I'm in the exact same position as you, but never investigated routes as I assumed traffic lights and quality of pavement made it a bleh commute. However, last summer I saw a guy with a high end road bike atop his car in Oak Brook and he said that he regularly bikes from the city. Interested in suggestions and will ask that guy if I see him again.

---

2017 races: St. George 70.3 May 6 | Madison 70.3 June 11 | IM Zurich July 30 | Chicago Marathon October 8

I've scouted a couple Google Maps bike routes and both are good for about half... Then they get a little dicey. I'm guessing there are ways to go through neighborhoods that would work. Please PM me if you get a chance to talk to that guy.

Don't live there or anywhere nearby - but, could you use public transit for part of it to get out of the sketchier riding sections?

I live in Lincoln Park and work out in Lisle - 35 miles. About half of my way is on the Prairie path then the rest is through city streets. There are some designated biking roads that are pretty decent that I ride on. I think you may be too far north for this route though.

As soon as this damn rain stops I'll start riding home. I take Metra out to work then ride home as there is no way that I'd do part of that ride while it is dark out.

Jon

Depends on where you live and where you work. I grew up in Chicago on the far Southeast side near the Steel mills. I used to ride from Wheaton to South Chicago--I called it running the gauntlet. I would take the Prairie Path to Maywood where it ends, then Washington through Oak Park, then to Augusta and basically continue east to the Lake Front Path, then the path south to South Shore CC where it ends the Exchange down to Commercial Ave.
The path is fairly safe, Maywood is okay. Austin is dicey but east of there was okay to the lake front. The key would be to ride a grungy looking bike and dress down. Whatever you ride should have beefy wheels--the path. Is rough and a lot of the side streets are full of pot holes. Don't carry anything with you that you can't bear to lose. Good luck.

It may seem a little counterintuitive, but heading southwest out of the city will put you on some "safer" roads. You don't want to be riding a nice bike through the Austin neighborhood, even if there is a bike lane on Washington.

Take Ogden until it runs into 26th, then follow 26th to Longcommon in Riverside. From there it should be a pleasant ride. You can take Washington or a parallel road through Brookfield and then it's just a matter of getting to where you need to be in Oakbrook.

I lived in Chicago for a year. Never did I get hit by more cars. Good luck, wear your helmet and have a middle finger ready.

---

"The person on top of the mountain didn't fall there." - unkown

also rule 5

The Chicago bike scene is amazing. I took my bike there last year on vacation and road into downtown every morning with the huge groups of people going to work. Very jealous of what your city has.

Unless you live in Baghdad you probably shouldn't be jealous of our cycling scene. Thanks for the kind words though.

Thanks Brad. That was kind of the route I was looking at. Good to hear it from somebody else!

A few years ago I was commuting between Oak Park and the Loop. After having a gun pulled on me on Roosevelt one day, I rerouted around the worst parts. In the evening I would take Milwaukee north to Armitage, west on Armitage to Grand, west on Grand to Central, south on Central to Bloomingdale, then west into Oak Park. It would add 2 miles to my commute, but much safer. From Oak Park it is an easy ride to the Prairie Path. On the morning commute into the city, before the drug dealers and gangbangers were up, I would take Chicago Avenue east to Milwaukee - a fast wide road that was recently paved.

Have you tried strava? I live in the city and actually play in a league out in oak brook. I have played with the idea of riding out for a game and back but the routes didnt seem that good when I first considered it. It has been a few years so maybe there is another one. It was basically trying to tell me to follow 290.

---

2020 Team Zoot MTN

I've been commuting from Oak Park to Chicago for years and _never_ have had a problem--even going through the west side on Washington at 2 am in the morning. No problems in the morning and I recommend riding back with the west side commuters group:

https://groups.google.com/...um/westsidecommuters

As others have mentioned, I'd recommend taking the Prairie Path from Oak Park to Oak Brook. Sometimes it snows in and freezes but you won't find it too difficult to find other routes. Be a little more on alert through Maywood.

Re Chicago shaming: Chicago _is_ a great city for biking. Like any city, cycling can be risky but research shows more incidents in the burbs over the city. We have bike specific lanes, and even bike specific traffic lights. This makes sense because people are more alert given the nature of driving in close to proximity to others and obstacles. Oh, yes, there are jerks everywhere but I've never had a beer can thrown at my while cycling downtown.

Regards.
-Paul