Washington/Wabash station

Washington/Wabash is an 'L' station on the CTA's Brown, Green, Orange, Pink, and Purple Lines. The station opened on August 31, 2017.[3] It serves as a consolidation and replacement of the Randolph/Wabash and Madison/Wabash stations. The project was undertaken by the Chicago Department of Transportation. Construction of the $75 million station began in 2015, following the closure of Madison/Wabash in March 2015 and was completed in August 2017. The station is located between Washington and Madison Streets on Wabash Avenue in the Loop.

Washington/Wabash
 
100N
44E
Chicago 'L' rapid transit station
General information
Location29 N. Wabash Avenue
Chicago, Illinois 60602
Coordinates41°52′58″N 87°37′34″W / 41.882900°N 87.626205°W / 41.882900; -87.626205
Owned byCity of Chicago
Line(s)Loop Elevated
Platforms2 Side platforms
Tracks2
ConnectionsMetra ME & South Shore Line at Millennium Station
Construction
Structure typeElevated
AccessibleYes
History
OpenedAugust 31, 2017; 7 years ago (2017-08-31)[1]
Passengers
20201,082,287[2]Decrease 65.4%
Rank11 out of 143
Services
Preceding station Chicago "L" Following station
State/Lake
One-way operation
Orange Line Adams/Wabash
toward Midway
State/Lake Green Line Adams/Wabash
State/Lake
One-way operation
Purple Line
Express
Adams/Wabash
toward Linden
Pink Line Adams/Wabash
State/Lake
toward Kimball
Brown Line Adams/Wabash
One-way operation
Former services
Preceding station Chicago "L" Following station
Randolph/Wabash
Closed 2017
One-way operation
Orange Line Adams/Wabash
toward Midway
Randolph/Wabash
Closed 2017
Green Line Adams/Wabash
Randolph/Wabash
Closed 2017
One-way operation
Purple Line
Express
Adams/Wabash
toward Linden
Pink Line Adams/Wabash
Randolph/Wabash
Closed 2017
toward Kimball
Brown Line Adams/Wabash
One-way operation
Location
Map

In 2018, the new station was recognized with an award of excellence by the American Institute of Architects, Chicago chapter.[4]

History

edit

Before the construction of Washington/Wabash station, two stations were taking the place of the current station: Madison/Wabash station and Randolph/Wabash station. Both stations opened on November 8, 1896, as part of construction on the Wabash portion of the Loop Elevated.[5]

The CTA had proposed consolidating the two stations since November 1981.[6][5] A similar consolidation project occurred in July 1995, with the opening of Washington/Wells station, a replacement station of both Madison/Wells station and Randolph/Wells station.[7] In September 1998, the CTA proposed a $29 million superstation replacing both Madison/Wabash station and State/Lake station; this plan never happened.[6][8]

 
Washington/Wabash station under construction, June 2017

In April 2003, the CTA worked with and gave $1 million to the Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) to start preliminary work on a future consolidated station between Madison/Wabash and Randolph/Wabash stations. Ten years later on September 30, 2013, the final design of the new station was unveiled. The station was priced at $75 million, which was funded by the federal Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) program.[6][9] The new station was planned to be ADA-accessible unlike its predecessor stations. With the removal of the two original stations, travel time and maintenance cost on the Wabash section would be reduced.[10] Although construction on the new station was planned to begin in fall 2014, it was delayed to March 2015. On March 16, 2015, as part of construction, Madison/Wabash station was closed permanently.[11][6] The new consolidated station opened on August 31, 2017.[8] Randolph/Wabash station then closed three days later on September 3 in favor of the newly opened station.[12]

Bus connections

edit

CTA

  • J14 Jeffery Jump
  • 20 Madison (Owl Service)
  • 56 Milwaukee
  • 60 Blue Island/26th (Owl Service)
  • 124 Navy Pier
  • 147 Outer DuSable Lake Shore Express
  • 151 Sheridan
  • 157 Streeterville/Taylor (Weekdays only)

References

edit
  1. ^ "Chicago's new Washington-Wabash 'L' station officially opens". 31 August 2017.
  2. ^ "Annual Ridership Report – Calendar Year 2020" (PDF). Chicago Transit Authority, Ridership Analysis and Reporting. January 19, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
  3. ^ "CTA Opens New 'L' Station In Loop". 2017-08-31. Retrieved 2019-09-10.
  4. ^ Kamin, Blair (October 26, 2018). "Restored Unity Temple, Loop CTA station highlight winners of architecture awards". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2018-10-28.
  5. ^ a b "A Farewell to The Loop's Madison-Wabash Station". Curbed Chicago. 13 March 2015. Retrieved 28 August 2023.
  6. ^ a b c d "Timeline: A century of the Madison/Wabash 'L' station". Chicago Tribune. 16 March 2015. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
  7. ^ "Chicago L.org: Stations - Washington/Wells". www.chicago-l.org. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
  8. ^ a b "Chicago L.org: Stations - Washington/Wabash". www.chicago-l.org. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
  9. ^ "Mayor Emanuel Announces Release of Final Renderings of Washington-Wabash CTA Elevated Station". www.chicago.gov. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
  10. ^ Greenfield, John (26 March 2014). "Loop Station Consolidation Will Offer Quicker Ride for Straphangers". Streetsblog Chicago. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
  11. ^ "Sunday The Final Day For Madison/Wabash 'L' Station - CBS Chicago". CBS News. 15 March 2015. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
  12. ^ LaTrace, A. J. (5 September 2017). "The Loop's Randolph/Wabash station is now permanently closed". Curbed Chicago. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
edit

  Media related to Washington/Wabash station at Wikimedia Commons