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Trip from Park Ridge, IL to Palos Heights, IL

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Compiled and reviewed by the US Trip Planner planning team at COD Solutions Oy · Last reviewed Apr 26, 2026 · Editorial standards

Drive Time

43m

Distance

30.3 mi

49 km

Drive Score

6/10

Good drive

Same Day?

Yes, doable

Fuel Cost

$5

one way

EV Charging

Unknown

Best Time to Leave

Save up to 11 min
4 AM
0h 40m ★
6 AM
0h 44m
8 AM
0h 51m
10 AM
0h 46m
12 PM
0h 45m
3 PM
0h 46m
5 PM
0h 50m
8 PM
0h 41m

Estimated drive times based on typical traffic patterns. Actual times may vary with weather, construction, and real-time conditions.

Best Time Drive vs Fly
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city in Cook County, Illinois, United States

Park Ridge, IL

Wikimedia Commons

city in Cook County, Illinois, United States

Palos Heights, IL

Wikimedia Commons

Trip Overview

Park Ridge, IL to Palos Heights, IL is 30.3 miles and takes about 43m via Tri-State Tollway and Harlem Avenue, with a fuel budget near $5 and enough daylight to finish in a day. This short trip stays entirely within Illinois, connecting two points in the Midwest region. Given the relatively brief duration and surface road profile for much of the drive, it's a straightforward connection between suburban areas. You won't encounter significant changes in scenery or terrain, making it a practical choice for a quick local excursion.

Main Roads

Road Distance Duration
Tri-State Tollway 23.2 mi 29m
Harlem Avenue 3.3 mi 6m
West Touhy Avenue 1.5 mi 3m
Mile-Long Bridge 0.9 mi 1m
West 95th Street 0.2 mi <1m
South Des Plaines River Road <0.1 mi <1m
North Greenwood Avenue <0.1 mi <1m
West 123rd Street <0.1 mi <1m
Longest stretch: Tri-State Tollway — 23.2 mi, about 29m

Turn-by-Turn Driving Directions

Step-by-step road directions between Park Ridge, IL and Palos Heights, IL.

1

Start on this road

24 ft · 7 sec · this road
2

Turn left onto North Greenwood Avenue

92 ft · 6 sec · North Greenwood Avenue
3

Turn right onto West Touhy Avenue

1.5 mi · 3 min · West Touhy Avenue
4

Turn left onto South Des Plaines River Road

184 ft · 3 sec · South Des Plaines River Road
5

Take the ramp

0.4 mi · 55 sec
Toward I 294 South: Indiana
6

Merge onto I 294

11 mi · 14 min · Tri-State Tollway
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
7

Keep slight left at fork onto I 294

4.8 mi · 5 min · Tri-State Tollway
8

Keep slight right at fork onto I 294

3.5 mi · 4 min · Tri-State Tollway
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
9

Continue on I 294

0.9 mi · 1 min · Mile-Long Bridge
10

Continue on I 294

3.4 mi · 4 min · Tri-State Tollway
11

Take the exit

0.2 mi · 27 sec
Exit 17A Toward US 12 East, US 20 East: 95th Street, 76th Avenue Use the straight / slight right lanes.
12

Keep slight right at fork

0.1 mi · 17 sec
Toward US 12, US 20 East: 95th Street Use the slight left / slight right lanes.
13

Turn straight onto US 12; US 20

0.2 mi · 24 sec · West 95th Street
14

Turn slight right

0.4 mi · 1 min
15

Turn straight onto IL 43

3.3 mi · 6 min · Harlem Avenue
16

Turn left onto West 123rd Street

81 ft · 11 sec · West 123rd Street
Use the left lane.
17

Turn left

41 ft · 3 sec
18

Arrive at destination

Heads-up: tricky spots

5 of 11

5 decision points cluster between mile 2 and 30.2 — GPS handles the exact turns, but know they're coming. Your lane choice matters more than the turn itself.

5
2 mi into trip | ~4m in | I 294 / Tri-State Tollway

Merge onto I 294 / Tri-State Tollway

Merge point - match speed before joining. Lane positioning matters here

Use the straight / slight right lanes.
6
18.3 mi into trip | ~24m in | I 294 / Tri-State Tollway

Keep slight right at fork onto I 294 / Tri-State Tollway

Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here

Use the straight / slight right lanes.
8
26.1 mi into trip | ~34m in

Take the exit toward US 12 East, US 20 East: 95th Street, 76th Avenue

Exit ramp - move to the correct lane early. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one

Use the straight / slight right lanes. Exit 17A Toward US 12 East, US 20 East: 95th Street, 76t...
9
26.3 mi into trip | ~34m in

Keep slight right at fork toward US 12, US 20 East: 95th Street

Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one

Use the slight left / slight right lanes. Toward US 12, US 20 East: 95th Street
5
30.2 mi into trip | ~43m in | West 123rd Street

Turn left onto West 123rd Street

Lane positioning matters here

Use the left lane.

Fuel & Cost

Regular Gas

$4.62 one way

$9.25 round trip

$3.88/gal 25.4 MPG avg 11 kg CO2
Fuel Type $/gal One Way Round Trip
midgrade $4.27 $5.09 $10.18
premium $4.81 $5.73 $11.47
diesel $5.40 $6.45 $12.89

Estimated Tolls: $1.39

Tri-state Tollway (23.2 mi) $1.39

Toll estimates based on average 2024-2025 rates. EZ-Pass/SunPass discounts may lower the actual cost.

Drive Cost (one way)

Fuel

$5

Tolls

$1

Total

$6

Estimated CO2 emission: 10.6 kg one way. Prices: EIA weekly data, 2026-04-20.

Driving Electric?

About $3 in charging · 0 stops · 64% less CO2

Vehicle Type kWh Stops DC Fast Home Charge
Average EV 9.1 0 $3.18 $1.45
Efficient EV 7.6 0 $2.65 $1.21
EV Truck/SUV 12.1 0 $4.24 $1.94

Gas CO2

11 kg

EV CO2

4 kg (64% less)

This trip is well within single-charge range for most EVs. No charging stops needed if you start fully charged.

DC fast charging avg $0.35/kWh. Home charging avg $0.16/kWh. US grid CO2: 0.39 kg/kWh.

Travel Intel

Current conditions at both ends of the drive.

Forecast as of Apr 25, 2026

Origin

Park Ridge, IL

Night in Park Ridge on Saturday

Local time

10:15 PM

CDT

Current temp

48°F

Partly Cloudy

N 10 mph 0% chance Live forecast

Flood Warning

Flood Warning issued April 24 at 9:36PM CDT by NWS Milwaukee/Sullivan WI

Flood Warning

Flood Warning issued April 24 at 9:32PM CDT by NWS Milwaukee/Sullivan WI

Destination

Palos Heights, IL

Night in Palos Heights on Saturday

Local time

10:15 PM

CDT

Current temp

48°F

Partly Cloudy

N 5 to 10 mph 0% chance Live forecast

Flood Warning

Flood Warning issued April 24 at 9:36PM CDT by NWS Milwaukee/Sullivan WI

Flood Warning

Flood Warning issued April 24 at 9:32PM CDT by NWS Milwaukee/Sullivan WI

Time zone

Same local time

Origin and destination are on the same clock, so arrival timing is easier to judge at a glance.

Temperature spread

Very similar conditions

Both ends of the route are sitting at about the same temperature right now.

Road read

43m on the road

The weather snapshot is not static. If you are leaving later, give both cities one more quick forecast check before departure.

Weather data from the National Weather Service. Conditions may change; check closer to your travel date.

What kind of drive is this?

This drive is mostly surface roads, with only a 0% highway share. You'll experience a longest stretch of 23.2 miles on the Tri-State Tollway before transitioning to surface streets. Expect to navigate through typical suburban traffic patterns after leaving the tollway, with frequent intersections and local businesses. The change from highway to surface roads will be noticeable as you enter more developed areas.

Only 0% highway — the rest is turn-by-turn surface driving.
18 navigation steps total — most of the decisions cluster near the start and finish.
Longest single stretch: 23.2 mi on Tri-State Tollway.

How Hard Is This Drive?

8/10

Expect a hands-on drive with frequent turns and local roads rather than long highway stretches. This route has several spots where lane changes, forks, or exits need your full attention. The trickiest moment comes around 2 miles in near I 294 / Tri-State Tollway.

Driving Effort 8/10

Focused - busy navigation packed into a short drive

Balances navigation complexity with total wheel time.

This is a short but busy drive. With 11 decision points packed into just 30.3 miles, you will need to pay attention to lane changes and exits — but the whole thing is over in 43m.

Where does it get tricky?

The main spots that need attention: at 2 miles (I 294 / Tri-State Tollway): Merge point - match speed before joining. Lane positioning matters here; at 18.3 miles (I 294 / Tri-State Tollway): Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here; at 26.1 miles: Exit ramp - move to the correct lane early. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one.

About the Cities

Starting in Park Ridge, IL

Full guide →

Founded 1873

Park Ridge is a city in the Northwest Suburbs of Chicagoland, just outside of Chicago. It has a lively uptown area that has plenty of local businesses and restaurants. You can watch a film at the historic Pickwick Theatre or have a pool day at Centennial Park. Park Ridge is a great and accessible small town to escape to for a day trip, with lots of fun and exciting activities to fill your schedule.

Top landmarks

  • • Pickwick Theatre — movie theatre in Park Ridge, Illinois, United States
  • • Park Ridge Youth Campus — former school/orphanage in Park Ridge, Illinois

Arriving in Palos Heights, IL

Full guide →

Palos Heights (also known simply as Palos) is a town in Chicago's southern suburbs with a large Muslim minority.

City content from Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA 4.0) and Wikidata (CC0).

Who Is This Route For?

Weekend Trip

Doable as a same-day drive at 43m. Total distance: 30.3 miles.

Family Friendly

Moderate complexity with 0 natural rest stops along the way.

Solo Traveler

43m drive, comfortable solo distance.

EV Driver

0 DC fast chargers along the route. Coverage: unknown.

Scenic Drive

Mostly surface roads route profile with national parks nearby.

Frequently Asked Questions

The longest stretch is about 23.2 miles on Tri-State Tollway. The full list of main roads is in the Roads section above.

Expect about $1.39 in tolls one way, starting with Tri-state Tollway. Most Northeast and Midwest toll agencies accept E-ZPass; in the West and Texas, transponders like TxTag or FasTrak apply. If you do not have a transponder, cashless tolling plates will mail a bill to the vehicle's registered address — usually with a surcharge, so a rental-car toll pass is often cheaper than paying by mail.

Yes — we found about 5 rest areas or service plazas within a short detour of the route (from OpenStreetMap). See the Rest Stops tab under Nearby Places for locations and mile markers. Plan to stretch, use the bathroom, and top off fluids every 2–3 hours on longer drives.

It helps. This route has a higher-than-average number of complex decision points, which get harder in the dark. If the last hour of the trip is on surface roads or mountain grades, aim to arrive at Palos Heights, IL before sunset when you can. Check the Trip Plan for departure windows that land you in daylight.

Yes. At under 2 hours behind the wheel, this works well for families — plan one quick stop if you have younger kids.

The main spots that need attention: at 2 miles (I 294 / Tri-State Tollway): Merge point - match speed before joining. Lane positioning matters here; at 18.3 miles (I 294 / Tri-State Tollway): Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here; at 26.1 miles: Exit ramp - move to the correct lane early. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one.

Yes — Pullman National Historical Park. See the National Parks section for detour distances and tips on detours.

Yes. A round trip is manageable in a single day if you plan a break at Palos Heights, IL before heading back.

How this page is built

Compiled by the US Trip Planner planning team at COD Solutions Oy from open government datasets — OSRM over OpenStreetMap for geometry, EIA for fuel prices, and NPS for national parks. See our methodology for refresh cadence and limitations.

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