Help on Chicago roads

[Alex12345]

I'm going to be driving down the 294 from Ohare on Friday night. I remember how packed that highway was last year, and how toll-infested it was. Is it still the same? Is it going to take me 3 hours just to get to the venue?
Or does anyone know of a quicker way to the venue from Ohare?

Thanks for your help!

- Alex

 

[Chris Lotesto]

What time are you flying in?

While they are still doing some construction, it should not
be anywhere near as insane as last year....you will be
exiting at I80 anyway, most of the insanity was after that.
I'm not saying it won't be a hassle but I can't imagine it
taking much more than 1 hr.

A decent alternate is LaGrange Rd....a few weeks ago there
some shit construction but maybe it's over. You will run into
traffic around Orland Park mall, which is a hassle, but if the
expressway scares you, it's an option....and maybe a decent
one on Friday except that I don't know the status of the contstruction.

I294 South - Exit I55, pay toll and take the North (Chgo) ramp
Exit LaGrange Rd. South....this will take you all the way to 191st,
turn left and the Pearl Room is on the left....Super 8 is on the right.

 

[wildfyr]

I usually take Rt 83 and cut over to LaGrange at 95th or 111th. There's still a lot of traffic during peak hours via that route, but no tolls.

Edit: Make that 111th (I think), 95th for sure.

 

[Alex12345]

I'll be arriving at 5:30 PM. Ugh! That's right during rush-hour, I'm sure.
I should figure out the quickest way down to the venue... Perhaps print a few maps from Google...

 

[Mountain King]

If you get in at 5:30 by the time you get off the plane, through the airport and get your rental car it'll be around 6:15 I'd guess. Traffic should be starting to get a bit lighter at that time, I'd stick on 294 all the way down and you shouldn't be in that bad of shape. My only suggestion is to take the 159th st exit and head west over to Harlem and head south on Harlem and take a right onto 191st from there. The I-294/80 toll plaza is a total mess and you could end up sitting there forever and a day even in the best traffic conditions and Lagrange is under construction around 159th so it's all bad there as well.

There's a few other side roads you could take that will have zero traffic on them but they are probably a little farther west than you probably want to go from Ohare.

 

[wildfyr]

If you get in at 5:30 by the time you get off the plane, through the airport and get your rental car it'll be around 6:15 I'd guess. Traffic should be starting to get a bit lighter at that time, I'd stick on 294 all the way down and you shouldn't be in that bad of shape. My only suggestion is to take the 159th st exit and head west over to Harlem and head south on Harlem and take a right onto 191st from there. The I-294/80 toll plaza is a total mess and you could end up sitting there forever and a day even in the best traffic conditions and Lagrange is under construction around 159th so it's all bad there as well.

There's a few other side roads you could take that will have zero traffic on them but they are probably a little farther west than you probably want to go from Ohare.

That sucks. It was smooth sailing through there last January when I went to see Eden's Fall (et al) open for Metal Church. Bummer.

Btw, 83 goes all the way to LaGrange but there's a nice scenic route past Maple Lake on 95th or 111th.

 

[Mountain King]

That sucks. It was smooth sailing through there last January when I went to see Eden's Fall (et al) open for Metal Church. Bummer.

Btw, 83 goes all the way to LaGrange but there's a nice scenic route past Maple Lake on 95th or 111th.

If you're going down 83 the best way to go is when it splits off from 171 keep going on 171 and the next light is Bell rd, if you go left on Bell and follow that to 131st, take a left there you hit wolf, take a right on wolf and that will take you all the way down to 191st which helps you avoid Lagrange and the Orland Mall traffic. I get the joys of commuting this way regularly since I go from Lisle to Mokena for my job.

 

[wildfyr]

Thanks! That's a great tip. My sister lives around 95th and Roberts so I'm used to going that way. Also, there are tons of restaurants and the Mall down LaGrange, so I thought I'd leave that in for those who might want to explore all the options. There's even a Tiger Direct outlet store in the Orland area...for those who need their last-minute computer/techie items.