Chicago Water Taxis return to full service with some changes this year

CHICAGO - The Chicago Water Taxis are officially back in business, and now that spring is underway, it is operating seven days a week. 

"For the first time since 2019, the Chicago Water Taxi is now running seven days a week. We have departures starting for rush hour and going the day into the evening," said Chief of Operations Andrew Sargis. 

Arrivals and departures are at Ogilvie and Union Train Stations as well as along Michigan Avenue and in Chinatown. 

"What we've seen over the last few years is a slow and steady increase of people heading to the office, especially on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. So, it indicated to us that it was time to start running the taxis full speed ahead again," Sargis said. 

Riders will see boats every half hour, but Sargis says that frequency will likely go up as summer approaches. 

Sargis says the goal is to get the frequency to about every 15 minutes. 

"During rush hour, there could be more frequency than every 15 minutes during morning and afternoon rush hour. So the schedule is posted online – the schedule from every stop is posted online," said Sargis. 

If you do ride, there are some changes in service this year. 

"We did add some concessions to the water taxis. Commuters can get water, they can get beverages and on the weekends, they can even get alcoholic beverages," Sargis said. 

You can find complete service details here.