CTA’s trains and buses are the best and most affordable alternatives to travel and avoid the parking hassles of various sporting events, concerts, city festivals, not to mention Independence fireworks at Navy Pier and NASCAR Chicago Street Race activities
CTA will help chauffeur crowds this holiday weekend to all the hottest events happening around the city, including Independence Weekend Fireworks at Navy Pier and the NASCAR races and concerts.
Customers can save money by purchasing an unlimited-ride pass, either the 1-Day ($5) – far more economical and convenient than the price of gas and parking – or the 3-Day ($15) pass – a real budget-saving move.
Service for Upcoming Events
Independence Weekend Fireworks
Navy Pier – Sat. 7/1 at 9 p.m.
Rail: The nearest rail station to Navy Pier is the Grand Red Line station. Customers can also take the Blue Line to the Grand/Milwaukee station and take the #65 Grand bus route. You can also take the Red Line to the Chicago station and walk over to North Avenue Beach, which offers a great vantage point to the fireworks.
Bus: Several CTA bus routes will be providing service to Navy Pier including the following:
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- #29 State
- #65 Grand
- #66 Chicago
- #124 Navy Pier
- #151 Sheridan
Multiple bus routes in the area will be rerouted due to road closures associated with the NASCAR festivities. Check out our website for more information: https://www.transitchicago.com/schedules/
NASCAR Chicago Street Race Weekend
Grant Park – Sat. 7/1 and Sun. 7/2 at 9 a.m.
- Rail: All CTA rail lines serving downtown can get race attendees access to the track area:
- Loop Elevated (Brown/Green/Orange/Pink lines): Exit at either Washington/Wabash or Adams/Wabash.
- Red or Blue lines: Exit at Jackson and walk a couple of blocks east.
- Starting June 29, and continuing through July 5 while race-related structures are removed, visitors stopping at the Roosevelt Red/Orange/Green line station can transfer to a shuttle bus to the Museum Campus, replacing the regular #146 bus. Passengers can also walk a half-mile from the Roosevelt Red/Orange/Green line station under the Roosevelt Du Sable Lake Shore Drive underpass. These shuttles are free and will run every 15 minutes.
- Bus: On the weekend of the event, the #3, #4, #6, #10, #12, #J14, #18, #20, #22, #36, #56, #60, #62, #126, #130, #146, #147, and #151 bus routes will detour around downtown. More detailed information about all the downtown bus reroutes can be found on our dedicated webpage at www.transitchicago.com/nascar/
United Center
Get to and from the following concerts via the #20 Madison and #50 Damen bus routes. Customers can also take the #19 United Center Express route post event:
- Twice – Thu. 6/29 at 7:30 p.m.
- Anita Baker – Fri. 6/30 at 8 p.m.
- Erykah Badu – Sat. 7/1 at 7:30 a.m.
- Drake and 21 Savage – Wed. 7/5 and Thu. 7/6 at 7 p.m.
Wrigley Field
- Philadelphia Phillies vs. Chicago Cubs – Thu. 6/29 at 7:05 p.m.
- Cleveland Guardians vs. Chicago Cubs – Fri. 6/30 at 1:20 p.m., Sat. 7/1 at 6:15 p.m. and Sun. 7/2 at 1:20 p.m.
Service:
- Red Line: The Addison station is located just a half block east of Wrigley Field.
- Purple Line: During weeknight games, Loop-bound Purple Line Express trains will stop at Sheridan, where riders can either walk three blocks south on Sheridan/Sheffield to the ballpark or transfer to a 95th/Dan Ryan-bound Red Line train and exit at Addison.
- Yellow Line: Take the Yellow Line and transfer at Howard to the Red Line; continue to Addison station. To accommodate fans returning home, the Yellow Line will run for an hour later from Howard – until midnight – for all night games at Wrigley Field.
- #152 Addison: The #152 route will provide additional service on Cubs game days, with more frequent service two hours before and one hour after all games.
- #80 Irving Park: The #80 route will provide additional service before the games, timed to meet the inbound UP-NW Metra trains at Irving Park.
- Adjacent bus routes: Several CTA bus routes serve the area, including:
- #8 Halsted
- #22 Clark
- #36 Broadway
- #151 Sheridan
Guaranteed Rate Field
- Blue Jays vs. White Sox – Tue. 7/4, Wed. 7/5 and Thu. 7/6 at 7:10 p.m.
Service:
- Red Line: Guaranteed Rate Field is just one block west of the Sox-35th station.
- Green Line: The 35th-Bronzeville-IIT station is just three blocks east of the ballpark.
- CTA’s Park & Ride lots are also a good choice to access CTA train service. For more information, visit transitchicago.com/parking.
- Adjacent bus routes: Several CTA bus routes serve the ballpark area, including:
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- #1 Bronzeville/Union Station (during Monday – Friday rush periods only)
- #4 Cottage Grove
- #24 Wentworth
- #29 State
- #31 31st (which runs Monday – Friday to 7 p.m.)
- #35 35th (which connects with Orange and Green lines)
- #39 Pershing (which connects with Orange and Green lines)
- #44 Wallace/Racine
Service to the Lakefront
Throughout the summer, the following bus routes will operate directly to the lakefront and its beaches: #35 31st/35th, #63 63rd *, #72 North and #78 Montrose.
*Note: Due to CDOT construction at the beach parking lot, the CTA service stop for customers heading to the 63rd Street Beach will be at a crosswalk on the south side of Hayes Drive and Lakeshore Drive.
Know before you go!The CTA strongly recommends customers allow extra travel time and plan ahead by downloading the Ventra app, which allows you to manage your Ventra account, and also features a new trip planning tool powered by Google Maps.
Fare payment options: The CTA offers a variety of convenient payment options—from smart devices to contactless credit cards. Learn more about payment options and ways you can maximize your dollars with our lower-priced unlimited-ride passes by visiting: transitchicago.com/fares/
Service updates: Stay in the loop on CTA service changes and alerts by subscribing to CTA Updates. For details about all CTA service, call 312-836-7000 or visit the CTA website at transitchicago.com.
