3-day CTA passes?
 

Can I purchase a 3-day unlimited CTA pass at ANY automated machine at any station??

Thanks!

No. You can only buy passes at specific stations. Unfortunately, their website doesn't appear to tell you which ones. I know for certain you can at the airports. Do you know a specific area you're going to be when you'll want to buy one?

I just found this page:

http://www.transitchicago.com/assets...es_outlets.pdf

which lists all the retail operations that sell passes. Jewel/Dominicks/CVS and a ton of currency exchanges, among other places.

I know you can by one at ORD, and the CTA has a big office at the State/Lake stop. The 3 days don't start until your first use, so you can buy them ahead of time.

This list is showing places that sell transit cards, not necessarily passes (it says not all places sell all fare media). I couldn't find anything on the website that definitively listed where one could by a 3 day/

Yeah, if this isn't for a need within a couple days, just order them on the website and have them delivered before you leave.

Details...
 

Parking at Midway. Taking Orange Line to Roosevelt. Red Line at Roosevelt to Clark/Division..

Is Roosevelt big enough that it might be one of the stations??

Thanks!

If Midway is your starting point, just buy one from the vending machine at the Orange Line station there.

Some of the downtown stations definitly have it, although I am not sure which exactly. Roosevelt should be a good bet however.

A place that I know has the passes is the CVS on the corner of State and Adams. To get there you´d get off the orange line from MDW at Adams/Wabash and go one block west.

I agree with DavidDTW however, that MDW should have a vending machine. The passes are usually sold in smaller, orange vending machines instead of the big blue ones.

Thanks!!!!!
 

Just figured out the CVS at 1201 N State sells these! DD and her friends will be walking right by there to get to their hotel.

Ahhh, convenient.

Thanks to everyone.
J.

I'd still recommend just buying one at the airport. The 3 days don't start ticking until first use, so if you're trying to not start the 3 days at the airport and just want to pay a regular fare for that run, you can do that. You'd be kicking yourself if you got to that CVS and find out that they ran out.

Even better.
 

Just figured out we would order them. For some reason I thought Lollapalloza was July 31st, but its Aug 7-9, so we have the time!

Much better. I like having as much done in advance as possible.

Thanks to all of you!

Now, if any of you had ideas of great, funky, hip unusual clothing stores that were cheap, my DD's world would be complete. Loves Custo Barcelona, but Waaayyy too expensive, as is Anthropologie.

No 1-day passes at ORD
 

Although the OP is not asking, ORD does NOT sell 1-day passes. I was told by a CTA official that the machines cannot handle the $5.75 charge (why this is a problem if you pay with a credit card is beyond me). I did,however, as is mentioned elsewhere, find them at Dominick's and Jewel.

A late answer for this particular thread maybe, but I always buy my passes from CTA through their website before I go and have them mailed to my home address. Free shipping and one less thing I have to do when I get there.

I just did this for my trip earlier this month. The passes usually come in about a week if I remember correctly. (I wish NYC still did this...)

BillJ

Good idea to buy in advance.

I got stuck at ORD recently and had to buy a three day pass rather than the one day I really wanted.

Worked out okay. I gave the pass to an arriving Brit when I flew out. He was happy.

Update from OP.
 

Thanks for all of your information. I did end up ordering them in advance, and it did only take about a week.

Thanks again!

Btw, CTA headquarter is at Clinton green line stop rather than state/lake, they never have a office there. Before they move to Clinton, it is at merchandise mart.

Because Dominick's and Jewel are selling by hand, not by machine. One day passes are also selling in every currency exchange all over Chicagoland.

Can anyone confirm ORD does sell the 3-day pass? If I understand correctly, they do NOT sell the 1-day pass, correct?

I haven't loooked for a machine lately, but the CTA website says you can buy 3-day and 7-day CTA and CTA/Pace passes there:

http://www.transitchicago.com/travel...ines.aspx#pass

I bought a 3-day CTA pass from the vending machine at ORD about a month ago, so yes, i assume they still do.

CTA day passes and Reduced Fare Transit Card Packs
 

Hi,

Great to read about these 3-day passes - we plan to buy them at Midway airport when we arrive. Does anyone know if Reduced Fare Transit Card Packs are available from these vending machines too? It looks like it will be cheaper to buy my kids a 2-pack for $15.30.

The CTA website only says

"Buy packs of pre-loaded reduced fare cards for qualifying riders. Add value at any farecard vending machine."

I recently tried to buy a 1-day pass at O'Hare. The agent explained that the machine could not handle it because it is not a rounded number ($6.00 or whatever it could be). So no they do not. (In my opinion, a huge mistake as there are many tourists who arrive @ ORD and spend the day touring before catching a later flight elsewhere---but it's Chicago---no one has been paid off enough to warrant fixing the machines).

Where's the location to buy these things at O'Hare and how much do they usually cost?

Flying into O'Hare on United.

It'd be in the Blue Line station which is adjacent Terminal 2 underground. Go to baggage claim in T1 and follow the signs for Hilton/CTA Trains. You'll go down an escalator/elevator and walk through a tunnel with broken moving sidewalks and and then take some working moving sidewalks to the train stop.

If you come in to T2 (United Express) then you'll be a shorter walk - just go to baggage claim there and follow the signs.

Vending machines don't dispense Reduced Fare cards; AFAIK, those are only available from agents (and that doesn't include "ticket booth" clerks, who are just there to scowl at you).

@bedesmond missed the part about passing the guy playing "Chicago, my kinda town" on his saxaphone. He'll be between the broken and functional moving sidewalks. :D

The CTA station is very easy to navigate, there is a manned booth as well as vending machines and then you go down a short escalator and the platforms are right there. ORD is the last stop on the Blue Line so you can't possibly go in the wrong direction.

http://www.transitchicago.com/assets...p_20090101.pdf says:

"REDUCED FARE TRANSIT CARD PACKS Buy at Currency
Exchanges, select Jewel and Dominick’s food stores, and at
transitchicago.com. Add value at station farecard machines."

Correct. The CTA used to sell 1 day passes from the same machine that now sells only 3 and 7 day passes. Apparently Mayor Daly's office requested that the 1 day option be removed so that visitors can get a true taste of Chicago and it's politics immidiately upon arrival. Welcome to Chicago!

In my opinion, those passes machine in ORD are rather useless, CTA should invest technology to sell day passes in transit card machine like DC Metro does.

It often breaks down or can only accept certain payment.

Does anyone know the closest place to the greyhound station that I can buy a 3 day pass?
Looking online it doesn't say you can get them at the Clinton station and I might have to walk to Union Station. Are there any stores selling them closer?
thanks.

The very end of this page shows places you can buy passes:

http://www.transitchicago.com/travel...ines.aspx#pass

The Union Station location is closest to the Greyhound station.

This page lists about a million retail locations that sell passes - a quick browse didn't immediately turn up anything closer than Union Station.

http://www.transitchicago.com/assets...ed_4-27-11.pdf

If you do not need it immediately, just buy it online and have it mailed to you. I have done that with the CTA a bunch of times.

BillJ

Thanks for your help.
Unfortunately I don't have time to buy online.
Just not looking forward to the walk in this heat...

104 on the bank I passed a little bit ago. ugh.

if you're really worried about it, you could pay for one extra ride (go to Clinton, buy a card with $3 on it), then ride to wherever you're going and buy a pass there.

This is certainly an option. Clark/Lake is a major station with all sorts of connections possible, and a quick hop on the Blue line from Clinton.

Can someone tell me where EXACTLY the 3-day pass machine is at ORD? What stores / landmarks it is near?

The site says "In airport, lower level, between Airline Terminals 1 & 2" (http://www.transitchicago.com/travel...gmachines.aspx). How nice and vague.

Another post here said that the machine is at the actual Blue Line station.

So which is it - at the station, or, between Terminals 1 & 2? Or, is the station essentially between Terminals 1 & 2.

It will make a big difference to me if it is at T1, because I'm coming in from T3 and would have to take the airport shuttle train all the way to T1 to get the pass, and then walk back to T2 to catch the subway.

Anyone? I arrive TOMORROW NIGHT! Thanks!

All of the above. :) The machine is in front of the Blue Line CTA entrance, on the lower level, in the middle of T1, T2 and T3. You don't need to take Airtrain, just go down one level from the T3 baggage claim area, and follow moving walkways to the CTA. There will be several ticketing machines there. Passes are sold by the skinny machines. Wider ones sell and reload regular fare cards. If you can't find the right one, ask an attendant.

And in case you were considering it, I also wouldn't bother with the airport train at all. Coming in from T3 just go down to the bagage claim level and follow the signs for CTA-Train to City. It isn't a far walk and will be much faster than taking the train one stop.

Yep. Just realized it after the fact. Kept walking and didn't even notice I hadn't used the airport train by the time I got to the CTA station! So I didn't need to use the airport train atall :)