Midway Airport (MDW) has frequent flights to popular nationwide destinations. Taxis are outside the main terminal (Yellow 312-829-4222 and Checker 312-243-2537). Taxi rides to downtown take 25 to 50 minutes. Continental Air Transport (312-454-7800) runs a shuttle from MDW Airport to downtown hotels for $16 from 6a-10p. Chicago Transit Athority runs a frequent subway line from MDW to downtown Chicago. Alamo, Avis, Budget, Dollar, Hertz and National provide 24/7 car rental counter service and shuttle buses to their car lots. 

A Beaux Arts-style building with soaring Corinthian columns, terracotta walls, a pink marble floor crowned with a barrel-vaulted atrium ceiling, Union Station is located at West Adams & South Canal Street in the West Loop district of downtown Chicago. Union Station features 16 cafes, 1 restaurant, 1 spa & salon, 2 newstands and a car rental center.

The marble staircase was filmed in the most famous scene of The Untouchables movie. That movie scene was of course, based on a real life shoot-out between the law and Al Capone's gangsters. Union Station hosts these Amtrak train routes:

Hiawatha: Milwaukee-Chicago
California Zephyr: Chicago-Omaha-Denver-Salt Lake City-Reno-Oakland
City of New Orleans: Chicago-Carbondale-Memphis-Jackson-New Orleans
Empire Builder: Chicago-Milwaukee-Minneapolis-Spokane-Seattle or Portland
Cardinal: NYC-Philadelphia-Baltimore-Washington-Cincinnati-Indianapolis-Chicago
Michigan: Chicago-Kalamazoo-Detroit-Pontiac
Missouri: Chicago-Springfield-St. Louis-Jefferson City-Kansas City
Illinois: Chicago-Quincy and Chicago-St. Louis and Chicago-Carbondale
Capitol Limited: Washington-Pittsburgh-Cleveland-Toledo-Chicago
Southwest Chief: Chicago-Kansas City-Albuquerque-Flagstaff-Los Angeles
Texas Eagle: Chicago-St. Louis-Little Rock-Dallas-Ft. Worth-San Antonio

Chicago Union Station

Union Station hosts Amtrak, Metra commuter trainsit, Greyhound, Megabus and a large taxi depot. In a few years, Amtrak service in the Milwaukee-Chicago-St. Louis-Kansas City and Chicago-Kalamazoo-Detroit corridors will be upgraded to 110 mph and more frequent service. Bigger plans are ahead for Union Station and Oglive Transportation Center to be joined underground forming an intermodal transportation center and stronger hub for Midwest High Speed Rail. For national context about these important train developments, see Interstate High Speed Rail. 

Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) is one of the nation’s most extensive rail transit systems with over 222 miles, 143 stations and 7 rail lines. Heavily patronized, nearly 600,000 passengers ride daily from 5a–12p. The CTA provides downloadable maps and schedules for these lines:

Purple Line – Northside to Downtown
Red Line – Northside to Downtown to Southside
Blue Line – O’Hare Airport to Downtown to Westside
Brown Line – Northwest to Downtown
Green Line – Westside to Downtown to Southside
Orange Line – Midway Airport (Southwest) to Downtown
Yellow Line – Skokie to Northside

Both airport lines provide good aerial views of the city. Its most beloved line is the “L”, which circles the Loop business, government and cultural district downtown. All lines run frequently on weekdays. Some lines run less frequently during weekends and holidays. Single travelers are advised to only use the CTA during the daytime, except for the two airport lines, which are well-patronized day or night. Excluding the airports, cost is about $1.50 throughout the system. Check with the station attendant regarding passes for ages 7-11 to ride at a reduced fare and ages 6 and younger to ride FREE.

Metra commuter trains comprise an additional 495-mile system with 230 stations in Cook, Du Page, Lake, Will, McHenry and Kane counties via 12 rail lines. You can even purchase tickets over the Internet. Although several lines service the Southside, Metra is primarily a benefit to suburban commuters from all points north, northwest, west, southwest, south and southeast to downtown. Their electric trains travel up to 79 mph while their diesel trains travel up to 60 mph. One-way fares vary from $1.75 to $6.60—zone dependant. On weekends and holidays, youngsters age 12-17 ride for half fare. Family fares allow kids age 11 and under to ride Free when accompanied by a fare-paying adult. Oglive Transit Center is the flagship Metra station because it features the largest collection (6) of rail lines. Oglive is located underneath 42-story Citigroup Center at 504 West Madison Street. The upper waiting room is open Monday-Saturday 5a-12:40a and Sunday 7a-12:40a. Ticket agents are on duty on the upper level Monday-Saturday 5a-12:40a and Sunday 7a-12:40a.

Millennium Station, located at Randolph Street and Michigan Avenue, is host to Metra Electric Line and South Shore Line commuter trains. The former travels to Bolton, Harvey, Homewood and Park Forest, IL. The latter departs to McCormick Place, Hyde Park, Gary, Michigan City, IN and South Bend, IN. Millennium Transit Center is open daily from 5a-12:50a. Ticket agents are on duty Monday-Saturday 5:55a-12:50a and Sunday 7a-12:50a.

LaSalle Street Station at 414 South LaSalle Street houses Metra commuter trains stop closest to Chicago Board of Trade. Metra ticket agents are on duty Monday to Friday 6:15 a-9p and Saturdays 11a-7:30p. An earlier station at this site burned to the ground in the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. It was rebuilt in 1903 and stood until 1981, when a new commuter terminal was constructed behind and under a new Chicago Stock Exchange. The 1903 building served some of America’s most routes in the golden era of trains. The station was also used in Alfred Hitchcock’s North by Northwest and later in The Sting, staring Robert Redford and Paul Newman.

Chicago Freeway and Tollway Network is logical, extensive and signage is adequate. Though you have periods of fast moving traffic, count on slow traffic between O’Hare and downtown during commute hours and event weekends, downtown. The two passenger car pool lanes are a big plus. Other freeways are only crowded during commute hours. All tollways are in the western suburbs or the Chicago Skyway going to Gary, Indiana. The tollways, expressways and major highways are:

  41 Lake Shore Drive
  55 Adlai Stevenson Expressway
  57 Dan Ryan Expressway
  80 Tri-State Expressway
  88 East-West Tollway
  90 Chicago Skyway/JFK Expressway/Northwest Tollway
  94 Dan Ryan Expressway/ JFK Expressway/Edens Expressway
290 Dwight Eisenhower Expressway
294 Tri-State Tollway
912 East Chicago-Gary Expressway