What are my commute options?

[arcturus]

Thanks to the special gonga fares SW Airlines was throwing a few days ago ($90 max, some destinations less) I'll be flying in/out of Midway a few times this fall. Airport parking at Midway ran me $10/day last time. For a person a few miles from downtown what's my alternatives?

[rallymatt]

Thanks to the special gonga fares SW Airlines was throwing a few days ago ($90 max, some destinations less) I'll be flying in/out of Midway a few times this fall. Airport parking at Midway ran me $10/day last time. For a person a few miles from downtown what's my alternatives?

[arcturus]

Thanks, I kinda figured with 60 views without reply (til yours) this was going to be the answer. Shame that cars still rule when it comes to expedience and cost in scenarios like this.

[francishsu]

If you're going to be away for a week or longer, some hotels offer park and fly packages that you might want to consider. Even if the hotel package ends up costing the same as Midway parking or a little more, being able to stay in the hotel the night before or night of return can give you more flexibility with the flight times (i.e. unpopular fight times that either have cheaper rates or aren't booked as quickly).

[Veloise]

... parking and taking the METRA from like Michigan City would be also RIDICULOUSLY time consuming and then you would prolly get your car stolen as well. ...

[Allison Slater]

I've used the commuter train on every one of my trips to Chicago. The train was slow, but relaxing and cheaper than the alternative. I'd park in Michigan City and never had any problems.

[arcturus]

Commuter train can take me right to Midway? Round trip cost? Parking cost?

[Raildudes dad]

Commuter train can take me right to Midway? Round trip cost? Parking cost?

[arcturus]

South Shore is the Metra commuter train and is $8 from Michigan City?

[Raildudes dad]

South Shore is the Metra commuter train and is $8 from Michigan City?

[suydam]

Thanks, I kinda figured with 60 views without reply (til yours) this was going to be the answer. Shame that cars still rule when it comes to expedience and cost in scenarios like this.

[suydam]

Pretty sure that none other than our list mom (GRDad) has used the Michigan City commuter train option.

What's in fact RIDICULOUSLY time consuming is sitting on the highways near Chicago. If you can manage to use the travel time productively, go for it!

[arcturus]

In your case, cars don't rule. Southwest does.

If you flew from GR, you wouldn't need to get to Midway.

[RegalTDP]

Just in case you're intending to fly out of Midway this summer, keep in mind the Tri-State Tollway is under construction from I-80 to beyond Cicero Ave. and has been pretty jammed up every day. Just a factor for your decision-making on whether or not to ride or drive.

[arcturus]

Just in case you're intending to fly out of Midway this summer, keep in mind the Tri-State Tollway is under construction from I-80 to beyond Cicero Ave. and has been pretty jammed up every day. Just a factor for your decision-making on whether or not to ride or drive.

[downtownGRguy]

I take the commuter train pretty much every time I do to downtown Chicago. I like to use the Dune Park stop which is one closer to Chicago than the 2 Michigan City stops. I have parked my car there numerous times and had no problems, and I have a very nice car. Of course its fully insured, so I don't worry too much. I find that it is generally on time. I have only had one time when it was more than 5-10 minutes off. If you didn't run into any traffic, it takes about 45 mins longer than driving, but you do also have to factor in hitting the schedule of the train, which probably means building in 15 mins extra waiting time to make sure you don't miss it. The trains come at least every two hours, and much more often during rush hour.

I really like the train, because I can get work done while riding. I generally always have something I can read or replying to e-mails or something else on my laptop for a couple hours. With the driving alternative, I usually find that I have all my phone calls made by the time I hit MI City and the drive just becomes wasted time for me.

Now Midway becomes less attractive by the train since it requires walking a few blocks and transferring in Chicago to an "L" train for another 30 min or so ride. Its tougher to get work done on this train since it is subway style. Also with multiple bags this transfer/ride can be a pain. It all comes to a time tradeoff. For me personally, I generally pay the extra to fly out of GR, unless the savings are very large.

I have made this transfer a couple times. One was when flying one way to MSP to pick up a new car that I bought. The 1 way fare from GR was $800+ and from ORD $100. I convinced my wife to go and we picked up a cheap priceline hotel in downtown Chicago, breaking up the trip. We always love downtown Chicago anyway.

So it really breaks down to how you value your time. If you have the time and a good book, the train is not such a bad option. If you are trying to be gone a little as possible, probably not. You will spend an additional 1 1/2 hours taking the train as opposed to no traffic each way, plus up to to 2 hours waiting time depending on how the schedules match up. The train cost will probably be about $20-$25 round trip.