Rides That Are Not Going to the Airport
Most of this site is airport work — those routes have a published rate card covering 310 suburbs, and you can look any of them up on the fare calculator. But airport runs are not all we do.
We cover everything around Chicago: a suburb into downtown for a dinner reservation or a game, a run between two suburbs, a cross-town trip inside the city, a night out where nobody wants to drive home. Same drivers, same vehicles, same licensing as the airport work.
The one difference is pricing. Airport routes have a fixed rate card because they are the same journey every time. A Skokie-to-downtown run at 7pm on a Friday and the same run at 11am on a Tuesday are not the same job, so we price those individually instead of publishing a number that would be wrong half the time.
How Non-Airport Pricing Works
It is deliberately simple. Tell us the pickup, the drop-off and the time. Dispatch works out the fare and sends it back to you — normally within 30 minutes, often faster if it is a route we run regularly.
That quote is the price. Once you accept it, it is fixed. It does not move because you booked at 4am, because it is a holiday weekend, or because it started snowing. There is no meter running in the car and no multiplier applied at pickup.
Why we quote instead of publishing a number: we would rather give you a real figure for your actual trip than a "from $X" that turns into something else at the door. If the trip touches O'Hare or Midway, the published flat fare applies instead and you can see it immediately on the
fare table.
Metered Cab, Rideshare, or a Quoted Fare
Three ways to get across Chicago, and they fail in different places.
A metered cab charges a flag-pull, then a rate per mile plus a rate per minute of waiting. On a free-flowing road that is fine. Sitting on the Kennedy at 5:30pm, the meter keeps running while you do not move, so the worst traffic produces the worst fare.
Rideshare is often the cheapest option on a quiet weekday afternoon — genuinely, and we will say so. The problem is that it prices on demand, so the moments when everyone wants a car are exactly the moments it costs most: Friday evening, after a game or a concert, closing time, bad weather.
A quoted fare is agreed before you travel. You know the number when you book, and traffic, timing and demand are our problem rather than yours. On an off-peak trip rideshare will sometimes beat it. At peak, it usually does not.
Trips People Actually Book
- Suburb to downtown — dinner, theatre, a game at the United Center or Wrigley, a hospital appointment in the Loop. (Skokie to downtown is our most-asked example.)
- Suburb to suburb — the routes where transit means going into the city and back out again.
- Point to point in the city — cross-town runs where parking costs more than the ride.
- Nights out — a booked car home at a fixed price beats a surge multiplier at closing time.
- Group trips — minivans seat up to 7, which is one vehicle instead of two rideshares.
- Long-distance — runs into Wisconsin and Indiana, quoted the same way.
If you are not sure whether your route is something we cover, ask. Quotes are free and there is no obligation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you do rides that are not to the airport?+
Yes. Airport runs are the bulk of what we do and they have published flat fares, but we cover everything around Chicago: suburb to downtown, suburb to suburb, and point-to-point trips inside the city. Those are quoted per route rather than published, because there is no fixed rate card for them.
How much does a non-airport taxi cost in Chicago?+
It depends on the route, so we quote rather than guess. Send us the pickup, the drop-off and the time and dispatch comes back with a firm number, normally inside 30 minutes. That number is the price — it does not move at 4am, on a holiday, or in the snow.
How long does a quote take?+
Usually under 30 minutes. Call (224) 333-2462 if you need it faster — dispatch can often price a familiar route on the phone straight away.
Is it metered?+
No. Nothing we run is metered, airport or otherwise. A metered cab charges per mile plus per minute of waiting, so traffic costs you money. Your quoted fare is agreed before you travel and does not change if the drive takes longer than expected.
Do you use surge pricing like Uber or Lyft?+
Never. The quote you accept is the price whatever the demand. Rideshare pricing moves with demand, which is why a 5pm Friday trip across town or a night out downtown can cost far more than the same ride on a Tuesday afternoon.
How far outside Chicago will you go?+
We cover the Chicago metro area and the surrounding suburbs, and we run long-distance trips into Wisconsin and Indiana as well. If you are not sure whether your route is in range, ask — the quote is free either way.
Can I book a non-airport ride in advance?+
Yes, and it is the better way to do it. Pre-booking means the vehicle is assigned to you specifically and the price is locked before you travel. Minivans seating up to 7 and child seats ($10 each) both need advance notice.