Dave Hubinek spent several years driving a truck for FedEx, worked as a driver for contractors for two years and owned five trucks of his own for eight. But the difficult schedule left the 33-year-old Carol Stream resident wanting to spend more time with his family, so he sold his routes. His “entrepreneurial spirit” led him to start a taxi service, he said, which he currently still owns — but it didn’t turn out as well as he expected.

Our complete series of stories and multimedia on the "Costly Commute," a multi-part series about the effects of rising gas prices on suburban residents.

As of April 1, Illinois ranked as the fifth-highest state in the country for gasoline motor fuel taxes. A spokeswoman with the Illinois Policy Institute said customers are taking the hit from these taxes when they pay at the pump, and that business owners are not — the same way if you were purchasing clothing and a tax on the clothing increased, the customer’s bill would reflect that and it would come out of their pocket.

The National Assocation of Letter Carriers and local Boy Scout and Cub Scout troops will team up on Saturday in their annual Stamp Out Hunger campaign.

On Aug. 20, Hinsdale’s Nurturing Wisdom Academy will open its inaugural doors to 36 fifth- through eighth-grade students at Zion Lutheran Church. The year-round school will feature exceptionally small class sizes, curriculum customized to student needs, time-independent projects and, one unique catch — no homework.

The 16th Street Theater has extended the run of its current show “Enfrascada: A Hoodoo Comedy of Jarring Proportions” through next weekend.

When gas prices are high, pizza delivery driver Morrtelouis Carson has to do a quick bit of pizza algebra with every trip across town. Each $1 delivery fee goes almost entirely toward gas. He usually puts $20 worth into his 1999 Chevy Malibu’s tank at the beginning of the night — so he hopes to make about 20 trips during his six-hour shift. With gas regularly priced at more than $4 a gallon, it's become even more important to take as many deliveries, per trip, as possible.

As part of our Costly Commute series, we debunk the cheapest time to buy gas and explain the difference between E-85 and regular fuel.

With gas prices at well more than $4 a gallon recently, Robert Cabeen of Geneva has no regrets about buying his Volt last year — and being able to bypass the pump almost every time he drives. He’s among a growing population that thinks electric vehicles will soon become more common as prices drop and more charging stations are installed.

For more than a decade, 88-year-old Florence Schubert has been using Pace’s Dial-a-Ride service through Downers Grove Township. Because of her limited, Social Security-based income, Schubert only rides once a week to pick up groceries at $10 a trip.

With gas prices at more than $4 per gallon, some commuters may opt to utilize public transportation to avoid the large hit to their pocketbooks to fill their vehicles’ tanks.

Nearly three months after Isabel Diaz passed away suddenly of a brain anuerysm, students and staff at Lincoln Middle School memorialized the 13-year-old student at the annual student vs. teacher basketball game.

Berwyn Main Street, a not-for-profit organization that promotes local business development along Cermak Road, will host a Fiesta Night today beginning at 6:30 p.m.

The North Berwyn Park District will announce its annual ‘Best of Berwyn’ contest winner at a dinner and awards ceremony tonight.

Names for Ogden Avenue — a road that was once the main connection between the heart of Chicago and the western suburbs — came and went over the years.

Caffe Palermo looks like it could be straight out of Ogden Avenue's hay day in the mid-20th century. A weathered front door opens to reveal aged wooden floors, an antique tin ceiling and posters of singers and movie stars from the 1940s through ‘60s.

In the last 15 years, Nazareth Academy in La Grange Park has seen a lot of changes, including $15 million in renovations.

Collecting baseball cards and models may be considered by many to be a hobby of the past, but for La Grange Park resident Bill Pekarik, it’s anything but.

The City of Homes Organization will kick off the first-ever Bungalow Appreciation Week on Saturday with a Bikes and Bungalows tour of Berwyn.