Western station (CTA Blue Line O'Hare branch)

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For other stations named Western, see Western station.
Not to be confused with Western station (CTA Blue Line Forest Park branch), also on the Blue Line.
Western
 
2400W
1900N
Chicago 'L' rapid transit station
Western Avenue Station.jpg
General information
Location1909-11 North Western Avenue
Chicago, Illinois 60647
Coordinates41°54′58″N 87°41′15″W / 41.916157°N 87.687364°W / 41.916157; -87.687364Coordinates: 41°54′58″N 87°41′15″W / 41.916157°N 87.687364°W / 41.916157; -87.687364
Owned byChicago Transit Authority
Line(s)O'Hare Branch
Platforms2 side platforms
Tracks2
Construction
Structure typeElevated
Disabled accessYes
History
OpenedMay 25, 1895
Rebuilt2000–01
Passengers
2020509,566[1] Decrease 69.1% (CTA)
Rank43 out of 143
Services
Preceding station Chicago "L" Following station
California
toward O'Hare Pictograms-nps-airport.svg
 Blue Line Damen
toward Forest Park

Western is a Chicago "L" station on the Chicago Transit Authority's Blue Line, on North Western Avenue near West Armitage Avenue. The station is located within the Bucktown neighborhood in the larger Logan Square community area. Opened in 1895, it is one of the oldest stations on what is now the Blue Line.

Western was constructed by the Metropolitan West Side Elevated Railroad to serve its Logan Square branch. The Metropolitan's operations, along with the rest of the "L", were assumed by the private Chicago Rapid Transit Company in 1924 and the public Chicago Transit Authority in 1948. The rail lines that had been constructed by the Metropolitan were significantly altered in the 1950s, a process that created the "West-Northwest Route" in 1958, which was renamed the Blue Line in 1992. After the West-Northwest Route was created, the Logan Square branch was extended multiple times in the 1970s and 1980s to O'Hare International Airport, becoming known as the present-day "O'Hare branch"

Western station itself was significantly rebuilt in 1930, and again in 2000–2001. Both reconstructions maintained substantial pieces of the station's historical fabric while introducing many new elements and modernizations.

History

Main article: Logan Square branch

The Metropolitan West Side Elevated Railroad Company was granted a 50-year franchise by the Chicago City Council on April 7, 1892,[2] and began securing right of way shortly thereafter.[3] As designed, the Metropolitan's operations would comprise a main line that went west from downtown to Marshfield, where three branches – one northwest to Logan Square, one due west to Garfield Park, and one southwest to Douglas Park – would diverge and serve various parts of Chicago's west side.[4] A further branch to Humboldt Park would proceed due west from the Logan Square branch just past Robey Street.[a][4][5]

The Metropolitan began service at 6 a.m. on Monday, May 6, 1895, between Robey on the Logan Square branch[a] and Canal on the main line.[7] The Logan Square branch was extended to Logan Square on May 25, an extension that included a station on Western Avenue.[5]

The Metropolitan's lines were originally operated by the West Side Construction Company, which had been responsible for constructing them, and would be transferred to the Metropolitan on October 6, 1896.[8] The backers and officers of the two companies were largely identical, however, so this transfer of ownership was nominal.[4][8] The expenses incurred in constructing the Metropolitan's vast trackage would come back to haunt the company, which entered receivership in 1897; the similarly-named Metropolitan West Side Elevated Railway Company was organized in January 1899 and assumed operations on February 3 of that year.[9] The new Metropolitan, along with the other companies operating "L" lines in Chicago, became a part of the Chicago Elevated Railways (CER) trust on July 1, 1911.[10] CER acted as a de facto holding company for the "L" – unifying its operations, instituting the same management across the companies, and instituting free transfers between the lines starting in 1913 – but kept the underlying companies intact.[11] This continued until the companies were formally merged into the single Chicago Rapid Transit Company (CRT) in 1924, which assumed operations on January 9; the former Metropolitan was designated the Metropolitan division of the CRT for administrative purposes.[12] Although municipal ownership of transit had been a hotly-contested issue for half a century, the publicly-owned Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) would not be created until 1945,[13] or assume operation of the "L" until October 1, 1947.[14]

The CTA instituted major changes on the "L", which was suffering from declining ridership, antiquated infrastructure, and complicated routing. With respect to the lines built by the Metropolitan, it instituted broad changes that had been planned since the late 1930s; the Logan Square branch south of Damen was replaced by the Milwaukee-Dearborn subway, which opened on February 25, 1951.[15] With the subway's opening, it also restricted the Humboldt Park branch to a shuttle service to and from Damen,[15] and closed it altogether in 1952. Combined with the replacement of the main line and Garfield Park branch with the Congress Line in 1958, this formed a new route called the "West-Northwest Route", which entered service on June 22, 1958.[16] This route was renamed the Blue Line in 1992.[17] Skip-stop, where certain "A" and "B" trains stopped at respective "A" and "B" stations, was instituted with the 1951 opening of the subway; Western was deemed a "B" station.[15]

Station reconstructions and renovations

A train station with two wooden side platforms, each with gooseneck lights and hipped roof canopies, is seen looking southeast. Partially clouded by fog, the Sears Tower is also visible.
Western station in 1997, prior to its reconstruction.

In 1930, an Art Deco style façade replaced its original station entrance. In 2000–2001, a renovation project of the station included ADA-accessible elevators. During refurbishment the station Art Deco façade was restored with the station house.

Your New Blue Program

Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Governor Pat Quinn announced on December 5th, 2013 a $429 million comprehensive improvement plan called "Your New Blue" for the O'Hare branch and Dearborn Street Subway, both a part of the Blue Line. The improvements to Western as a part of Your New Blue include a public art installation, called "Remnants | Restos", upgrading the station house, installing secure bicycle storage, a sidewalk canopy, LEDs for the historic façade, and replacement of the roofing, handrails, and guardrails on the north and south stairs.[18]

Bus connections

CTA

  • 49 Western (Owl Service)
  • X49 Western Express (Weekday Rush Hours only)
  • 56 Milwaukee
  • 73 Armitage

Notes

  1. ^ a b Technically, the Logan Square branch started after Robey and was, like the Humboldt Park branch, a divergence from what was formally known as the "Northwest branch".[5] However, as early as 1898, even the Metropolitan itself was referring to the Northwest branch as part of the "Logan Square branch".[6]

References

  1. ^ "Annual Ridership Report – Calendar Year 2020" (PDF). Chicago Transit Authority, Ridership Analysis and Reporting. January 19, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
  2. ^ Moffat, p. 123
  3. ^ Review, p. 263
  4. ^ a b c Review, p. 264
  5. ^ a b c Moffat, p. 130
  6. ^ "The Metropolitan West Side Elevated Railroad". Metropolitan West Side Elevated Railroad. 1898. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  7. ^ "New "L" Road Opens". Chicago Tribune. Vol. 54, no. 127. May 7, 1895. p. 12 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ a b Moffat, p. 134
  9. ^ Moffat, p. 139
  10. ^ Moffat, p. 237
  11. ^ Moffat, pp. 240–242
  12. ^ Moffat, p. 261
  13. ^ Moffat, p. 260
  14. ^ Chicago Transit Authority (October 1, 1947). "Today – they're all yours!". Chicago Tribune. Vol. 106, no. 235. p. 8. Retrieved 29 October 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ a b c Buck, Thomas (February 18, 1951). "1st Trains Run in New Subway Saturday Night". Chicago Tribune. Vol. 110, no. 7, Part 1. p. 21. Retrieved October 24, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ "Announces Congress Subway Plan System for Trains". Berwyn Life. Vol. 26, no. 70. Berwyn, Illinois. June 11, 1958. p. 5. Retrieved October 25, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ "A colorful inspiration at the CTA". Chicago Tribune. Vol. 148, no. 209. September 25, 1992. p. 1-22. Retrieved October 25, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ^ "Chicago "L".org: Stations - Western/Milwaukee". chicago-l.org.

Works cited

  • Moffat, Bruce G. (1995). The "L": The Development of Chicago's Rapid Transit System, 1888–1932. Chicago: Central Electric Railfans' Association. ISBN 0-915348-30-6.
  • "The Metropolitan West Side Elevated Railroad of Chicago". The Street Railway Review. 5: 263–274. January 15, 1895.

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