How do you possibly survive in Chi without a car? (Chicago: condo, homes)

[williepotatoes]

Originally Posted by oakparkdude

I think a lot of older folks (not necessarily directed at you WP) simply don't understand the appeal of dense urban living.

"You pay how much per month for that postage stamp apartment? And parking is $200 extra? What about the high crime and filth?"

My parents never understood the appeal to me. They told me to move to Naperville when I relocated to Chicago.

Just as some people see an iPad as a waste of $700 which they have little use for, many young urbanites see paying hundreds of dollars every month to own a rarely used car as a waste.

Well put. Most of my peers had parents of the same mindset. They fled the city for the burbs and then steered the kids clear of any thoughts of urban resettlement. Often when Johnny and Jill got married, mom and dad would donate a nice down payment for a house with the stipulation that it be a nearby suburban one. Since Johnny and Jill were already conditioned to the burbs it was an easy choice. We seldom ever saw those Johnnys and Jills again. It was as if they were part of some tribe of zombies who never dealt with us cityfolk.

[chirack]

Originally Posted by Irishtom29

I dunno; half? In the Loop? That's kind of hard to believe.

While it might not be half, the loop is the 2nd largest employment center in the state. The surronding burbs do have a lot of jobs(they are the 1st) but thoose jobs are spread out.

[oakparkdude]

Originally Posted by Irishtom29

I dunno; half? In the Loop? That's kind of hard to believe.

Yeah, it really is (or was just a few years ago at least) half of all white collar jobs. I'll try to find a link. The degree of concentration of employment is rather remarkable. Obviously this would be impossible without Metra and the CTA.

[tomcho]

Originally Posted by oakparkdude

Yeah, it really is (or was just a few years ago at least) half of all white collar jobs. I'll try to find a link. The degree of concentration of employment is rather remarkable. Obviously this would be impossible without Metra and the CTA.

While googling this info I came across this site with some interesting census related maps.

Chicago, Census 2000 Maps

[Chicago60614]

Last stats I saw there were around 600,000 people who work in the downtown area. Add to that residents, students, people in for business, shoppers, tourists and people who have to come downtown to take care of things and on average the central area sees roughly 850,000-1,000,000 people per day.

Obviously a majority have to use public transit in some way or another to get down there. I believe 650,000 trips are given on the L, 350,000 on Metra, and around 950,000 on buses. A lot of those aren't to downtown, but if you look around at rush hour - there are certainly a ton of people taking trains and buses.

[Muppet123]

Red line is still pretty packed when I get out of class at 9PM heading back into the loop to get the bus home...

[chirack]

From what I rember a last year the red line carries the most passengers and the blue line 2nd.

[chicago103]

Originally Posted by williepotatoes

Let me repeat it again, I am a lifelong Chicagoan who only recently moved to mallville. I am in the thick of the city usually 1-3 times a week. and often spend week-ends there. I spend most of my recreation time and dollars in the thick of the city. I adventure from Bridgeport and Chintown thru River North and Lincoln Park, all the way up to Evanston and even more points adjacent.

I do it all by car and always have. My usual crew of compatriots all live in the city and own cars too.

Well let me ask you this. How much time do you spend in the Loop itself or in the Streeterville/Mag-Mile area? Are there any areas of the city you avoid because of traffic and parking? Do you park your car far away and then walk through those areas or do you not like walking and have to park right at your destination? How often do you visit Daley Plaza? How often do you walk on State Street in the Loop? How often do you walk on North Michigan Avenue? When was the last time you went to the Art Institute? When was the last time you went to Millennium Park?

Those areas that are the hardest to drive and park in like the Loop are the parts of the city that I enjoy going to the most and go to nearly every single day. The places where it is easiest to drive and park also happen to be the places I don't care about visiting as much. Sure a small part of me may be curious about visiting Woodfield Mall some day but I would much rather just (window) shop on State Street or on the Mag Mile at Water Tower Place or the like.

I used to live in the John Hancock Center where parking is over $300 a month and at that time I worked at City Hall and walked most of the time and took the CTA in bad weather or if I was in a hurry or some unusual situation. Why would someone in that situation need a car? Granted at that time the downtown area was virtually my entire world and maybe someone like you would find that limiting but I loved it.

[Irishtom29]

Originally Posted by chicago103

How much time do you spend in the Loop itself or in the Streeterville/Mag-Mile area? Are there any areas of the city you avoid because of traffic and parking? Do you park your car far away and then walk through those areas or do you not like walking and have to park right at your destination? How often do you visit Daley Plaza? How often do you walk on State Street in the Loop? How often do you walk on North Michigan Avenue? When was the last time you went to the Art Institute? When was the last time you went to Millennium Park?

My wife and I are downtown and along the Lake downtown every day. Our owning a car doesn't prevent it.

[williepotatoes]

Originally Posted by chicago103

Well let me ask you this. How much time do you spend in the Loop itself or in the Streeterville/Mag-Mile area? Are there any areas of the city you avoid because of traffic and parking? Do you park your car far away and then walk through those areas or do you not like walking and have to park right at your destination? How often do you visit Daley Plaza? How often do you walk on State Street in the Loop? How often do you walk on North Michigan Avenue? When was the last time you went to the Art Institute? When was the last time you went to Millennium Park?

Those areas that are the hardest to drive and park in like the Loop are the parts of the city that I enjoy going to the most and go to nearly every single day. The places where it is easiest to drive and park also happen to be the places I don't care about visiting as much. Sure a small part of me may be curious about visiting Woodfield Mall some day but I would much rather just (window) shop on State Street or on the Mag Mile at Water Tower Place or the like.

I used to live in the John Hancock Center where parking is over $300 a month and at that time I worked at City Hall and walked most of the time and took the CTA in bad weather or if I was in a hurry or some unusual situation. Why would someone in that situation need a car? Granted at that time the downtown area was virtually my entire world and maybe someone like you would find that limiting but I loved it.

I often restaurant hop in that sphere, but not on a regular basis. I use valet parking quite a bit for those food excursions, and when visiting Grant Park or the museums, I use Monroe street parking garage. Weekday visits to the loop are few and far between, but when I do my car is always parked in one of the lots west of Ogilvie. From there I cab it to my loop destination.

I wouldn't own a car if I lived in a place like you, where it was so prohibitive. That being said, I would never live anywhere that prevented me from owning a car. It's a lifestyle thing resulting from decades of conditioned behavior.