Adam Benjamin Metro Center

Gary Metro
Metro Center station in April 2016.
General information
Other names	Adam Benjamin Metro Center
Location	200 West 4th Avenue Gary, Indiana
Coordinates	41°36′17″N87°20′18″W / 41.60472°N 87.33833°W / 41.60472; -87.33833
Owned by	The city of Gary, Indiana
Platforms	1 low-level island platform
Tracks	2
Connections	Gary Public Transportation Corporation
Construction
Structure type	Elevated
Accessible	Yes
Architect	H. Seay Cantrell Associates
Other information
Fare zone	5
History
Opened	1984
Electrified	1,500 V DC
Passengers
2019	426 (average weekday) [1]
Services
Preceding station NICTD Following station Gary/​Chicago Airport toward Millennium Station South Shore Line Miller toward South Bend Airport
Former services Preceding station NICTD Following station Ambridge Closed 1994 toward Randolph Street South Shore Line Miller toward South Bend Airport
Track layout Legend to Millennium SR 53 (Broadway) I-90  / Indiana Toll Road to South Bend Airport
Location

Gary Metro Center (also known as the Adam Benjamin Metro Center) is a multimodal commuter hub operated by the Gary Public Transportation Corporation. It was built in 1984 as an elevated replacement of the previously ground-level Broadway Street station. ^[2] Named in honor of local US Representative Adam Benjamin Jr., ^[3] who died in 1982, it serves as the central bus terminal and the Downtown Gary station on the South Shore Line. It also serves as a stop for Greyhound Lines and other intercity bus systems.

It is one of three NICTD electric train stations in Gary, and serves the Genesis Convention Center and the U.S. Steel Yard baseball park, home of the Gary SouthShore RailCats baseball team. The RailCats's full name, SouthShore RailCats, honors the South Shore Line.

The station is just south of the Indiana Toll Road (I-90) and the disused Gary Union Station. The tracks of the former Baltimore and Ohio (now CSX) and New York Central Railroads (now Norfolk Southern) also lie near the station.

Structure

The station consists of a single elevated low-level island platform with mobile wheelchair lifts to allow passengers with disabilities to board and disembark. The platform can be accessed from the second floor of stairs located adjacent to Broadway as well as via the second floor of the station building. ^[4] The station was designed by Gary-based architectural firm H. Seay Cantrell Associates. ^[3]

Bus connections

Gary Public Transportation Corporation

Local Routes

• Route L1: West-Central via Grant
• Route L2: Oak/County Line via Aetna
• Route L3: Crosstown Connector
• Route L4: University Park

Regional Routes

• Route R1: R1: Lakeshore Connection
• Route R3: Burr Street and Lake Ridge
• Route R-BMX: Broadway Metro Express

Greyhound Lines

History

A westbound train at Gary in August 1975

Gary station opened in 1908 as an inaugural stop along the new Chicago, Lake Shore and South Bend Railway; it was located at Broadway and Third, ^[2] near the United States Steel Corporation plant and several steam railroad stations. The station building had a footprint of 23 by 78 feet (7.0 m × 23.8 m) and featured a tile roof. A 200-foot (61 m) platform, level with car floors, was provided for passengers and freight handling. A storage yard and wye were also provided. It contained a ticket office, waiting rooms, and baggage room. ^[5] A new station building had replaced the original by the 1950s. ^[2]

The modern station was dedicated on October 16, 1985. ^[6]

References

1. "2020 State of the System Report" (PDF). Metra. November 2020. p. SSL-4.^{[ permanent dead link ]}
2. Ogorek 2012, p. 90.
3. Zdravich, John (November 23, 1986). "Center wins duo design award". The Times. Hammond, Indiana. p. C-5. Retrieved November 3, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
4. "ADA Accessibility" (PDF). Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 21, 2019. Retrieved December 26, 2019.
5. One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain : "The Chicago, Lake Shore & South Bend Railway" (PDF). Electric Railway Journal . Vol. XXXIII, no. 15. McGraw Publishing Company. April 10, 1909. pp. 681–682. Retrieved August 31, 2025.
6. "Benjamin center dedicated". The Times. Hammond, Indiana. October 17, 1985. p. A-2. Retrieved November 3, 2024– via Newspapers.com.

Bibliography

• Ogorek, Cynthia L. (2012). Along the Chicago South Shore & South Bend Rail Line. Images of America. Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing. ISBN   978-0-738-59419-4. OL   25977909M.

External links

• Media related to Adam Benjamin Metro Center at Wikimedia Commons
• South Shore Line - Stations
• South Shore Railfan.net
• Station from Google Maps Street View

v t e Gary train stations
Legend
to Chicago (Millennium) Gary/Chicago Airport, Pennsylvania Railroad to Chicago Union Station Gary (PRR) B&O to Chicago (Grand Central) NYC to Chicago (LaSalle St.) Adam Benjamin Metro Center Gary Union Station New York Central Railroad to New York (Grand Central) Miller and Gary–Lake St Baltimore and Ohio Railroad to Jersey City Broadway, to South Bend Airport Pennsylvania Railroad to New York (Penn)