"Jay Beckman" wrote in
:

I've not flown into the Chicagoland area .. but I've driven there a lot.
Chicago freeway traffic can be some of the worst you'll ever see in the
USA.

Picture your typical rush hour crush in most major cities (excepting LA
or NY) and this is what is normal for about 20 hours a day around the
Chigago area. Now add another 40% more cars and then you have actual
rush hour in Chicago. No lie, I've had it take over two hours to go
from the Loop out to O'Hare...at 430 in the morning!!! Using the major
surface streets can actually work better if you are going from point a
to point b and don't mind altering your route at will.

The suggestion offered regarding using the train to downtown is a good
one, IMO but whatever means you use to get downtown, Chicago is actually
a pretty good walking city. Michigan Ave, along the lake (the Gold
Coast), Rush Street area, all are fun to just meander around on foot.

Good luck with your trip...

Jay Beckman
PP-ASEL
Chandler, AZ

I can tell you unequivocably that Chicago traffic is worse than NY traffic.
NY traffic is pretty tame - North-South traffic is really not all that bad,
it's just getting across town that sucks.

Chicago traffic sucks in every direction. I'd compare it to Washington DC
traffic, where yesterday it took us an hour to go 1.8 miles.

Public transportation is the way to go...