Oh man, I will say that the traffic situation is way better here. Of course things get congested around rush hour, and Springfield drivers are a different breed of dumb sometimes.. but nothing compared to trying to get in, out of, and through the Chicago area, lol.

I’m surprised about the expensive part 🤔 I’m not a Springfield advocate, I’ve definitely voiced my frustrations with STL, KC, and SGF. But I’m bottom of middle class, I don’t really spend on anything, and I find SGF to be very affordable compared to the rest of the state/country. Same amenities as STL/KC (except for concerts and pro sport entertainment) for much less cost of living. My coworkers are all super nice, and so are the staff at stores and restaurants. Other than that, I only interact with college friends and people at bars, who are all great as well!

sgf is similar to the southern suburbs of chi in many ways. you will likely find it easy to fit in.

My uncle lived in Rockford for 30 years or so any he would come down here for holidays and always loved how friendly everyone was even just in line at a grocery store.