Advocacy & Safety - Driving The Dan Ryan

Due to a recent move, winter, and other obligations, I've been driving the Dan Ryan daily from 95th down to the Loop. Like no other driving experience I've ever had, the Dan Ryan scares the horsepiss out of me. Perhaps it's the drivers that routinely drive 80mph making sudden lane changes in order to keep up their speed, many times I've looked in my rearview and seemingly from nowhere a car has appeared, so close I can't see his headlights, then makes a lane change, punches it and is gone. Or maybe it's the construction that squeezes the traffic too close together. Maybe it's the thousands of trucks whose drivers drive like they're tweaked on crystal meth. Or is it the vast space it occupies where human emotion is played out with steel, concrete and hydrocarbons at nothing under 50mph (swear to God, if you drive 50 in the left "fast" lane you will be killed, murdered on the spot). Could be that I'm just getting older and have learned the hard way that life is precious and all I want is to get home safely to my family. I've talked with others and we all agree the Dan Ryan is an insane roadway. I stay in the right lane as much as possible and keep it around 55 or even 50 if I'm cocky. The other night I was offered a glass of wine and I refused, saying I had to drive the Ryan home. With Spring coming I've stated that I'll be on the bike again. People say I'm crazy for riding my bike into the city from 95th street. They're right to some degree, I'll be pedaling through thick sections of poverty, but I tell them, I would rather some thug kill me with a crowbar while riding my bicycle than the horror of my Escort smashed into a cement barrier on that shepherd of the devil, the Dan Ryan. The real Dan Ryan, a federal judge that fit nicely in Old Man Daley's pocket, must be looking down from his Heaven: Department of Graft wringing his hands. Imagine having this wreckage named after you; a curse forever to bear. We ought to change the name to reflect it's truer meaning, why don't we call it the John Wayne Gacy Highway.

Awesome.

1. there is a steakhouse in Hong Kong called the Dan Ryan Steakhouse.
I talked to the owner and it was indeed named after the death trap.

2. i've heard 90/94 has the most volume of any expressway in the U.S. True?

Either way I too avoid it like the plague.

jeff

Heh, sounds to me like you just described any given freeway in L.A.

Eighty to standstill in two seconds. My real terror down there (or in the Bay Area) is being at the end of the backup, looking in my rearview at the high-speed horror bearing down on me, thinking, "Please let them see we're stopped, please let them stop, please let them stop...."

I've been told it's best if you just don't look :eek: :eek: :eek:

I've drove that highay an several occasions. My dad goes to a orthopedic specialist in Chicago and I live in southern Illinois, Harrisburg. To say the least that road is not fun. Down here we drive a little slower and there are few fewer of us. I've never been able to figure out how people could handle that on a daily basis.

The Dan Ryans one of my (least) fave roads to drive.

Others include Storrow drive in Boston and the Mixing Bowl (95/495 as well, but the bowl esp) in Springfield Va.

Mmmm, Storrow drive is a nightmare. Although, it was always a blast to ride along the Esplanade during rush hour and smile and wave as I passed all the traffic. :D Granted I've yet to visit Chicago, I think Boston drivers have to be the most unapologetic, aggressive motorists on the road. Even scares me more than NYC.

Like no other driving experience I've ever had, the Dan Ryan scares the horsepiss out of me.

With Spring coming I've stated that I'll be on the bike again. People say I'm crazy for riding my bike into the city from 95th street. They're right to some degree, I'll be pedaling through thick sections of poverty, but I tell them, I would rather some thug kill me with a crowbar while riding my bicycle than the horror of my Escort smashed into a cement barrier on that shepherd of the devil, the Dan Ryan.
I'd bet statistics support your intuition.

The Dan Ryan used to be the busiest expressway in the country. I don't think it is anymore, but it should be close.

Don't live in Chicago anymore, but have been driving it on and off for the last 34 years. It's right up there with the worst in California and Boston.

man i got in a crash there two payments on my car. the car in front of me stoped short,bam right in the back of it. pulled over to the side,had people yelling at me as i watched them run over parts of my grill. ya f the Dan Ryan

Dan Rather

200 are cited during Tri-State traffic blitz

Published March 5, 2005


State police issued 182 citations and 56 warnings Friday during an eight-hour law enforcement blitz to encourage better driving on the Tri-State Tollway.

The majority of the citations--159--were for speeding. A high percentage of those were for people traveling 85 m.p.h. or faster, said State Police Trooper Doug Whitmore.

State police also issued citations for failure to wear seat belts and reckless driving and arrested one motorist who was wanted on a warrant, Whitmore said.

The law enforcement detail marks the first time an entire section of the tollway has been blanketed. State Police Capt. Tami Haukedahl said she hopes the effort will encourage better driving. She said similar blitzes would occur on other parts of the tollway system.

"We want people to slow down and that is our main focus," she said, noting major construction projects are beginning on the toll roads.

While motorists reported slower traffic Friday, Whitmore said it's too soon to say whether people will permanently change their habits.

"Only time will tell," he said.

so i googled the name dan ryan after reading mayo's post, and I find this...
http://tigger.uic.edu/depts/ahaa/imagebase/ca/nearwest/maclean/nw-kennedy.jpg

you guys are f'ed, who ever designed that mess should be shot dead. We don't have anything that even comes close to that snarl of pavement up here.
Is this one of the reasons why americans have to pay a toll to drive on some roadways?

so i googled the name dan ryan after reading mayo's post, and I find this...
http://tigger.uic.edu/depts/ahaa/imagebase/ca/nearwest/maclean/nw-kennedy.jpg

you guys are f'ed, who ever designed that mess should be shot dead. We don't have anything that even comes close to that snarl of pavement up here.
Is this one of the reasons why americans have to pay a toll to drive on some roadways?
What the hell? That roadway is INSANE.

Wow, what a great pic!

Brings you back to the dynamic "World of Tomorrow," GM's World's Fair exhibit.

Check out "Futurama" exhibits from the 1939 World's fair. Designer Norman Bel Geddes
shows us the "future."

1) This is how pedestrians will be separated from motor traffic:

http://www.columbia.edu/cu/gsapp/projs/call-it-home/html/images/c-083.gif

2) This one looks almost real, like "spaghetti junction" on Atlanta's north side. The only problem is that there are only about 20 times as many cars on the real thing, moving at a snail's pace:

http://www.columbia.edu/cu/gsapp/projs/call-it-home/html/images/c-074.gif

3) Here's how GM's 1939 Futurama exhibit (courtesy of Norman Bel Geddes) shows us the well-spaced skyscrapers of the 1959 future:

http://www.columbia.edu/cu/gsapp/projs/call-it-home/html/images/c-081.gif

4) Once again, parking and unloading will be separated from pedstrians:

http://www.columbia.edu/cu/gsapp/projs/call-it-home/html/images/c-084.gif

5) Open spaces provide healthier living--check out the way these guys don't tailgate:

http://www.columbia.edu/cu/gsapp/projs/call-it-home/html/images/c-085.gif

(6) More pics--hey, 7 lanes each-way isn't too far-fetched!

http://www.columbia.edu/cu/gsapp/projs/call-it-home/html/images/c-086.gif

(7) Bridges--man, where are all the cars?

http://www.columbia.edu/cu/gsapp/projs/call-it-home/html/images/c-091.gif

I have just one question: where are the stop lights?

:D

The roadway was designed in the 50's and is totally locked in. At the time, most people took trains and buses. They expected it to stay that way, and this road to just have a relatively few cars on it.

Boy were they surprised. Yes it is insane.

If I were you instead of driving from 95th to the loop, you should simply take the red line. I think driving, taking the train, or biking will be a dangerous commute for you. Those south side chicago 'hoods are some of the poorest and most DANGEROUS in the entire nation.