Traffic to work is down across the city, but traffic to the shops and restaurants is up.
That is, in part because people are driving less and spending less time in the city.
In a report released Wednesday, the city’s traffic department said the rise in car ownership was partly driven by people spending less money at retail and restaurants.
The department’s data show that more than 4 million people drove in Chicago last year, down from 4.3 million in 2015.
The number of people who drove in 2016 dropped by 3.4 million.
In 2015, the number of car owners in the state was about 4 million.
It said that car ownership is rising because people in Chicago are getting used to driving and want to spend less time at the office.
That may be a positive for the city because more people can go out and socialize.