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Public Transportation is the best way to enjoy Chicago White Sox baseball at U.S. Cellular Field (Comiskey Park – The Cell) on game day. Although the South Side of Chicago and the surrounding Bridgeport neighborhood are typically far less congested than Wrigleyville – the adjacent Interstate 90-94 Dan Ryan Expressway is one of the world's roughest stretches of roadway and stalls as a maddening bottleneck at all times.
Sox fans can avoid the madness of the Dan Ryan and the zoo atmosphere of local surface streets by navigating Chicago's effective public transportation network. Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) buses and trains cost $2.25 per one-way at the time of this writing, regardless of the hour and distance traveled; whereas Metra commuter trains charge fares according to zones and rush hour scheduling.
We will now list public transportation routes to U.S. Cellular Field from all directions with relevant commentary:
How to Use Public Transportation to get to U.S. Cellular Field from the South Side and South Suburbs:
The Cell is located right off the Dan Ryan at 35th Street.
The stadium dominates the Bridgeport street scape and the public transportation hub is marked with giant White Sox paraphernalia and various baseball images. You can't miss it.
Red Line Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) trains run between the I-90/94 Expressway median from 95th street to Chinatown with stops at 95th, 87th, 79th, 69th, 55-Garfield, SOX-35th, 47th, Chinatown, and Roosevelt. Obviously, South Siders may board the CTA at these Dan Ryan junctions and ride the Red Line to the ballpark at the appropriately named SOX – 35th station. U.S. Cellular Field is just west of this stop.
Most South Siders will ride north on Red Line trains marked “Howard.” South Loop fans can access the Red Line at State Street and Roosevelt Road and will ride south on trains marked “95th – Dan Ryan” to SOX-35th.
The CTA Green Line is another alternative. The Green Line branch hugs State Street and fans can exit at the 35th-Bronzeville-IIT stop and then walk four blocks west across the Dan Ryan Expressway to the White Sox game. The Green Line presents well lit Park and Ride facilities at the Garfield stop just west of King Drive and 55th.
Although the Green Line route may be convenient to locals, suburban and out-of-town fans must recognize that this area just east of U.S. Cellular Field and the Expressway is a hit-or-miss location of one Illinois Institute of Technology, gentrified homes, empty lots, and ghetto wasteland.
Suburbanites and fans from the Southwest side can ride the Metra and/or the CTA Orange line to downtown before backtracking south to SOX-35th on the Red Line. Roosevelt is a key transfer point featuring the red, green, and orange lines.
Orange Line trains highlighted by “Midway” and “Loop” designations run from downtown to Midway Airport mostly along Archer Avenue and spectators transferring to the Red Line at Roosevelt must descend underground through a wacky tunnel of reptile art to reach the Red Line subway marked “95th – Dan Ryan” to the ball game.
Various Metra Rail lines from the Far South Side and South Suburbs converge downtown at Millennium Park, Van Buren, and Union Station. All downtown stops are within walking distance of State Street and the Red Line subway trains to SOX-35th. Simply identify the Sears Tower and follow the marching orders of your fellow White Sox supporters towards State.
South Side veterans may use a combination of public transportation Metra, CTA Trains, and buses to U.S. Cellular. The X55 express bus along 55th Street is particularly fast from Hyde Park to the Dan Ryan.
How to Use Public Transportation to get to U.S. Cellular Field from the West Side and West Suburbs:
The Green, Blue, and Pink Line trains that parallel the Lake Street, 290 – Eisenhower Expressway, and Cermak Road corridors, respectively, serve the West Side. These routes end at the inner-ring suburbs of Oak Park and Cicero.
All three lines converge at the Chicago Loop – with the Pink Line simply reversing direction back to the West Side. These Westerly trains headed downtown will read “O'Hare,” “Loop,” and “Ashland/63rd (Cottage Grove)”
Green Line riders have the option of staying on the elevated “El” train around the Loop and continuing south to 35th-Bronzeville-IIT before exiting and walking roughly one mile west on 35th Street across the Dan Ryan Expressway to U.S. Cellular Field.
Green Line Sox fans wishing to transfer to the Red Line should do so at Roosevelt. The Roosevelt El station is less heavily trafficked than State and Lake. Also, kiddies and adults alike will enjoy the views from the Green Line elevated around the Loop and the natural prehistoric themes per the Chicago Museum complex of the Roosevelt transfer tunnel to the Red Line subway.
Blue Line riders will follow “O'Hare” trains into the subway and Jackson. An overarching red and blue themed tunnel marks the connection point to the Red Line. White Sox fans may be (mis)treated to random street performers at the Red Line Jackson stop before entering the “95th – Dan Ryan” train to SOX-35th.
The Red Line is accessible from the Pink Line at State and Lake. Pink Line riders must exit the elevated platform and gain entry to the Red Line subway via the State Street entrance. Although riders must exit and re-enter the system – original fare cards will allow for a free transfer here.
Of course, Cook, DuPage, and Kane County suburbanites will take the Metra to Union Station and Ogilvie Transportation Center before exiting, crossing the Chicago River, and walking 7 blocks east to the Red Line at State Street.
How to Use Public Transportation to get to U.S. Cellular Field from the North Side and North Suburbs:
The straggling, few and far in between White Sox fans traveling South from Cubbydom will avail themselves to Red, Brown, and Blue Line trains on the North Side. The Kennedy Expressway, Milwaukee Avenue, Sheffield, Clark, Broadway, and Sheridan Road are good reference points with convenient CTA access.
Belmont and Fullerton El platforms are important transfer stations along Sheffield Avenue, which unite the Red and Brown lines. Of course, these Lakeview and Lincoln Park sections are heavily utilized through Chicago's most densely populated neighborhoods outside of downtown.
Numerous Red Line stops such as Loyola, Lawrence, Wilson, Sheridan, and Addison are extremely privy to delay due to the congestion; and North Siders should allow at least 45 minutes worth of contingency planning simply to arrive downtown. U.S. Cellular Field is approximately 20 minutes from the Loop at the SOX-35th station.
The Purple Line is a godsend for Far North and suburban riders. Ample parking is available near the Howard station east of Clark (Chicago Avenue in Evanston) Street where the Purple Line express runs with direct service to Belmont during rush hour. North Shore White Sox fans will take the Purple Line trains marked “Loop” before transferring to southbound Red Line “95th – Dan Ryan” CTA cars at Belmont.
Blue Line trains run from O'Hare to the Loop along the Kennedy Expressway and Milwaukee Avenue before transitioning into the Dearborn Street subway downtown. Important Stations are located at Montrose (Kennedy), Addison (Kennedy), and Damen (North / Milwaukee). White Sox fans on the Blue Line must transfer at Jackson and cross over to the Red Line before boarding the CTA headed towards SOX-35th.
Suburban Metra commuter rail Sox fans from North Cook, Lake, and McHenry Counties alight downtown at Ogilvie Transportation Center and Union Station before exiting these respective termini and walking east to State Street. Red Line subway entrances are located at Lake, Monroe, and Jackson on State. Again, southbound CTA Red Line trains are marked as “95th – Dan Ryan” and U.S. Cellular Field looms large over the SOX – 35th station.
Of course, not all North Side riders will be pulling for the White Sox. The brewing Cubs – White Sox Crosstown Classic rivalry has exploded into all-out warfare with the emergence of 1997 Interleague play. Certainly, obnoxious North Siders will trek South – stopping at nothing to heckle White Sox nation, while equally obnoxious blue collar South Siders will seek to romp at U.S. Cellular Field at the expense of the Chicago Cubs.
How to Use Public Transportation to U.S. Cellular Field, Sources:
Chicago White Sox Official Web Site, http://chicago.whitesox.mlb.com/index.jsp?c_id=cws
Chicago Transit Authority, http://www.transitchicago.com/
Chicago Transit Authority Train Map, http://www.transitchicago.com/assets/1/maps/ctatrainmap_apr09.pdf
Metra Rail, http://www.metrarail.com/
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