<p>What is the safest/best way (it will be evening) to get from Midway Airport to University of Chicago, Shoreland dorms?</p>
<p>Absolute safest--take a cab. Last I heard they're about $20 which seems a bargain, given the distance in a major urban area. </p>
<p>Are you heading for an official overnight? If so, have a great time.</p>
<p>Best bets: 55 bus, taxi, or the Omega airport shuttle</p>
<p>The shuttle is a few dollars cheaper than a taxi, maybe $3, but given the small price difference and bad experiences I've had with Omega (that involved taking an hour and a quarter to get from campus to Midway with zero traffic, and me almost missing my flight), I'd take the taxi if you're going to choose one of those. If you do take a taxi, requesting that the driver "take 55" will significantly lessen the probability of getting ripped off. With tip, it's usually around $21 or a couple dollars more with traffic or if you're going all the way to campus.</p>
<p>The bus is much cheaper than a taxi. It won't take you directly to the Shoreland, but it's pretty close. It's a safe walk in the evening.</p>
<p>By any chance does the university have its own shuttles going to Midway for the December break? Or do students rely entirely on the transportation options mentioned above?</p>
<p>Sometimes there's free transportation offered at peak times, but with the bus and taxi options, everyone's really all set. The bus is very easy. It's a bus many students take pretty often anyway.</p>
<p>That sounds cheap for a cab! I'll probably advise her to do that. Would the bus be safe at around 10:00 at night?</p>
<p>No, I'm not visiting, but my daughter is planning to visit my son who is a student there. Just want her to do the safest thing.</p>
<p>What does "take 55" mean?</p>
<p>There are two main ways to get to the U of C from Midway. They take about the same amount of time, though taking 55th street (I meant 55th, not 55) is usually faster during rush hour times. At 10 PM there shouldn't be any real traffic, but 55th goes straight into Hyde Park. Some cab drivers, of course, try to waste time by driving somewhere unnecessary or going a longer route. Though the highway and 55th are probably about the same, the driver is less likely to try to take advantage of someone who appears to know where they're going. Plus, some cab drivers don't drive into Hyde Park very often and take the highway automatically.</p>
<p>The bus is very convenient and super cheap but I think mstee may want to be aware that it goes through lower income areas. Comfort depends on your own cultural reference. If I had a teenager, unfamiliar with urban environs and unfamiliar with Chicago I might splurge on a cab late at night.</p>
<p>The 55 bus is fine, at 10pm or any other time. It stops a block and a half from the Shoreland, and the route ends in a parking lot at Midway. Apart from the fact that at high traffic times it will take awhile longer than a cab (unless you get a 55X express, which may not exist anymore as of today), there is absolutely no reason to spend an extra $20+ bucks for the cab. In low traffic times, it probably runs 5 minutes longer than a cab, if that.</p>
<p>It runs through "low income areas," but it's a big bus on a major thoroughfare, and the neighborhood isn't THAT bad. I've ridden it lots of times without ever feeling uncomfortable. Also, because it actually passes through several distinct neighborhoods, the only people who are riding a long distance are those going to Midway.</p>
<p>Agree with JHS: the 55 is an artery of the UofC. I've also taken other local buses that are less popular with the UofC crowd and I haven't ever felt unsafe, and it doesn't take much for me to feel unsafe!</p>
<p>However, I will also point out that if one is not used to city life, the 55 bus may not be the best introduction to the U of C, and a taxi may feel safer and may be more convenient.</p>
<p>Agree with corranged, too-- insist on taking 55th street to the Shoreland. Your D should also give Shoreland's street address as well as say, "University of Chicago," so the cabbie knows where he's heading and why.</p>
<p>DS visited this fall and took the 55 from Midway. No worries. He was doing it on a Sunday morning and Monday rush hour afternoon, though. At 10 pm, I would tell him to take a cab. He's quite comfortable with public transit in major metro areas, but isn't that street savvy yet.</p>
<p>mstee, if you are from the City, Oakland, or Berkeley, the "low income areas" along the 55 won't bother you at all. They are well kept up and perfectly nice, just not wealthy. If your daughter is more at home on the other side of the tunnel, she might be a little uncomfortable.</p>