Western station (CTA Brown Line)

For other stations named Western, see Western station.

Western is an 'L' station on the CTA's Brown Line. It is an elevated station with two side platforms, located in the Lincoln Square neighborhood. The adjacent stations are Rockwell, which is located about one-quarter mile (0.40 km) to the west, and Damen, about one-half mile (0.80 km) to the east. Between Western and Rockwell the line descends and runs on ground level tracks for the rest of the route to Kimball.

Western   2400W 4700N
Chicago 'L' rapid transit station
General information
Location	4648 North Western Avenue Chicago, Illinois 60625
Coordinates	41.966259°N 87.688448°W / 41.966259; -87.688448
Owned by	Chicago Transit Authority
Line(s)	Ravenswood Branch
Platforms	2 Side platforms
Tracks	3
Construction
Structure type	Elevated
Bicycle facilities	Yes
Accessible	Yes
History
Opened	May 18, 1907; 117 years ago (1907-05-18)[1]
Rebuilt	circa 1928; 96 years ago (1928), 1979–1981; 43 years ago (1981)
Passengers
2020	436,879[2]  65.3%
Rank	53 out of 143
Services
Preceding station Chicago "L" Following station Rockwell toward Kimball Brown Line Damen toward Loop (Washington/Wells)
Track layout Legend Brown to Kimball Western Ave. Brown to the Loop
Location

History

Belin Wall Monument inside the station

The Western station house in 2023

The station was put into service in 1907 as part of Northwestern Elevated Railroad's Ravenswood line, and has been rebuilt twice since—in the late 1920s, and again from 1979 to 1981.^[3] The current station consists of two side platforms, and a central storage line. Its platforms were extended in 2006–07 to enable the station to accommodate eight railcars as part of the Brown Line Capacity Expansion Project.^[4]

Chicago's Berlin Wall Monument is located inside of the station. Chicago was offered a piece of the wall in 2008 by the German government. The city chose to place the monument in the historically German-American Lincoln Square neighborhood. It is dedicated to the citizens of Chicago for helping "secure the freedom" of Berlin.^[5]

Bus connections

CTA

• 11 Lincoln
• 49 Western (Owl Service)
• 49B North Western
• X49 Western Express (Weekday Rush Hours only)

References

1. "New 'L' Line Operated". Chicago Daily Tribune. May 19, 1907. p. 11.
2. "Annual Ridership Report – Calendar Year 2020" (PDF). Chicago Transit Authority, Ridership Analysis and Reporting. January 19, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
3. Western. Chicago "L".org (URL accessed September 17, 2006)
4. "Western". Countdown to a New Brown. CTA. Retrieved April 30, 2024.
5. "German Neighborhood in Chicago - Lincoln Square and Ravenswood". Chicago Dossier. Denali Multimedia LLC. Retrieved July 22, 2013.

External links

• Western station on the CTA website
• Western station on chicago-l.org
• Western Avenue entrance from Google Maps Street View