The Loop or The Chicago Loop are the terms used to designate the historical center of downtown Chicago. Most accurately, the term refers to an area bounded by a public transit circuit along Lake Street on the north, Wabash Avenue on the east, Van Buren Street on the south, and Wells Street on the west, but in general use it refers to the whole central business district.
Chicago's central business district is bounded on the west and north by the Chicago River, on the east by Lake Michigan, and on the south by Roosevelt Road. The term The Loop has different meanings. The term most explicitly applies to the area surrounded by the loop circuit formed by 'L' train tracks, and a preceding 1880s cable car loop, but common usage defines it as the area bounded by the Chicago River on the north and west sides, Congress Parkway to the south, and Columbus Drive to the east.
