plus. Fortunately, i leave very early in the morning, and there is no traffic. I usually trying to fight the urge to really fly. As in liftoff.
2. NB from the Loop, i enter the Kennedy off of Congress, As you proceed N thru Hubbards Caves, it's a must to stay in the right lanes as traffic comes to a standstill from cars merging into the NB express lanes. Stay right all the way until you exit the tunnels and then cut hard across all lanes. Unless a trucker blocks you, it's no problem getting onto the express lanes at that point.
3. Stay in the express lanes until you get to Addison, then exit back into the locals. The majority of the time it's easier navigating traffic from there to the juction in the locals than sitting in the two lane backup flowing onto the entrance ramp to the Edens.
4. Once you re-enter the Kennedy at Addison, stay in the left lanes, exercise a minute of patience as lanes merge, and things open up pretty quickly as you head down the hill to Irving Park. Now it's time to start moving to the right. By the time you've passed Irving and are approaching the Blue Line station, you should be in the far right lane. Now you're completely out of any Kennedy traffic and usually passing massive #'s of cars.
5. Approaching the junction, it's a toss up, but if you're in the left lanes there is a definite backup/slowdown as the express lane traffic merges onto the Edens. Many times staying in the right lanes all the way until Foster is a good call.
6. Now the Edens. Strange traffic flow in the left lanes many evenings. Brake tappers cause wicked chain reactions at 80mph. Often it's better to stay in the middle lane, but you have to deal with those fv*k'n truckers. Starting before the Touhy exit, there is merit in jumping into the right lane, as cars exiting open things up. I've passed a couple hundred automobiles in swepting fashion by catching it just right.
7. The same right lane move works at Dempster and Old Orchard, but cars entering NB mean you have to get back into the middle lane once you've cleared the underpass. I usually merge into the left lane until i get close to the Lake ave. exit.
8. Glenview traffic - for all that don't know Willow Rd. is now one lane each direction between Sunset Ridge and i don't know how far West. AVOID!
2. NB from the Loop, i enter the Kennedy off of Congress, As you proceed N thru Hubbards Caves, it's a must to stay in the right lanes as traffic comes to a standstill from cars merging into the NB express lanes. Stay right all the way until you exit the tunnels and then cut hard across all lanes. Unless a trucker blocks you, it's no problem getting onto the express lanes at that point.
3. Stay in the express lanes until you get to Addison, then exit back into the locals. The majority of the time it's easier navigating traffic from there to the juction in the locals than sitting in the two lane backup flowing onto the entrance ramp to the Edens.
4. Once you re-enter the Kennedy at Addison, stay in the left lanes, exercise a minute of patience as lanes merge, and things open up pretty quickly as you head down the hill to Irving Park. Now it's time to start moving to the right. By the time you've passed Irving and are approaching the Blue Line station, you should be in the far right lane. Now you're completely out of any Kennedy traffic and usually passing massive #'s of cars.
5. Approaching the junction, it's a toss up, but if you're in the left lanes there is a definite backup/slowdown as the express lane traffic merges onto the Edens. Many times staying in the right lanes all the way until Foster is a good call.
6. Now the Edens. Strange traffic flow in the left lanes many evenings. Brake tappers cause wicked chain reactions at 80mph. Often it's better to stay in the middle lane, but you have to deal with those fv*k'n truckers. Starting before the Touhy exit, there is merit in jumping into the right lane, as cars exiting open things up. I've passed a couple hundred automobiles in swepting fashion by catching it just right.
7. The same right lane move works at Dempster and Old Orchard, but cars entering NB mean you have to get back into the middle lane once you've cleared the underpass. I usually merge into the left lane until i get close to the Lake ave. exit.
8. Glenview traffic - for all that don't know Willow Rd. is now one lane each direction between Sunset Ridge and i don't know how far West. AVOID!
08-26-2005, 11:01 AM
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Avoiding the mess caused by the tolls near O'Hare (EB)
(Note: these apply to evening rush hour, don't know if they'd apply during the morning...)
To avoid that nasty traffic jam after the toll by O'Hare (heading into the city), I do this:
1. Hop onto 190 West towards O'Hare Airport
2. Pay the toll
3. Exit on Mannheim Road south (make sure not to miss the exit, or else you'll have to drive around O'Hare; there's also construction on Mannheim so it's not as fast as it usually is)
4. Get right back onto 190 East towards the city; it merges back into 90, well past the crazy 11-lanes-merging-into-3 lanes traffic jam.
And then sometimes I'll take local roads from there -- exit south on Cumberland, make a left on Foster, take that all the way until the onramp to 90 and get back on 90.
One last tip for 90 EB during rush hour: stay in the right lane at the Lawrence Ave exit -- it's almost always moving faster than the other two lanes.
To avoid that nasty traffic jam after the toll by O'Hare (heading into the city), I do this:
1. Hop onto 190 West towards O'Hare Airport
2. Pay the toll
3. Exit on Mannheim Road south (make sure not to miss the exit, or else you'll have to drive around O'Hare; there's also construction on Mannheim so it's not as fast as it usually is)
4. Get right back onto 190 East towards the city; it merges back into 90, well past the crazy 11-lanes-merging-into-3 lanes traffic jam.
And then sometimes I'll take local roads from there -- exit south on Cumberland, make a left on Foster, take that all the way until the onramp to 90 and get back on 90.
One last tip for 90 EB during rush hour: stay in the right lane at the Lawrence Ave exit -- it's almost always moving faster than the other two lanes.
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08-26-2005, 11:36 AM
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anytime you head into the city on I-88 just before it turns
into the Ike take the exit for Mannheim/Lagrange rd. You will bypass the bottleneck that still is the Hillside strangler and come out just past Lagrange rd exit where it bottlenecks but will shave an easy half hour off your drive...better suited for weekends, not sure how it would work during the week
