Where to meet up in Chicago

In Chicago, a group spread across the North Side, the West Side and the suburbs usually meets in or near the Loop. Most 'L' lines run downtown, and the Brown, Orange, Pink and Purple Express trains circle the elevated Loop tracks, so a downtown station is often one train for everyone.

These are the areas groups pick most often:

• The Loop. Clark/Lake has six lines: the Blue, Brown, Green, Orange, Pink and Purple. Adams/Wabash, near Millennium Park, has five of them, all but the Blue.
• River North. The Red Line stops at Grand and Chicago on State Street. The Brown and Purple lines stop at Merchandise Mart and at Chicago on the west side of the area.
• The West Loop. The Green and Pink lines stop at Clinton and Morgan on Lake Street. Clinton is next to Ogilvie, and the Blue Line's Clinton stop is next to Union Station.
• Wicker Park. The Blue Line's Damen stop is on the elevated tracks at 1558 N. Damen Avenue.

Getting around

The CTA says the Red and Blue lines run 24 hours a day, every day. The other 'L' lines stop overnight, so check the last train before a late plan.

• The Red Line runs under State Street through downtown, between Howard and 95th/Dan Ryan. The Blue Line runs between O'Hare Airport and Forest Park by way of downtown.
• The State/Lake station on the Loop is closed for reconstruction into 2029, as the CTA's alerts say. Clark/Lake, two blocks west, has six lines.
• Metra commuter trains use four downtown stations, as its rider FAQ says: Ogilvie (the Union Pacific lines), Union Station (most other lines, plus Amtrak), Millennium Station (Metra Electric) and LaSalle Street (Rock Island).