What are Chicago’s Best Places to Get Away From Car Traffic?

Last month occasional Streetsblog writer Shaun Jacobsen noted on Twitter that widening North Lake Shore Drive, a possible scenario for its impending reconstruction, would be a huge step in the wrong direction, and it's a shame that the drive currently detracts from most of the lakefront parks and beaches. "Why can’t we have one part of the city where you can’t hear cars?" Jacobsen wrote. A Bronzeville resident named Jamahl replied:

I chimed in that I like Montrose Beach for the same reason -- it's so far away from Lake Shore Drive that there's virtually no highway noise. Then, via the Streetsblog Chicago account, I asked our readers for their favorite places in Chicago to take a break from the noise, sight, smell, and stress of motor vehicle traffic. Here are some of the responses:

• Dan Ryan Woods
• Garfield Park Conservatory
• "Any dingy bar works."
• "The transfer bridge at Ashland/Lake on the CTA Green/Pink Line. One of the best views of the city."
• Paddling out to the middle of the lake
• Graceland Cemetery
• Alfred Caldwell Lily Pond
• Humboldt Park
• "A walk along the river from Avers/Foster all the way to Lawrence/Sacramento"
• Skinner Park
• The Art Institute's gardens
• The front porch of the Hideout
• Wooded Isle and the Osaka Japanese Garden in Jackson Park
• Northerly Island
• Park 566
• Hegewisch Marsh
• Big Marsh
• The North Shore Channel Trail
• Tobey Prinz (Pratt) Beach
• The Stingray lagoon at Shedd Aquarium

Read the full Twitter thread here.

What are your favorite car-free hideaways? Let us know in the comment section.