Hopping on a CTA #81 (Lawrence) bus used to be my daily commute to/from work when I lived in Albany…read morePark. This particular route runs 24/7, and many TSAs and ORD workers catch this one. Yes, together in the same bus we were like a large, happy family. At around 10pm, working professionals coming from ORD and Rosemont would get on the blue line train. As many of us were getting discharged at the Jefferson Park stop, we had the last exercise of the day: running all the way to #81 and hoping everyone of us had a seat (unlikely...because this one is always crowed during that time). Eastbound #81 begins at Jefferson Park Transportation Center. Immediately there's the first point of interest: - Copernicus Center: the annual north side Polish Fest on Labor Day weekend is hosted here. They have different activities going on throughout the year. Let's get back on the bus and continue our journey, or you may remain in the neighborhood and get a new tattoo at Chitown Tattoo, off Leclaire and I-90. I've heard many good reviews on their work. As we are heading east, we will be passing Mayfair and Albany Park. Albany Park is known to be one of the most diverse neighborhoods in Chicago. There are a few hole-in-the-wall places that actually were gems in my opinion: - Fish N' Go (cash-only): ask Nick, the owner, if there are oysters available. My parents used to surprise me with their delicious fried oysters after a long day of work. - Lawrence Fish Market (cash-only): affordable prices on quality sashimi, sushi, and maki rolls. Put their number on your speed dial and call ahead. - Markellos (cash-only): lights are on 24/7. I guarantee that you will never go hungry cruising through Albany Park. Ladies and gentlemen, now you've arrived at the CTA Kimball Brown Line station. That's probably what I'm missing the most living in Albany Park. The brown line provides an easy access to the Chicago Loop. From there it connects to other transportation options to the south/ southwest side of neighborhoods. By the way, "Hot Dog Station" on Kimball by Kimball Brown Line station is a good place to grab a quick bite. I don't know or can't recall the owner's name, but he resembles "Aiden" from Sex and the City. Wow, this review is becoming very long, and I should wrap it up ASAP. "Ravenswood" is the next neighborhood. It overlaps with Lincoln Square, near CTA Western Brown Line station. Many people love to hang out here during summer for the farmer's market on select Thursday evenings, trendy bars, and cool small businesses. Metra Union Pacific/North Line has a stop at Ravenswood. This particular Metra routine starts at Chicago-Ogilvie Transportation Center (OTC) and goes to all the way up north in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Attention passengers...we are approaching to Uptown. "Little Vietnam" is within the Uptown neighborhood. Many Vietnamese or other Asian-themed restaurants, bakeries, and businesses are nearby. If you ever wanna see some skimpily-dressed young men and women, come to "Aragon Ballroom" across from CTA Lawrence Red Line station. I almost got hurt by random glass bottles flying over my head while I was waiting for the bus on a late Saturday night. The CTA #81 (Lawrence) bus tour is officially coming to the end. Now it's time to take a quality break at the beautiful, magnificent Lakeshore Path.

The magic #81 Lawrence bus is open 24/7/365, is as clutch and critical as it gets. It starts by…read moreLake Shore Drive and flows through Uptown to pick you up from The Green Mill, Uptown Lounge, Kinetic Playground, The Aragon, The Riv, WIld Pug, or Crew. It goes on west in quick fashion, passing by El Quijote for late night eats, passes by Crafty Beaver and also Golden Nugget. If you need to hop on the Metra, the #81 Lawrence can drop you off at Lawrence and Ravenswood to hop on over. A giant Chase branch exists there that used to be BankOne that used to be First Chicago. Keep going west and you'll find Wendy's, CVS on Damen and Lawrence, El Taco Loco for late night snackery and Walgreen's open until Midnight. Not going to Lincoln Square? That's all right, the #81 will take you on over past Harvest Time for groceries, past by Restaurant Sarajevo, Greek bakeries and a world of small businesses. If it's late and you still haven't stopped try some George's Kebob by Kedzie and the new Mediterranean joint on the corner. Want something less ethic? How bout some Huddle House diner food that's open 24/7? The Filipino grocery is nearby, Popeye's Chicken, Subway, Donut Doctor and a world of $5 hair salons. Want some late night high carb fare? How bout some 24/7 Markello's Bakery? You can take the bus all the way to Jefferson Park, but I am getting off here, see you.

Dear Blue Island Bus, You are the only bus I do not hate…read moreright now. You have saved me from rain and windchill and you run very late at night. You can get me from downtown to my neighborhood quickly, or you can pick up the slack if I get tired walking home from Greektown. I will probably never write another nice review of a bus again, but this one makes me happy. Plus it picks up downtown right by Garrett's... wait that might be a bad thing.

Ode to a Bus- Oh…read moreNumber 60 Bus I never really have to fuss About getting to work on time Because you are sublime You may be late or early But you run so frequently that this girl-y Doesn't mind. It is so kind Of you to have a stop 30 seconds from my gate And even though I may hate Some of the idiots who ride you after work None of your little quirks Could make me love you any less. You are the best.

I had to write a paper and didn't have a lot of time. Rockwell Coffee was recommended because it…read morewas very likely to be quiet. Although I was initially disappointed that they don't have an espresso machine and only offer drip coffee or cold brew, I got over it when I realized that my drip coffee (which was delicious) and tip were only $4. It was also a super quiet, comfortable spot to write my paper, which was the most important thing. Although that was my main focus, I noticed that they sold carry out wines and beer and they had jars of amazing looking small batch pickles for sale.

CTA has a station on Rockwell. It was renovated more than a decade ago as a part of the Brown Line…read moreimprovement project. Surely it needs to be said this is an unique looking station. For one, it's neither underground or elevated. Two, this goes through a very nice looking neighborhood and it's not insanely busy like most stations can get. As with many of the stations, the location is the best thing about it of course. It serves the Brown Line. This is one of the best ways to get to Ravenswood. It's different from many other stations because the tracks go along the ground. Yes, the ones between the expressways also go along the ground, but those trains don't cross streets. It's more like how Metra goes. The trains come and the gates block traffic. A few bars and restaurants are located close to here. There's not a ton as this is more of a residential area, but there's a few coffee shops and cafes outside. Getting in and out is the worst thing about it. It seems many others have problems with the doors, which suck. The good thing is with this near the end of the Line, there's usually not a long wait for trains.

CTA has a stop on the Loop at the Harold Washington Library. It gets pretty busy but it's pretty…read moreclean mostly. One good thing of course is there's trains coming often. Located near the big library of course. There's a connection allowing you to make transfers. It can be found on the southeast side of the Loop close to some other trains you can conveniently access. It serves the Brown, Orange, Pink, and Purple Lines. The times each of these operates varies. Brown goes counterclockwise. The others go clockwise so be sure to be on the correct side of the platform. For the Brown, stand on the north. The others are on the south. Close to the Jackson station on the Blue and Red Lines, and transferring is free. These are only a few blocks away from here. Also know the Purple is a limited extension. It's only on weekdays at rush hour. This is among the nicest of the Loop stations.

Location-wise this is an important stop being near (obviously) the main public library (you need to…read morevisit this library) and the south end of the downtown shopping and office area. I used to avoid this stop to transfer because the way the Ventra one-way tickets (didn't) work then was getting out of the station from the Brown Line to walk over to State (very close) Red Line stop would result in having to purchase a whole new single ride ticket. They've since fixed that and a transfer here still counts as a single ride even though you have to exit the HWL station to get to the Jackson Red Line station - no worries. This station actually has a nice view from the Loop proper (the elevated old part of the subway system).

Convenient and walkable, which is very key. With American Landmark purchasing the Technology Park…read moreand with all of the new businesses and people moving to this area, the Yellow-line Oakton stop is an essential way of getting to downtown or Evanston. I've taken the Yellowline mainly to get to the loop or Lincolnpark or to see the Cubs and wow, it's sooo easy. The booth always has a CTA employee in it, which adds to the safety. The Yellowline trains are also generally more on the clean side, which is a plus. Oh, there's a bunch of bike stands if you'd like to ride over and lock your bike. Which leads to the one point deduction. For some reason, there are a bunch of plastic and glass bottles that are laying around, beyond the tracks. This isn't Howard station and the CTA has to make a conscious effort to clean up this mess, because the litterbugs won't be going away, unfortunately - even with waste baskets just a few steps away. There isn't any parking here so be careful not to drop off at Crafty Beaver, you may end up getting a ticket like my neighbor. If need to park, you should park at Dempster Yellowline. All in all, consistent, clean, safe and just one stop away from Howard.

I have always passed by Oakton-Skokie, whether it be in my vehicle or enroute to Dempster-Skokie…read morevia Yellow line: Skokie Swift, but never utilized it despite it having access to places I visit in on a weekly basis. Occasionally I work in the area, and in the past I noted Oakton-Skokie as being the closest public transportation access spot to my job which is why I utilized it. I have to say that I love how well-maintained and easily accessible the stops are in Skokie in comparison to Chicago and Evanston. With that being said, some of the pros & cons I noted of Oakton-Skokie are. Pros: -It connects college students to Oakton Community College, which is only half of a mile away. -Easy accessible grocery stores (Market Place on Oakton & ALDI) that are coincidentally next to each other. -Diverse selection of restaurants within Downtown Skokie. Some noted are Libertad, Village Inn Pizzeria Sports Bar and Grill, Sugo Italian Street Food and De-Jred Fine Jamaican Cuisine. -It connects residents and those living outside of Skokie to events, and businesses in downtown Skokie, such as Skokie Theater; The Historical Society/Heritage Museum; the Public Library; St Peter's Catholic Church and Village Hall. -Wheel chair accessible ramp. -The yellow line - Skokie Swift, operates for weekday and weekend Chicago Cubs night games and Wrigley Field concerts going in-bound to until 12:00 AM on game nights. Cons: -The yellow line - Skokie Swift, does not run all night. Other than for Chicago Cubs night games and Wrigley Field concerts, it runs from Dempster to Howard until 11:15 PM, all week. And from Howard to Dempster until 11:00 PM. Thomas G

The VE group Limo Service of Chicago provided exceptional polite professional on time service. The…read moredriver I used provided much needed information, was dressed and drove extremely professionally. He was an outstanding example of what a professional Limo driver should be (I have ridden in limos in different cities and other countries) My trip was on unexpected family business during one of the worst travel days. Due to the drive professionalism and clean new car the trip was made mush less stressful. I would use this limo service again when in Chicago or traveling near by. For the amount of transportation time, the cost of the black car and driver was extremely reasonable. Date of experience: December 2019

The cat needs to figure out how an app works. Don't say a train is going to be 3 minutes when it is…read moreactually pulling into the station. And then again say it's going to be 10 when it's actually 20.

The other day I made a rare weekday-morning appearance at this station, and a CTA employee had just…read moremopped the stairs. So the smell of cleaner was a pleasant/unpleasant change from the usual stink. Jarvis is one of the lesser stations; what do you expect? You show up, pay through the turnstile, wait for the train, and board when it arrives. Not much else to it. Howard station is so close that you can see when your train is departing. However, bonus points for the Onion paperbox outside, and the Chase ATM inside. Slight detraction for the ATM working only 60% of the time. Charmers Cafe across the street for your caffeinated beverage of choice in the morning; Poitin Stil next to it for your final drink of a boozy night out. And wherever you're going after leaving the station, it's a much nicer walk from Jarvis than from Howard.

CTA has an L station at Damen. It's not the one most people think of, the one on the Blue Line…read more This is on the Pink Line, in Pilsen. Find it at the intersection with Cermak. There's a lot of cool ethnic restaurants. Good place to check out some places to eat around here. It serves the Pink Line. This is in the happening neighborhood known as Pilsen. Close to here is Douglass Park and a few others. There's also plenty of Mexican restaurants. It's pretty quiet for a station, compared to others, but it's clean. The trains seem like they take a little while longer between but it's not that long of a time to be honest. Here in the actual station there's also a convenience counter. In case you need to get anything, you can get it from here. This has some overpriced drinks and snacks.

The train stop is always clean. Helpful staff. I enjoy eating at the restaurant El Fua formerly…read moreknown as Abuelo's across the street.