Avoiding I80 in Indiana & Illinois

[J T R]

We are taking a trip out to Cheyenne, Wy. from upstate N.Y.We have taken this trip in a car 3 times, and never liked I80 thru Indiana & Illinois. In 3 weeks we'll be traveling in a 36' motorhome and Id like to avoid I80 thru those states. Was wondering if someone might have a better route?

[PDR John]

Well, you could take I90 into Rapid City SD then drop down to Cheyenne. Or you could do I70 till Denver then I25 to Cheyenne.

Those would be the only other direct routes, other wise you can state highways.

[Midniteoyl]

Not unless you head a little south to Fort Wayne maybe.. Or go up to I94

Through Indiana, take Hwy 30 across... 4 lane most of the way and RV friendly. 60mph speed limit except in town. Get off on or before I65 though, as it hits Merrillville and Schearville which are NOT RV friendly. I usually go up Hwy 49 at Valparaiso and hit I94 to Chicago, though in this case you could also simply get onto I80/I90 Toll. (I live just 10 miles south of Hwy 30 on Hwy 35.. )

In Illinois, I80 is about the only way that I see.

[Old Trucker]

Originally Posted by PDR John

Well, you could take I90 into Rapid City SD then drop down to Cheyenne. Or you could do I70 till Denver then I25 to Cheyenne.

Those would be the only other direct routes, other wise you can state highways.

Hi PDR, sorry but I-80 and I-90 run together through a good part of Chicago. old trucker

[Old Trucker]

Originally Posted by J T R

We are taking a trip out to Cheyenne, Wy. from upstate N.Y.We have taken this trip in a car 3 times, and never liked I80 thru Indiana & Illinois. In 3 weeks we'll be traveling in a 36' motorhome and Id like to avoid I80 thru those states. Was wondering if someone might have a better route?

Hi JTR, There is nothing wrong with I-80 in most of Indiana except for the toll. In Illionis you have some big city traffic, but its quicker & easier than trying to get around. If you really want to get around, take I-80 to _I-65south to exit 230, hiway 10 west, it turns into 114 in Illionis, follow to 17 to I-55( good place to eat at shell truck stop just before interstate), go north on 47 to I-80 at Morris, Ill. good place to eat there at ther TA truckstop. I have gone this way several times with extra wide loads and to get around rush afternoon traffic (there is no such thing as rush hour anymore). I am a retired cross country trucker. Hope this helps. You can take US 20 across Indiana and avoid the toll, but it really is not worth it. Many stops. best wishes, Old trucker.

[Midniteoyl]

HWY 10/1/17 to Kankakee is ok, though 2 lane and slow. In Illinois, the road is VERY bad.. Very rough even in a Audi..

[BFlinn181]

By interstates, you could go south on I 71 at Cleveland to Columbus, then west on I -70. At St. Louis, take I 270 to avoid St. Louis traffic. At Kansas City, you could go north on i 29 to Omaha then west on I 80.

I've driven all these roads many times in the past 40 years, I don't really understand the issue with I 80/90 in Ohio and Indiana. Construction used to be a nightmare as you got to Chicago, but I think is is done or greatly reduced at this time. You might avoid most tolls this way, but the extra miles will probably cost more than the tolls. US 30 and US 6 are alternate routes that parallel I 80, but as mentioned, all advantage is lost near Chicago as these roads become city/suburban streets.

[baraff]

As a local who travels this route a few times a year I can sympathize. However it really is the only way through without going through a lot of stop-and-go stoplight traffic or going way out of your way.
My advice is to time your travel through the area for after or before the rush hours. Going through between 10am-12pm or early afternoon is not too bad. Early weekend mornings are not bad either.
Of course, "not bad" is relative, depending on where you live.
Good luck!

[PDR John]

Originally Posted by Old Trucker

Hi PDR, sorry but I-80 and I-90 run together through a good part of Chicago. old trucker

Forgot about that, we avoid Chicago. In fact I avoid all tolls, at least it has worked so far.

[J T R]

I want to Thank! everyone for all the good information. This sure is a good website for RV ers. Thanks!!

[Luckiest Dreamer]

Originally Posted by J T R

We are taking a trip out to Cheyenne, Wy. from upstate N.Y.We have taken this trip in a car 3 times, and never liked I80 thru Indiana & Illinois. In 3 weeks we'll be traveling in a 36' motorhome and Id like to avoid I80 thru those states. Was wondering if someone might have a better route?

I have never cared for the I80 route thru Ill, and Ind. either. We are taking a trip thru Novi Scotia, etc from Iowa soon and a travel partner and I looked at other routes available to us. Since time is not an issue one of the ways from upstate NY that may surprise you is through Canada going above the Lakes and thru Sult Saint Marie. From Niagra to Iowa it costs us about 350 extra miles and loads of interesting spots to be tourists. We will be leaving Iowa using I74 from the Quad Cities thru Indinapolis and then working our way N into Conn. thru Pennsylvania. Much of that was determined by the stops we wanted to make rather than avoiding any area, however not using I80 will not dissapoint me.