New Chicago Pedway Map and Guide

With the help of some great designers, I decided to create a new Chicago Pedway map. Guests on our custom private tours often ask ‘Where do we get a map?’ I had come to know the Pedway system “inside and out” while designing our tours, which venture into building interiors and uses the Pedway to stay indoors. So I decided to share my knowledge of the system via a new map.

We research stories from Chicago history, architecture and culture like this while developing our live virtual tours, in-person private tours, and custom content for corporate events. You can join us to experience Chicago’s stories in-person or online. We can also create custom tours and original content about this Chicago topic and countless others.

Our New Chicago Pedway Map

A few maps were out there, including one designed by the city that hasn’t been updated since 2007,  showing just the location of the passages, which isn’t enough to help the user confidently enter unfamiliar buildings to access this system of passages that go both underground and above street level. A different approach to map-making would be necessary to elucidate the Pedway System. With the Chicago Detours map, we hope to offer a helpful guide with the user experience in mind.

Chicago Pedway Map Chicago Detours

To our knowledge, this is the first map to explain logistics of navigating the Pedway system. The Chicago Detours Pedway map, in addition to showing the passages, marks all stairways and buildings that connect with the Pedway to explicitly show where people are permitted to enter a building. Check out the two-page map and you’ll find where to access the 40-plus-block-long network of passages, the disparate open hours for different sections, and tips on navigating the system.

Chicago Pedway Underground Symbol System

What is the Chicago Pedway?

Some suspect that the Chicago Pedway System involves underground tunnels that connect buildings downtown. Really they are not tunnels but passages, like hallways, that create a network between buildings and places of transport. Most of the Pedway System is underground, and the heated passages make for a comfortable way of navigating the city during the cold of the winter and the heat of the summer.

Chicago pedway map Macy's tunnel

The Pedway provides a convenient escape from Chicago’s challenging weather. However, it is not necessarily a space where you would want to spend an afternoon. Because of the visual nature of our tours, Chicago Detours does not offer tours of solely the Pedway. The mostly underground system is essentially a basement (see the area by Macy’s pictured here). You’ll find better architectural eye candy on street-level. She’s super sweet and knows every inch of the system.

What’s really exciting about the Pedway is the discovery that the city is navigable in spaces under our feet. It’s about uncovering the unseen layers of the city.

— Amanda Scotese, Executive Director

ABOUT CHICAGO DETOURS

Chicago Detours is a boutique tour company passionate about connecting people to places and each other through the power of storytelling. We bring curious people to explore, learn and interact with Chicago’s history, architecture and culture through in-person private group tourscontent production, and virtual tours.

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Ellen

Private Tour Coordinator and Tour Guide

There is no shortage of things to discover in Chicago—I love being an urban explorer and uncovering its hidden places. I have an MA in Public History from Loyola University Chicago, and I have worked as a museum educator and kindergarten teacher. My desire to learn new things fuels my passion for educating others, which I get to experience every day as a Chicago tour guide. I live in the northern neighborhood of Rogers Park.

“Our guide Ellen was exceptional and gifted with a great personal touch.”
Robert
GetYourGuide

Jen

Tour Guide

Whether you are a first-time visitor or a lifelong resident, the vibrant history and modern majesty of Chicago never ceases to amaze. I’m a graduate of Columbia College with an M.A. in Interdisciplinary Art. I’ve worked for many years as an educator at City Colleges of Chicago. As tour guide at Chicago Detours, I integrate my enthusiasm for culture and architecture with my passion as an educator. West Town/Noble Square area is home for me.

“Jen was a perfect storyteller and kept us spellbound for hours.”
Heather
TripAdvisor

Elyse

Tour Guide

With our Chicago neighborhoods, vibrant cultural institutions and nearly two centuries of larger-than-life stories, there’s never a dull moment here! I’m a fifth generation Chicagoan and a graduate of Washington University in St. Louis. In addition to guiding tours, I’m a creative writer and amateur genealogist. I also enjoy the city’s dynamic theater scene. You can also read overlooked stories from 19th-century newspapers on my “Second Glance History” blog. I live in River North.

Anthony

Tour Guide

Chicago is unique as it always evolves into the future while holding on to the past. I’m fascinated by how people latch on to old architecture but happily pave over others. My background is in theater and performance and I’ve been a tour guide here for more than 10 years. Currently I’m finishing my Master’s in Public History at Loyola University because I love to teach the history of this scrappy city. I’m in the Edgewater neighborhood.

Marie

Operations Coordinator and Tour Guide

Chicago’s history is so fascinating, you could spend a lifetime uncovering its secrets…I’m willing to give it a try! I have an M.A. in US History from the University of Nevada-Las Vegas and then pursued doctoral studies in Urban History at the University of Illinois at Chicago. I love to learn new aspects of Chicago’s rich history and then share my knowledge as a tour guide with Chicago Detours. I live in Ravenswood.

“Marie was a bubbling fountain of information and contagious enthusiasm.”
Lorit
TripAdvisor

Sonny

Operations Coordinator and Tour Guide

As a fourth generation Chicagoan, I have been living and loving Chicago by bike, on foot, public transit or automobile. I am a graduate of UIC where through the College of Urban Planning and Public Affairs, began my eagerness to understand the nature, history and impacts of urban planning and development. It is incredibly rewarding to give back to this wonderful city by helping out in the office of Chicago Detours. I live in the incredibly diverse neighborhood of Albany Park.
“Sonny was extremely knowledgeable about all things Chi-town.”
Wade K
TripAdvisor

Alex

Content Manager and Tour Guide

Chicago has so many neighborhoods, buildings, and by-ways that it’s hard to go long without seeing something new, or something familiar from a new angle. I studied Cinema History for my M.A. from the University of Chicago. I’ve worked as a culture writer for various publications and as an educator of the humanities at the City Colleges of Chicago. I’m thrilled to share my love of this city’s busy past and unique architectural spaces with Chicago Detours. I live in the Chicago neighborhood of Lincoln Park.

“Alex was fascinating to listen to. He clearly knows his history and it shows.”
Katie K
Yelp

Amanda Scotese

Executive Director and Tour Guide

I’m an interpreter of personal stories from the past and the city’s landscape. I love to imagine what originally happened inside old unmarked buildings, and what forces have shaped their design. I studied Chicago history, architectural history, and anything Chicago-related through my M.A. in the Humanities at the University of Chicago. My love for stories was enriched by my B.A. in Literature from the University of Michigan. I’ve written travel articles for publications like Rick Steves’ Italy best-selling travel guides, the San Francisco Bay Guardian, and The Chicago Food Encyclopedia. I live in the Chicago neighborhood of West Avondale.
“You can TELL Amanda is hyper-passionate about doing the research and getting the story that nobody’s heard before.”
Shelby F
Yelp

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