The Chicago "L" is the rapid transit system serving the city of Chicago and some of its surrounding suburbs in the U.S. state of Illinois. Operated by the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA), it is the fourth-largest rapid transit system in the United States in terms of total route length, at 102.8 miles (165.4 km) long as of 2014, and the third-busiest rapid transit system in the United States. In 2016, the "L" had 1,492 rail cars, eight different routes, and 145 train stations. In 2023, the system had 117,447,000 rides, or about 373,800 per weekday in the fourth quarter of 2023.
The Red Line is a rapid transit line in Chicago, run by the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) as part of the Chicago "L" system. It is the busiest line on the "L" system, with an average of 93,457 passengers boarding each weekday in 2022. The route is 26 miles (42 km) long with a total of 33 stations. It runs elevated from the Howard station in the Rogers Park neighborhood on the North Side, through a subway on the Near North Side, Downtown, and the South Loop, and then through the Dan Ryan Expressway median to 95th/Dan Ryan in the Roseland neighborhood on the South Side.
95th/Dan Ryan, announced as 95th, is an 'L' station in the median of the Dan Ryan Expressway and serving Chicago's Roseland neighborhood. It serves as the southern terminus of the Chicago Transit Authority's Red Line. This station was the system's thirteenth busiest in 2021. Trains take approximately 30 minutes to travel to the Loop, and 60 minutes to reach Howard.
Belmont is an 'L' station serving the CTA's North Side Main Line. It is served at all times by the Red and Brown Lines, and by the Purple Line Express during weekday rush hours. It is located at 945 West Belmont Avenue in the Lakeview neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois. It is an elevated station with two island platforms serving four tracks; Brown and Purple Line trains share the outer tracks while Red Line trains run on the inner tracks. Along with residential areas, the neighborhood surrounding Belmont contains many eclectic shops, bars, and restaurants and active nightlife. The station is one of the more heavily utilized on the system serving as a busy transfer point, and also as a terminal when the Brown Line operates as a shuttle service to and from Kimball late at night and early in the morning. It is nearly identical to Fullerton, minus the terminal status.
Addison is a Chicago "L" station on the Chicago Transit Authority Red Line. It is located in the Wrigleyville area of the Lakeview neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois, at 940 West Addison Street with city block coordinates at 3600 North at 940 West. Addison directly serves Wrigley Field, home of Major League Baseball's Chicago Cubs. The station is within the shadow of the historic baseball stadium, which was built with convenient access to the "L".
Garfield is an "L" station on the CTA's Green Line. It is situated at 320 E. Garfield Boulevard in the Washington Park neighborhood. It opened on October 12, 1892. This station is the southernmost Green Line station served by both of the Green Line's branches: south of Garfield, the Green Line splits into two branches, one terminating at Ashland/63rd, and one at Cottage Grove.
Sox–35th is an 'L' station on the CTA's Red Line. It is situated at 142 West 35th Street in the Armour Square neighborhood. The station opened on September 28, 1969, along with the other eight stations on the Dan Ryan branch.
Cermak-Chinatown is an 'L' station on the CTA's Red Line. The station is located in Chicago's Chinatown neighborhood and contains many elements of Chinese culture in its architecture.
47th is a station on the Chicago Transit Authority's 'L' system, serving the Red Line. The station is located in the median of the Dan Ryan Expressway in the Fuller Park neighborhood. Access to the station is available from a staircase at the middle of the north side of the 47th Street overpass, where an open canopy crosswalk with traffic signals leads to a bus stop on the south side of the overpass.
Garfield is an "L" station on the CTA's Red Line. The station is located in the median of the Dan Ryan Expressway. It is located in the Fuller Park neighborhood. This is the Red Line's closest stop to the University of Chicago and the Museum of Science and Industry, although the museum is more than two miles away. The station shares its name with its Green Line equivalent.
63rd is a station on the Chicago Transit Authority's 'L' system, serving the Red Line. The station is located in the median of the Dan Ryan Expressway and serves the Englewood neighborhood. It is near the former site of the Englewood Union Station, which served the Pennsylvania Railroad, New York Central, and Rock Island Lines. The former Pennsylvania Railroad tracks pass over the station. Also visible from the station is the Ashland branch of the Green Line which runs on an elevated structure immediately west of the expressway at the location before turning west on 63rd Street.
79th is a station on the Chicago Transit Authority's 'L' system, serving the Dan Ryan branch of the Red Line. The station is located in the median of the Dan Ryan Expressway. It was the first station on the Dan Ryan branch to feature an elevator for accessibility. The station's location is between the Greater Grand Crossing and Chatham neighborhoods.
87th is an 'L' station on the Chicago Transit Authority's Red Line. The station is located in the median of the Dan Ryan Expressway and serves the Chatham neighborhood. There are two entrances to the station, one on the south side of the 87th Street overpass which served as the only entrance from 1969 until 2006 and one on the north side of the overpass which was opened as part of the Dan Ryan Red Line Rehabilitation Project.
Cicero is a station on the Chicago Transit Authority's 'L' system, serving the Pink Line. The station was the site of an accident in 1979 in which a train derailed and hit the station, stopping just short of the ticket agent's booth. The station is located in Cicero, Illinois.
Bryn Mawr is a station on the Hyde Park/South Chicago branch of the Metra Electric Line. It is located at 71st Street and Jeffery Boulevard, which is 9.66 miles (15.55 km) away from the northern terminus at Randolph Street Station. In Metra's fare-based system, Bryn Mawr Station is in zone 2. As of 2018, Bryn Mawr is the 201st busiest of Metra's 236 non-downtown stations, with an average of 73 weekday boardings. The station is named for the former name of the neighborhood at the time the line was built, when it was part of Hyde Park Township.
The Dan Ryan branch is a 9.4 mi (15.1 km) long section of the Chicago "L" system located on the South Side of Chicago, Illinois. It is operated by the Chicago Transit Authority, as part of its Red Line service and is normally through-routed downtown towards the North Side via the State Street subway. As of February 2013, the branch serves 45,355 passengers per weekday. As part of the CTA's busiest rapid transit line, it is operated 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. The branch serves the Chinatown, Armour Square, Fuller Park, Englewood, Greater Grand Crossing, Chatham and Roseland neighborhoods.
The Lake–Dan Ryan Line was a rail rapid transit route formerly operated by the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA). The Lake–Dan Ryan Line existed from the opening of the Dan Ryan branch on September 28, 1969, until February 21, 1993. When created, the route united two transit corridors that until 1969 never had through rail service. This routing, which became known as the West-South route, operated from the Harlem terminal in Forest Park on the Lake Street "L" through downtown Chicago along the Union Loop "L", and then via the old South Side "L" and the new Dan Ryan Line to the 95th Street Terminal. The Lake–Dan Ryan service was planned in conjunction with the former Franklin Street Connector and Chicago Central Area Transit Project, both of which were never constructed. The section of the route between the junction with the South Side "L" at 17th and State Streets and the Cermak–Chinatown Station was originally an "interim", or temporary facility. It was planned to be torn down when the Loop Subway system was completed, but survived after the project was canceled in 1979. That section was improved in the 1980s and early 1990s and is currently being used by the Orange Line. Train transfers are possible by using the two unused tracks.
Roosevelt is an "L" station on the CTA's Red, Green, and Orange Lines, located between the Chicago Loop and the Near South Side in Chicago, Illinois. It is situated at 1167 S State Street, just north of Roosevelt Road. The station is also the closest "L" station to the Museum Campus of Chicago and Soldier Field, which are about 1⁄2 mile (800 m) to the east. The Museum Campus/11th Street Metra station is also about 1⁄3 mile (500 m) to the east.
In the spring of 2012, Chicago Transit Authority started a station and track rehabilitation program dubbed "Red Ahead", beginning on the North Side Main Line, which is called the "Red North" project. The program monitors the full route of the Red Line, which does not include the stations of Loyola, Bryn Mawr, Sheridan, or Wilson. Stations between Wilson through Fullerton, and the State Street subway, are also not included. In May 2012, the CTA started to work on the North Side Main Line stations which includes Jarvis, Morse, Granville, Thorndale, Berwyn, Argyle, and Lawrence. The stations are listed in order, starting at Granville, then Morse, Thorndale, Argyle, Berwyn, Lawrence, and finally Jarvis. This project started in June 2012 and completed in December 2012. This project is also part of the Red Ahead's "Red & Purple Modernization" project.
The Normal Park branch was a rapid transit line which was part of the Chicago "L" system from 1907 to 1954. The branch served the Englewood neighborhood of Chicago and consisted of four elevated stations. It opened on May 25, 1907, and closed on January 29, 1954.
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