Chicagos I-90 Expressway: Not Worth The Price of Admission

By Jen

AKA SusyBruisy

Theres something just a little obnoxious about being stopped every few miles for an 80-cent toll, especially when you have to sit in line for 45 minutes in 95-degree heat to pay it. This is the sad state of affairs in Chicago, which Id be happy to never try to fight my way through again, no offense intended to residents. But seriously, how do you guys stand it? Since Im going to have to make this trip again in a couple of weeks in my Eagle with a U-Haul in tow, Id love to hear your tips for bypassing Chi-town. Any way around or through that doesnt involve the I-90?

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Posted at 2:50 am in Road Trips

Comments

Kevin
May 11, 2008 at 5:27 am

Oh Lord. I’ll admit I’m a biased Chicagoan, but traffic in Chicago is better than at most other bigger cities that I’ve traveled through. What’s really criminal are the cities that don’t have 3-4 million people (like Chicago) that have awful traffic: see also Atlanta, Jacksonville, Boston, Phila, Detroit, etc. And try driving into or through NY or LA. Truly painful situations. And for the record: Chicago is far less polluted than most cities less than half its size.

Sean C.
Jul 25, 2007 at 4:09 pm

can you hop on 70 through Kansas then you can go up to 90? That’s what I did when I moved out here to the Emerald City. Course, I was already south in the big and beautiful StL.

Anonymous
Jul 25, 2007 at 3:17 pm

My lungs are burning just thinking of being in a ford escort on top of this congestion. To get around a city: find the biggest road circling it. What a repulsive haze in the photo… 95 degrees to boot. Yikes.Even worse to pay for it with welcome signs drenched in crud

Patrick
Jul 25, 2007 at 10:54 am

Where is your destination? You might just have to take I-94. Either way, everything is under construction these days. The Skyway usually is OK, but thats ONLY if you’re going downtown. If you need to go thru the city, I suggest going AROUND it

erin49017
Jul 25, 2007 at 6:31 am

Honestly, I can’t give you any advice on how to avoid the tolls, but you should look into getting a CB radio, and ask the truckers, thats what I do on road trips. What ever you do. Good luck.

Evan Norris
Jul 25, 2007 at 4:50 am

So what are you driving your Escort there and then bringing the Eagle Back??? Just sounded like you were exchanging vehicles…
-Evan

Ted
Jul 25, 2007 at 4:32 am

Tolls are ridiculous. There should’t be any, anywhere. It’s government taking the easy way out instead of funding and managing roadways properly.

What really boils my oil is when states plant their tolls on federal highways, such as the I-95 shakedown you’d experience in Maryland and Delaware. Tolls there are $5, $4, etc. A far cry from 80 cents. Worse yet, we wait in a traffic jam created by these states’ screwing taxpaying drivers out of their cash.

I-95 is only a good drive in middle Virginia and below.

Sorry I can’t help you with Chicago. Dosen’t sound like I’d like the place, at least not driving there.