#9 Ashland Bus

#9 CTA Bus: friendly drivers/​good drivers/​more patience than I will ever have!
I too would like this bus to go North to Foster or Balmoral to access Andersonville.
Extra shout out to those safe, steady bus drivers on Super Bowl Sunday! !

The Ashland bus would be approximately 1 million times more useful if it ran further north than Irving Park Road… say, up to Lawrence or even Foster. This way it would provide service to Andersonville, eliminating the need to wait forever for a transfer to the Clark bus at that creepy cemetery bus stop after dark.

It’s a bus. It runs 24 hours.
What do you expect? Of course you’re going to have annoyed bus drivers and smelly folks.
I will say that I’ve had some AWESOME bus drivers who are very friendly and nice.
Make sure you’re visible at the bus stop, because they don’t always stop.

Love this bus route!
Too bad the X9 is gone, like nearly all the other Express bus routes the CTA had (so close to the rapid transit L trains they were, but now they’re gone; oh what a bummer!)
Anyway, I usually travel this bus anywhere between 79^th and the Orange Line, sometimes further south, sometimes further north. I can’t recall a long waiting time for this route no matter where I’m going, no matter what time of day or night it is, and I’ve been riding it since August ’07.
You have to deal with the in-​need-​of-​good-​manners MFs that come from my broken neighborhood that I dislike so much, but things seem to be more under control than the other bus route I frequent on the south side, that being the #67 bus. Also, there’s a frequent passenger of the #9 who is an interesting character, a street peddler who calls himself «Sockman» and uses a catchy jingle whenever he gets on the bus which goes something like this:
«Have no fear the Sockman is here!»
Ever seen him by any chance people? This guy’s funny, but I’d love to buy something from him when the appropriate time arises. Not on the bus though, because that’s illegal.

More like the #NEVER Ashland bus.
Twice I’ve been in Wicker Park, looking to get home.
Twice I’ve ended up walking from Division to Fullerton, hoping that a bus would eventually catch up to me.
Once I gave up and got a cab.
Once it blew by me WHILE I WAS STANDING at the stop at Fullerton and THEN I got a cab.

The Ashland bus comes by on the regular and it runs late into the night hours. My main issue with this bus is the route and when northbound it goes only to Irving Park. Hey, sometimes I need to get to Andersonville and you just wont get me there.
Otherwise, it’s alright.

It’s a bus.
Riding the bus is generally not the most pleasant of experiences.
BUT, the Ashland bus is close to my place and IT RUNS ALL NIGHT LONG. Most of my friends live in Wicker Park and so when I’m forced to go down there and hang out (ha, yes, FORCED, jk), I actually have a way of getting home at 2 a.m.

Hey, CTA, did you charge full fare for the family of cockroaches that were running around on the bus today? Truly disgusting, thanks, but I’ll get off and wait for the next one.
I use this bus every day for my work commute. I have a love-​hate relationship with this route. Do you really need five express buses within four minutes of each other? But on the positive, it is a 24hour route, which helps out when I’m trying to get around at 4am after work.

I take this bus to and from work everyday and I’ve gotta give them props for being pretty dependable. I usually don’t have to wait more than 10 minutes for the bus. My only complaint is that in the mornings there are WAY too many high school students on the bus and it is CROWDED. On my way home though, it is smooth sailing and my bus is *always* on time! Gotta love the 9er!

Reasons why I love the #9:
–2 stops very close to my place
–It runs 24 hours
–It takes me to the Blue Line from Lakeview, very convenient
–Cobra Lounge, Liars Club, bars on Division & Milwaukee, and The Ashland are all along the route
–It’s helped to get me to McCormick Place, Navy Pier, Wrigley Field
–I never wait more than 15 minutes for a bus
The Ashland #9 is my favorite bus route on the CTA.

I hate that I can’t simply give it 0 stars. I was swiped while on my bike by a bus going north on ashland. The driver didn’t even stop his route when I told him he hit me. If a bus cannot pass a bike while leaving enough room for them to ride then they should wait! I could have been killed, luckily I just have some major bruising and burn scrapes on my arms from being pinned by the bus…
Our new city stickers remind us to share the road with bikes… city vehicles should be living up to that standard.

Okay, seriously, do I need to send YOU the bus schedule, CTA? The northbound Ashland bus hasn’t been on time the last few times I have tried to take it. But there are plenty of Southbound buses.

Dirty buses, unfriendly drivers, questionable passengers.

I had my worst CTA experience ever on this bus. The bus driver refused to let me ride because supposedly my Chicago Card had no money on it. Never mind it was a 30 day automatic refill (I found out later through the CTA that my card was fine and the fare had been taken). The driver apparently just didn’t like the way I looked. I know there’s not a lot of sympathy in the world for prejudice against white girls but all I know is it was dark and I was very tired after a long day of work and I had payed my fare, followed all the rules of acceptable CTA behavior and just wanted to go home. Luckily for me a couple of nice young men paid my fare (that I didn’t owe) in cash and I was begrudgingly allowed to ride but they shouldn’t have had to. And polite paying customers shouldn’t have to put up with petty crap like this.

Timothy hit the nail on the head– Ashland is mostly great if you’re driving, but the bus route can be pretty beat. Bunching is bad, and if you miss one, it could be ages before the next one shows up. Bonus star for having the X9, I made it from the north end of the route (Sheridan/​Irving Park) to Division and Milwaukee in less than 15 minutes one afternoon.
Oh, and for those that use it in the morning, I hate to tell you this, but they stack up X9’s at Clark and Southport– there’s literally up to 5 buses waiting there idling– I see that and hope nobody’s down the line waiting on one, late for work or an appointment…

i hate to say that since the addition of the X9, this route has actually gotten better! who would have thought that possible?
There is a lot of bunching, but the service is better in the morning. I have noticed certain AM drivers pausing at stops, and maintaining a steady slow pace, which I assume is to stop or at least decrease the chance of bunching.
don’t attempt to take this bus at night when going north. if you have to, expect waits of 20 minutes or longer.
i think the X9 also now travels further down Irving Park

F’ off, Ashland bus!
You are so unreliable and totally inconsistent!
Wait wait wait,
late late late.
*shakes head*
Such potential.

i am forced to love this bus, scratch that, i don’t love this bus, i NEED this bus. i gets me to the northside with relative ease.
timothy is right, it’s never on time, it’s bunched like crazy…
i must say that i do dig the X9, it’s actually pretty speedy! one extra star for the X9!

For some reason, even though Ashland Avenue is one of the fastest ways to get around Chicago, the #9 bus can’t seem to get its ass in gear. I’ve waited for this bus many, many times, including during times when there should be lots of them coming.
Someone tell me why this bus gets bunched up more than other buses with much slower and more congested streets? It shouldn’t happen. Even if this line is an OWL service, they never come when they’re supposed to. Plus, the line ends in an odd place, kind of in the middle of nowhere near Clark Street.
Boo, Ashland bus, you get two stars and that extra star is because of your OWL service.