Western station (CTA Blue Line Forest Park branch)

Not to be confused with Western station (CTA Blue Line O'Hare branch), also on the Blue Line.
Western
 
2400W
430S
Chicago 'L' rapid transit station
General information
Location430 South Western Avenue
Chicago, Illinois 60612
Coordinates41°52′32″N 87°41′18″W / 41.875478°N 87.688436°W / 41.875478; -87.688436
Owned byChicago Transit Authority
Line(s)Forest Park Branch
Platforms1 island platform
Tracks2
Construction
Structure typeExpressway median
Bicycle facilitiesYes
History
OpenedJune 22, 1958; 66 years ago (1958-06-22)
Passengers
2022237,176[1] Increase 23.8%
Services
Preceding station Chicago "L" Following station
Kedzie–Homan
toward Forest Park
 Blue Line
 Illinois Medical District
toward O'Hare
Former services
Preceding station Chicago "L" Following station
California
Closed 1973
toward Des Plaines
 Congress branch Medical Center
toward Jefferson Park
as an elevated station (pre-1953)
California
toward Des Plaines
 Garfield Park branch Hoyne
toward Marshfield
Location
Map

Western is a station on the 'L' system, serving the Blue Line's Forest Park branch. It is located in the median of the Eisenhower Expressway. It serves the Near West Side neighborhood and Crane Tech High School. The station is also located about 1 mile (1.6 km) north of the Western Avenue (Metra BNSF Railway Line) commuter railroad station.

History

[edit]

Elevated station

[edit]

The original Western station opened in 1895 along with numerous stations on the Metropolitan West Side Elevated lines. When skip-stop service was implemented on the Garfield Park branch in 1951, Western station was designated an A station (only A trains would stop at this station).[2] In 1953, the elevated station was closed in favor of temporary tracks running along Van Buren Street. The temporary tracks were built to accommodate the construction of the Congress Expressway and an expressway-median branch.[3]

Expressway-median station

[edit]

The expressway-median station opened on June 22, 1958. During the time when the CTA utilized skip-stop services, the station was designated as an A station, much like its elevated predecessor. This time, however, all stations on the Congress branch west of Racine station were A stations; B trains would run along the Douglas branch (part of today's Pink Line).[4][5]

Bus connections

[edit]

CTA

  • 7 Harrison (Weekdays only)
  • 49 Western (Owl Service)
  • X49 Western Express (Weekday Rush Hours only)

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Annual Ridership Report – Calendar Year 2022" (PDF). Chicago Transit Authority, Ridership Analysis and Reporting. February 2, 2023. Retrieved June 10, 2023.
  2. ^ "CTA revises Garfield, Douglas, institutes A-B service". Chicago Tribune. 1 December 1951. p. 4. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  3. ^ "Chicago L.org: Stations - Western". www.chicago-l.org. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
  4. ^ Chicago Transit Authority System Map (Map). Chicago Transit Authority. March 1991. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  5. ^ "Chicago L.org: Stations - Western". www.chicago-l.org. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Western (CTA Blue Line Congress branch).

This article relating to the Chicago Transit Authority is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

Stub icon

This Illinois train station-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Western_station_(CTA_Blue_Line_Forest_Park_branch)&oldid=1252372106"