With all the major summer music fests and Blago Trial: Round One behind us, we've entered a bit of a lull here in the city, gearing up for what will be a wild and wacky election season. But filming of next year's blockbuster-to-be continues downtown resulting in another round of street closures and CTA reroutes. The last "major" closures were reportedly a few weekends back but there are still more in store this week, which should be one of the last bouts of filming for the movie. Beginning tonight at 7 p.m. and lasting until 6 a.m. Friday, Washington Street between Wabash and Michigan and Madison Street between Wabash and Michigan will be subject to closure. This will affect a few CTA bus routes, which you can review here. more ›

More explosions from imaginary transforming robots will again shut down downtown streets this weekend and cause a number of CTA reroutes. So what kind of weekend havoc are Optimus Prime and Megatron going to cause on weekend traffic? Besides the now-typical explosions, fireballs, skydivers, and helicopters, Wacker Drive will be closed between Wabash and State starting at 8 p.m. tomorrow night through 5 a.m. Monday July 26 and Wabash will be closed between Wacker and Lake starting at 8 p.m. tomorrow night and going through 5 a.m. Monday July 26. While the CTA has yet to post this weekend's reroutes, ABC 7 has a list of the affected bus routes here. more ›

Oprah's not the only entertainer who can snarl downtown traffic; Optimus Prime is getting in on the act, too. Filming for the blockbuster threequel Transformers 3 takes place down this weekend, largely in the financial district, and that's gonna cause some street closures and subsequent bus reroutes. Also, don't get spooked if you see helicopters flying constantly: an aerial unit will also be shooting over the scene and there promises to be a few parachute stunts. Exciting. The same goes for all the explosions you may see and hear downtown. No, the apocalypse isn't upon us, just a Michael Bay film. Which, really, is about the same, now that we think about it. ANYWAY. What streets will be closed? The Tribune reports: more ›

Starting yesterday, the CTA has changed a few bus routes with new permanent or experimental routes. You can check out all the details here. Also, the reroutes down Michigan Ave. for Oprah's Super Happy Fun Time continue through Wednesday morning. If you're commute is going to be affected, be sure to check out the reroutes here. more ›

If you're staying in town for the holiday tomorrow but plan on using buses, be prepared for some downtown area reroutes because of the McDonald's Thanksgiving Day Parade. The CTA website has info here and the Trib also has us covered. Hmmmm. The parade runs down State Street, from Congress to Randolph, from 8:30 a.m. til 11:00 a.m. For a little history on the parade, check out Prescott's Flashback. more ›