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Tuesday, March 19

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Fuel

mary / September 22, 2009 10:20 AM

i walk 2 blocks to the brown line @ addison down to washington/wells and walk another 3 blocks. really a pretty great commute! it takes about 45 min door to door.

my old commute was me walking across the street (in lakeview) to any express bus that would drop me off no more than 2 blocks from work, 30 min door to door. that was also pretty sweet.

wackpuma / September 22, 2009 10:24 AM

Walk 7 minutes to Harlem Metra station. Take Metra for 40 minutes to West Chicago. Get in my car that stays parked overnight at West Chicago station and drive 10 minutes to work in St. Charles.

Will V. / September 22, 2009 10:29 AM

I bicycle 1.2 miles from my west loop home to my west loop office. It usually takes about 6 minutes, door to door. When the weather is bad, I can take the X20 bus.

Seth A / September 22, 2009 10:29 AM

Luckily, my office is in my building, don't even have to put on shoes. Commute is about 3 minutes, or less if I take the stairs.

That said, I miss the commute sometimes, especially if the weather is nice. Love the lack-of-commute in the winter months, however.

Vanessa Buccella / September 22, 2009 10:30 AM

HA i have long one. Right now i ride from Logan Square to Union Station on my bike. Take the Metra 7:20 am express from Union to the Route 59 stop (on the border of Naperville and Aurora) then bike about a mile to work. Taking your bike on the metra is great!

David S. / September 22, 2009 10:52 AM

Door to door it's about 1hr. 4 block walk to BNSF train, hop off at Union Station and walk 25min to office in River North. Not a bad work-out walking 3 miles a day since it's the only exercise I get.

Mucky Fingers / September 22, 2009 11:53 AM

7½ miles to-and-from the office on bicycle, usually within 35 minutes. That's one hour of cardio every day, and one sweaty mess every time. I am the envy of several that I know.

R / September 22, 2009 12:09 PM

Logan Square to UIC campus: one-way door to door usually takes around 75 mins.

I either take 2 buses or 1 train and 1 bus.

eee / September 22, 2009 12:11 PM

I live in the west suburbs and work in the south suburbs, so it's a 35-minute drive down 355 to 80. Yes, I drive through cornfields on the way to work; it's actually kind of relaxing. That said, I miss taking Metra into the city every day. There's something to be said about having that time on the train to read, much less not spending money on gas for the car.

trm / September 22, 2009 12:31 PM

North Center to Loop - 35 minutes door to door driving via Lincoln, Belmont, LSD. Sunny days with calm waters make it worth the carbon. 45 minutes at days end to enjoy a fine cigar.

Dan / September 22, 2009 12:48 PM

Just went from a rather unpleasant 1 hr 10 min drive each way to being 2 miles from the office. Now the wife and I hop the free university shuttle to take us to work. What a quality-of-life difference it makes.

mike / September 22, 2009 12:51 PM

Up in Edgewater the unreliability of the 136 and the lone motorist jagoffs clogging LSD make taking the train from Thorndale the only real choice for me. I dream of a Peterson Metra stop. I'd ride my bike if work wasn't so far south and west (Sears Tower) into the loop. I know too many people who've gotten hurt.

When I stay at my girlfriend's (Belmont and LSD), the 135s arrive every minute, empty. I walk 50 feet to Sheridan and one's there.

annie / September 22, 2009 12:55 PM

I ride my bike a little over 6 miles total, usually takes between 15 and 20 minutes depending on the time I leave the house. In bad weather I take the bus and I am not looking forward to getting back on it, it takes forever even though I'm only 3 miles from my office, I walk home at night though, for the piece of mind and exercise.

TB / September 22, 2009 1:34 PM

I live in West Town and commute to River North, so not bad at all. 65/Grand bus gets me to work in about 10 minutes. Walking is about 30-45 minutes depending on the pace/route.

paul / September 22, 2009 2:04 PM

Most days it's a walk from the bedroom to the room I tell the IRS is my office, and another long walk to the kitchen to the coffee machine.

But a couple of times a week I go downtown, and a recent move has made it easier - before it was a Metra trip and a block on the Pink line and several more blocks walking, but now it's Metra and the River Taxi. I could walk that part , but it's much more fun on the boat.

Jasmine / September 22, 2009 2:48 PM

Short (should be 5 minute walk but more like 10 minutes because I am slow) to bus stop at Roscoe/LSD, where I get the 135 express. I used to take the 135 all the way to Adams/Wacker, but that doubled my commute. Now, I get off the 135 at Wacker/Columbus, where I catch the 123 express to Adams/Wacker (which takes about 5 to 10 minutes).

charlie / September 22, 2009 2:58 PM

Don't you guys ask this question every 3 weeks or so?

No commute here.

y a j / September 22, 2009 7:55 PM

today was extra long commute to work because I had to go to Springfield office. So, walk to L, L downtown, shuttle bus to plane, plane to springfield, car to office. Reverse for the trip home. Roundtrip commute = about 500 miles and about 5 hours.

Benjy / September 22, 2009 9:56 PM

Current commute is: catch 134 or 156 across the street from home, get off at Washington and walk about 7 minutes to my office. So far, the walk's been fine, but I've only been at this job since June and it's been a dry summer. I'm dreading January.

I really miss my old commute, when I could hop in my car and be at work in about 10 minutes (w/ free parking in Lincoln Park).

jennifer / September 22, 2009 11:45 PM

I commute to madison, wi twice a week. I take the 80 to the blue line to o'hare to the bus shuttle center to the van galder bus that drops me on campus. $44.50 roundtrip, 8 hours of travel roundtrip.

why would anyone do this? because she is a ph.d. student at the end of course work and living with her boyfriend before moving to central africa for a year of field work. yeah.

Joe / September 23, 2009 7:32 AM

I bike from Printer's Row to St. Joseph's Hospital on Diversy and Sheridan. Takes about 23 minutes. It would take even less if the stoplights weren't timed for the reverse direction.

Aaron / September 23, 2009 9:31 AM

I have just begun to commute from Skokie to Hyde Park every day by bicycle. It's about 24 miles each way.

Lake Shore Path most the way. It's a good time, and I listen to the radio on the path. Get an hour or so of news on.

Anna B / September 23, 2009 9:51 AM

Until recently I used to drive 20 miles one way from Wicker Park to Elmhurst via 290, took 40 mins in the morning and about an hour on the way home. Sadly, it took about the same times to go 15 miles straight across North Ave.

Baldeesh / September 23, 2009 12:15 PM

My commute isn't too bad. I live in Logan Square and work in Portage Park.

If I drive, it takes me approximately 20 minutes to get there, and about 30 to get home (unless it's Friday, which means it takes longer, because for some reason, Milwaukee Avenue gets congested as all get-out).

I try to take the bus, though. I get more exercise that way. It takes longer, but, again, I get exercise.

Andrew / September 23, 2009 2:24 PM

@Charlie: The last time it came up was back in 2007. You've got a long memory.

Meems / September 23, 2009 2:32 PM

I have it easy compared to some of you. I just walk about 5 min to Michigan Ave and take the 3,X3, or X4 and I'm at work in 30 minutes door-to-door.

Billy / September 23, 2009 8:27 PM

By bike down Elston, 20 minutes. I love it and there's nothing better. Otherwise I'd have to take two busses and it would take forever--gross.

charlie / September 23, 2009 10:39 PM

@Charlie: The last time it came up was back in 2007. You've got a long memory.

So much time spent online , my mind is becoming mushy.

Spook / September 24, 2009 12:26 PM

I take CTA's Torturous
Tortoise bus
to the Blue line
five days a week in the morning.

But after a long days work there is no way I can deal with that bus to get me home, so I just walk the two miles home no matter how cold it gets. I'm kinda proud that I've been doing this for the past two years.

On a side note, Chicago's buses remind me of the local buses in the Dominican Republic called Guaguas, except you can't flag them down past/before their appointed stops, and the Guaguas have alot more flavor

Ash / September 24, 2009 1:52 PM

Walk half block to Francisco brown line, then get off at Library downtown. About 45 minutes. Over the summer I had to walk 8 blocks to 9 Ashland Bus, then get off at Ashland-Lake green line, then take that to IIT. That was a long morning!

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